Official Luthiers Forum!

Has anyone out there on OLF land tried the new Dremel 400xpr? I need a new one when I get back (mine's got more runout than the Aussie cricket team) and this model is not available in the UK yet for me to look at. I've only seen it on Stew Mac's site and on Dremel's own. It has a circle cutter attachment with it, anyone tried it?

If I decide to get one I'd be getting it from Stew Mac anyway, particularly as they are one of our sponsors now, as I have quite a large order to send them. Perhaps if anyone from that great organisation is watching they could chip in. Oh, I assume it's got the 12tpi thread for use with Stew Mac's router base.

Colin   

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Wish I could help, I'm curious myself.

John

[QUOTE=John Kinnaird] Wish I could help, I'm curious myself.

John[/QUOTE]

I've sent an e-mail to Stew Mac so I'll let you know what they say. The extra power would be welcome/

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

The circle cutter attachment looks to be similar to the one Dremel makes for their Advantage model. If it is, it isn't really suitable for lutherie. Problem is, there is no depth adjustment. It's not as much a circle cutter as it is a hole cutter.

Hopefully the 400 is as durable as the 395. I have a model 395, still going strong after 12 years of use. Wish I could say the same thing about the Advantage.   A real POS. The locking pin that needs to be engaged when loosening or tightening the bit and collet is made of plastic and is extremely fragile. I've broken two Advantages, loosening the collet nut. I'm getting pissed off again, just thinking about it.

Best,

Michael

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Live to Play, Play to Live

I've got the new 400 xpr and it seems really good. I did my inlays and cut the sound hole with it last week. I replaced a 20 year old craftsman with it so I really don't have anything recent to compare it to, but it worked like a dream for me.I didn't use the included circle guide, though, as I have the stew-mac base and their circle attachment. Stew-Mac's is very easy to use and very accurate.

Ron

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OLD MAN formerly (and formally) known as:

Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......

Michael, my old 395 has developed definite bearing trouble after about 5 years, the runout on it is now too bad for detailed use. As I am going over to 110v for all my hand tools it means I can buy US models, so the new higher powered 400 rather appeals (the 395 was always underpowered). I intend to keep using my old Stew Mac base and circle cutter with it though. I was just wondering if it would be a good first step for new builders saving then a chunk of money in set up costs.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Tanks for that Ron, It's good to here from a satisfied customer. I'd use it with my Stew Mac base as well, but as I don't do inlay, it will just be a dedicated circle cutter.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Colin. the motor has a bit more power than the pro series. the circle cutter however is not suitable for lutherie in my view. The bearings seem to be much better that those in the pro series I had.

Stew Mac have been back to me (Like Lightning!)and yes it is fully compatible with all their Dremel accesories so it looks like a good deal. More pony power (at 200W hardly horsepower) and better bearings. I'll stick it in my SM base and keep it reserved for rosettes. Don't you just love good tools.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Colin

Better Late than Never !!! My Brain is a bit slow

I had a thought, if you want a tool for just cutting rosettes have you considered the Drill Press Cutter that LMI do ?

I was thinking of moving over to this tool, I saw in John Mayes DVD he was using one and it looks as if once you have set it up, it is much faster. I am considering changing to one myself.

Thanks Russell, yes I've considered it, and may give it try. I do like to make my rosette first and then cut the channel to fit it, I find that with the dremel I can gradually widen the channel to get the fit I want. With the drill press rig it seems to be a one shot hit. No harm in having both though, sort of belt and braces. I think I'll wait until you've tried it and let you make the mistakes that I would be bound to do!

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

Hi Colin

Thats the dilema with this tool it is fully adjustable, but looks a bit tricky to setup, so in a situation like mine where I do a lot of custom rosettes, so I could spend a lot of time on setup.

If i decide to give it a go I will let you know how I get on.

Russell, the one I was considering is on Luthier Tool's website. I can never get their site to work properly so can't see the price anywhere, looks expensive but also looks a good tool.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.