# 6'' Bufflo jointer, Good or Bad? ASAP



## Moose44 (Jun 19, 2011)

Hello,

I may be leaving soon, 1.5 hours to go buy a 6'' Bufflo jointer. It is in "great shape", the guy clearly painted it. It is a 2 HP.

I know it is a Chinese brand.

Do you guys think it is a good deal at $125? I'm not so much worried about loosing out $125, but I do not want to buy a p.o.s. that will not preform properly and mess up my wood. Also, it it's life a long time or will I need to get a new one sooner rather then later? I'll mainly be using it for hardwoods.

Here is it's link so you can see it.

http://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/tls/2496459057.html

Thanks!


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## SCOTSMAN (Aug 1, 2008)

I'd say $125 is a good price if you can haggle and get it down a bit to say $100 then all the better.However if you've agreed to opay $125 without seeing it *which I doubt* then maybe you should pay up, but if he's keen to sell haggle I would. Alistair


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## Tedstor (Mar 12, 2011)

Color aside, it looks identical to the Harbor Freight 6" Jointer. If you have a HF store nearby, you can buy one for around $200 with coupon. 
That said, $125 seems like a good deal - assuming good condition.


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## dbhost (Jul 20, 2009)

The HF 6" with coupon is around $212.00 and is a very solid machine. The Buffalo is capable of being wired to 220V which is a big plus, not to mention the motor is 2HP versus HFs 1HP…. If it is all flat and true, and cuts well, and nothing is broken or missing, I would give the guy the $125.00 and be happy with it…

Mind you no more than an hour ago, I was cursing my 6" jointer for being too narrow… But I imagine guys with 8" jointers etc… run into the it's too narrow problem.


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## longgone (May 5, 2009)

I had a Buffalo drill press prior to 2005 and it was an old American made super quality machine that was better than any other i have had. Had a foot operated pedal to lower the quill in addition to the hand wheel.
Never seen one since then. If your jointer is the same manufactured piece of Buffalo machinery as my previous drill press was then you are getting one hell of a bargain.


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## 280305 (Sep 28, 2008)

I also have an old Buffalo Forge drill press, and it is an amazing machine. However, the jointer in question is not made by the same company.

This is from OWMM:
Almost all "Buffalo" bandsaws and any tablesaws, jointers, etc., with the Buffalo name are 1980s Taiwanese imports of poor quality. These machines are completely unrelated to Buffalo Forge and associated businesses.


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## fussy (Jan 18, 2010)

It's the same machine as the HF 6" which is really a good machine. I question the 2hp claim, and on a relatively small motor (15 amps or less), wiring for 220 volt makes no difference. It supplies no more power than 120, just lets you do it on smaller wiring; 15 amps on the hot leg for 120 vs 7 1/2 amps per leg for 220. The power will be the same. Offer $100 AFTER you've seen and heard it run. Blades for it are about $10/pair @ HF and last forever IF you CLEAN your wood before running it.

Steve


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

Kevin, from the good comments about Buffalo brand, I''d say go for it and haggle for low price!


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## oblowme (May 20, 2011)

I had the same machine in the early 90's, it was a pretty good unit, solid and true. The only cavit I'd offer is the fence system; I can't tell for sure by the photos but it looks like it hasn't changed. The cantalever design works fine however it places all of the load on the trunon, be careful moving the machine around as it doesn't take much to snap it. I had to braze mine back together. The 2hp claim is bull, that's a flash reading at locked rotor and thus irrelevant, the practical power generated is more like 1/2-3/4hp.
Wiring for 220 does have advantages; motors do produce more torque, draw less power and run allot cooler, plus the small amount saved in the wiring.
If you'd care to see it for yourself put a stop watch on a band or table saw and clock the time between start and run, or (if it can be arranged) put 2 bandsaws (or any other machines that require high starting torque) side by side, one wired 110 the other 220, start both at the same time and see which one reaches running speed first. This test makes it very clear which voltage will produce more torque, which is allot more important than claimed HP output.
I rewired to 220 every motor that would run with it as well as make provisions for any I could update to in the future. The table and band saws I have took @ a second to a second and a half to reach speed at 110, at 220 they are virtually instant on, no growling as the arbor spins up, just on like a light switch, as well as being allot harder to stall, that's what torque is all about. Claims that poop poop the advantages of the higher voltage should be taken with a grain of saw dust. After all if you visit a professional shop you'd find just about all of their machines running 220 single phase and some 440 3 phase if possible. Is it possible that all of these people can be wrong?


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## Moose44 (Jun 19, 2011)

Thanks to all of you whom gave your advice. WoodRMe, very interesting facts. That's cool to know. Thanks.


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## hcmthree (Mar 28, 2010)

Just curious if you bought the jointer? I have a similar model (Transpower) that I refurbished a couple of years ago. It probably was more work than was justifiable, but I have been perfectly happy with the unit.


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## Moose44 (Jun 19, 2011)

The guy never got back to me… That's Craigslist though. Good thing is that there are always decent tools on there for cheap.


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