Thinking of buying a used industrial machine?

[Darren B]

Types of Machine and setting them up. There are a huge variety of machines out there and I will try to give some useful tips that might save you some grief.

Motors and Speed. As I mentioned before - don't let the speed deter you as there are several options to control the machine. If buying from a dealer ask him to let you try different setups to see what suits you best.

Benches. A standard bench is about 1200 long by 600 wide. This can be shortened considerably but is not always a good idea. A bench on a standard base can be cut down to about 820mm but I strongly suggest a hinged section to extend the working side when in use. I have seen overlockers on custom benches 600mm wide.

Computers. If you see what looks like a bargain machine with a series of LED readouts on top of the machine head then keep walking. They are designed for high speed repetitive production and are a hinderence for anything else.

Special Attachments. Often machines are set up to do very specific tasks and occasionally the basic machine is modified to work with the myriad of devices that can be bolted on so be very cautious.

To be continued......