Just received my new C3-31 Comfort combination machine over the weekend and thought I'd post my first impressions for those considering this brand or machine in the future.
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The C3 was purchased on the basis of the current Felder anniversary discount, which saved around $5k off of the list price. I had been looking at a combo for some time and the discount, specification and the Hammer reputation made the package the right one for me.
Waiting time for the C3 was around 4 months. The Comfort bundle comes with popular additions including the Silent Power cutter block for the jointer/planer, interchangeable shaper spindle with router collets and scoring unit.
Felder service has been excellent in terms of delivery, answering all of the questions I've had over the last four months and providing manuals etc up front of delivery.
It was delivered right into my double garage with no issues or shipping damage. Getting it off the pallet was straightforward using a pallet jack and ramp. Setup took about a day, a lot of which was spent unpacking everything. All of the components went together easily and fitted perfectly.
I'm a hobbyist woodworker so the set up times for the different parts of the combo were not a concern. Even if they were, changing between stations is very quick, especially from sliding saw, to jointer and planer.
Using the combo is a lot of fun - its very powerful (4HP motors are standard) and just feels very smooth, well engineered. The Silent Power cutter head is very quiet - no hearing protection needed as its much quieter than the saw! I've only made a few parts so far but have tested out everything apart from the shaper. All of the parts have been accurate, flat and square without any adjustments to the factory setup.
Will update this post as my experience with the C3 develops. If you are in the market for a combo of this size and cost, I would recommend it wholeheartedly.