Really great to have you back Steve. A handful of us loyal followers have tool budgets similar to yours. It’s great to have content creators that serve this segment of the market. They are few and far between. I’ve learned a lot from your prior videos and seriously appreciate the work you put into them.
Nice video. We have three benchtop machines - an MU2-P an MU3-P and an MU3-PD, one each set up for W0, W1 & W2. We only got the Digital option because we were going to be at a show where Hoffmann wasn't going to be and they wanted us to be able to demonstrate the top-line machine. We are a production picture framing shop, and while theoretically the Digital could be helpful, we've gone a different route. We use spacer blocks between the tip of the fence plate and back fence, and we've modified the top of the depth stop so we can use spacers there as well. We developed that system before the Digital option was available, but continue to use it for consistency as well as simplicity - we can teach someone to use the machine with repeatable setups in about a minute. There's a chart with the profile numbers, W* sizes and corresponding width and height block specs. One other modification we made on the W0 machine is to add a piece of 1/4" thick phenolic board to the face of the back fence. We frequently mill very narrow moulding, as narrow as 5/16. A piece that narrow will go right through the slot in the fence, so we added the phenolic and then ran the bit up through it essentially creating a zero clearance fence.
Thank you David. Those are some good tips. I have also run into the gap problem with 1/4" thick stock so I just used a spacer on the miter fence to provide a reference point. The phenolic board is an interesting solution that would require greater bit projection. I assume that you had to mill a groove on the back side of the phenolic for clearance since the bit does not cut in that area. Great tip on the spacer blocks as well. I'll have to steal that idea for my MU2.
@@extremewoodworker I remember that Joe Calhoon showed us one of these machines. pretty cool. What options did you order with yours? I am seriously thinking of getting one. Thanks, Gary
@@cezanne1954 Hi Gary and greetings to the guys north of Toronto. The most useful options to me are the syncro-fence permitting miters other than 45 degrees (will be shown in the next project) and the high centerfence for tall material (posted this morning). Other fences really depend on what you want to do. If unsure, I would definitely call Hoffmann and talk with either Markus or Gary. I purchased the syncro-fence for my MU2 last year but almost went for a miter specific fence. Thankfully, Gary recommended something much more versatile. Steve
Hello Steve. Just got a notification of a video for your channel and I will be catching up on the ones I have missed. Glad you are making videos again. This is a cool system. I think the first exposure I had to the Hoffmann system was watching Tommy use it on “This Old House”. I have the Domino 500 and Zeta P2 but I can definitely see a use for the #2 or #3 style system. Especially for smaller pieces. I believe Lamello has a system that uses their biscuit joiner to cut a slot from the back side and a connector gets hammered in from the back. I believe the smaller size is the E20-H connector. It’s not as nice looking as the Hoffmann system but more in my price range. Especially since I can change the blade on my Lamello Zeta P2 to the size blade for the biscuits...
Thanks Ron. Years ago, I picked up some of those Lamello connectors when Woodcraft was closing them out at 50% off. I have yet to use one since I I like to work with thinner material than they require but, if the right project comes along, they will come in handy. I think all the joinery options we have available is awesome. While there is overlap between them, I like to use the best method possible for a joinery problem and sometimes only one will work. I don't use the Hoffmann system on every project but the same can be said for the Domino, Lamello, Mafell, and even handcut systems as well. I have never had buyers remorse on any of the aforementioned systems as they all work extremely well. Steve
@@extremewoodworker I agree with everything you said. Definitely the Hoffmann system checks a lot of boxes. While the Hoffmann system may be out of my budget range I still enjoy learning more about it. Thanks for an excellent detailed look at it. Ron
It’s basically a “Three Dimensional Spline” I’ve been using this type of Joinery for more than 30 years. I use it to make Blind connections for table legs to turned Spindle night stands... I’ve Never needed anything this Elaborate in the past...
This can vary due to size and they do function differently but, for the most part, my gut tells me they have similar strength for the same size connection.
This machine has parts milled with extreme precision and those grooves on the miter were accurate on both pieces even though the pieces were on different sides of that 45 degree dual angle sled. The sled seems to have no free play at all and the 90 degree stop also had no wiggle to it. Gapless perfect miters - metal working precision almost to thousands of an inch - and that red oak is almost metallic in hardness. Does it work well on softer woods like mahogany ? And now I return to my workshop and my DIY router table and a router bit that seems to bend a mm or more when it starts working on the workpiece... 😀. Good to see high end machinery though.
An excellent observation. The precision that the Hoffmann MU machine has is IMO nothing short of phenomenal. I have used various size keys on multiple species of mahogany (Honduras and Khaya), walnut, cherry, mesquite, maple, birch, sapele, pine, red and white oak with no issues. Several upcoming projects will use keys of various sizes with mahogany. One thing to watch out for is the grain direction at the tip of the miter. If the grain flairs out toward the miter tip, I have noticed there is a greater possibility of a breakout.
Thank you for your videos. I have a Felder sliding saw. I have leaned a lot of watching your videos. My question for you today is where did you get the tool vest you wear in your videos?
Thank you Joe. The vest is a Blaklader Bantam Kangaroo vest. I like it much better than the aprons I previously used. I think I purchased it from: theworkwearstore.com/31201310-Bantam-Kangaroo-Vest.html
I agree. Unless you go to one of the large woodworking shows such as IWF or AWFS in the US, I would venture to say most have probably never heard of this system. That was the case with me until I first saw it in 2000 and I ended up purchasing the MU2 at the 2002 show.
I'm curious, how long of a slot can this cut? I actually built a pneumatic face frame notcher that I found out later was suprisingly similar to a hoffman dovetail machine.
I have milled slots 83mm deep. According to the website, it can go 3-3/4" deep. The notcher sounds similar to the Morso unit which is neat to watch function.
@@extremewoodworker Its actually not a stationary blade / guillotine like the morso. Its a router mounted on set of vertical rails, with pneumatic clamping and pneumatic router movement. Its shockingly similar to the hoffman considering I hadn't seen one before. I built it after seeing a us concepts notcher and the mechanism of one of my pneumatic hinge borers.
William Smith - I just Googled "Hoffmann Dovetail" and found a website 'hoffmann-usa.com'. Looks pretty comprehensive - Hope you find what you are looking for!
@@billystray7007 Not sure why prices are not showing up for you. This link shows the prices: hoffmann-usa.com/woodworking-machinery/hoffmann-bench-top-dovetail-joining-machines/
Nothing like a piece of equipment that you cant find the price of on the internet. One place I found you have to request a quote. Talk about discouraging potential customers. Just get an msrp out there or something. Hoffman that is not you Edit: I still gave a 👍
@@pdschu6599 thanks. Seems reasonable for how quality it looks. Heck if I had that I would actually make things with dovetails. I swore those of when I started woodworking.
Wow! Where have you been kind Sir. We have missed you so much. It is a joy to see you on your channel again.
Thank you Pat. It has been a while but we are still well and rolling along. I have plans for a number of videos so you will see more.
@@extremewoodworker Praise Jesus.
Really great to have you back Steve. A handful of us loyal followers have tool budgets similar to yours. It’s great to have content creators that serve this segment of the market. They are few and far between. I’ve learned a lot from your prior videos and seriously appreciate the work you put into them.
Thank you Hybrid Woodworks
Nice video.
We have three benchtop machines - an MU2-P an MU3-P and an MU3-PD, one each set up for W0, W1 & W2. We only got the Digital option because we were going to be at a show where Hoffmann wasn't going to be and they wanted us to be able to demonstrate the top-line machine. We are a production picture framing shop, and while theoretically the Digital could be helpful, we've gone a different route.
We use spacer blocks between the tip of the fence plate and back fence, and we've modified the top of the depth stop so we can use spacers there as well. We developed that system before the Digital option was available, but continue to use it for consistency as well as simplicity - we can teach someone to use the machine with repeatable setups in about a minute. There's a chart with the profile numbers, W* sizes and corresponding width and height block specs.
One other modification we made on the W0 machine is to add a piece of 1/4" thick phenolic board to the face of the back fence. We frequently mill very narrow moulding, as narrow as 5/16. A piece that narrow will go right through the slot in the fence, so we added the phenolic and then ran the bit up through it essentially creating a zero clearance fence.
Thank you David. Those are some good tips. I have also run into the gap problem with 1/4" thick stock so I just used a spacer on the miter fence to provide a reference point. The phenolic board is an interesting solution that would require greater bit projection. I assume that you had to mill a groove on the back side of the phenolic for clearance since the bit does not cut in that area. Great tip on the spacer blocks as well. I'll have to steal that idea for my MU2.
Very good to see you again. Hope all is well and that you and loved one are safe.
Thank you, we are all well and safe.
Steve it's great to have you back on RUclips!! Looking forward to more videos.
Thank you Steve
Good to see you back.
Thank you
Welcome back from Cananda. You are my RUclips hero. lol
Thank you. I am getting the urge for a Colorado shaper fix. It was great fun. Hope you are safe and well.
@@extremewoodworker I remember that Joe Calhoon showed us one of these machines. pretty cool. What options did you order with yours? I am seriously thinking of getting one. Thanks, Gary
@@cezanne1954 Hi Gary and greetings to the guys north of Toronto. The most useful options to me are the syncro-fence permitting miters other than 45 degrees (will be shown in the next project) and the high centerfence for tall material (posted this morning). Other fences really depend on what you want to do. If unsure, I would definitely call Hoffmann and talk with either Markus or Gary. I purchased the syncro-fence for my MU2 last year but almost went for a miter specific fence. Thankfully, Gary recommended something much more versatile. Steve
@@extremewoodworker thanks again Steve for the quick reply. It is really cool to see you back in action. 👍🔥. I will call Hoffmann today for more info.
Hello Steve. Just got a notification of a video for your channel and I will be catching up on the ones I have missed. Glad you are making videos again. This is a cool system. I think the first exposure I had to the Hoffmann system was watching Tommy use it on “This Old House”.
I have the Domino 500 and Zeta P2 but I can definitely see a use for the #2 or #3 style system. Especially for smaller pieces. I believe Lamello has a system that uses their biscuit joiner to cut a slot from the back side and a connector gets hammered in from the back. I believe the smaller size is the E20-H connector. It’s not as nice looking as the Hoffmann system but more in my price range. Especially since I can change the blade on my Lamello Zeta P2 to the size blade for the biscuits...
Thanks Ron. Years ago, I picked up some of those Lamello connectors when Woodcraft was closing them out at 50% off. I have yet to use one since I I like to work with thinner material than they require but, if the right project comes along, they will come in handy. I think all the joinery options we have available is awesome. While there is overlap between them, I like to use the best method possible for a joinery problem and sometimes only one will work. I don't use the Hoffmann system on every project but the same can be said for the Domino, Lamello, Mafell, and even handcut systems as well. I have never had buyers remorse on any of the aforementioned systems as they all work extremely well. Steve
@@extremewoodworker
I agree with everything you said. Definitely the Hoffmann system checks a lot of boxes. While the Hoffmann system may be out of my budget range I still enjoy learning more about it. Thanks for an excellent detailed look at it.
Ron
It’s basically a “Three Dimensional Spline” I’ve been using this type of Joinery for more than 30 years. I use it to make Blind connections for table legs to turned Spindle night stands... I’ve Never needed anything this Elaborate in the past...
Have you considered making a video on your technique? I am always interested in methods employed by others to achieve the same or similar results.
Welcome back Steve!!! can't wait to see more
Thank you
Hey Steve, Welcome back!!!
Thank you. It is good to be back.
Interesting machine. How would you compare the strength of these joints versus the Domino? Similar strength?
This can vary due to size and they do function differently but, for the most part, my gut tells me they have similar strength for the same size connection.
This machine has parts milled with extreme precision and those grooves on the miter were accurate on both pieces even though the pieces were on different sides of that 45 degree dual angle sled. The sled seems to have no free play at all and the 90 degree stop also had no wiggle to it.
Gapless perfect miters - metal working precision almost to thousands of an inch - and that red oak is almost metallic in hardness. Does it work well on softer woods like mahogany ?
And now I return to my workshop and my DIY router table and a router bit that seems to bend a mm or more when it starts working on the workpiece... 😀.
Good to see high end machinery though.
An excellent observation. The precision that the Hoffmann MU machine has is IMO nothing short of phenomenal. I have used various size keys on multiple species of mahogany (Honduras and Khaya), walnut, cherry, mesquite, maple, birch, sapele, pine, red and white oak with no issues. Several upcoming projects will use keys of various sizes with mahogany. One thing to watch out for is the grain direction at the tip of the miter. If the grain flairs out toward the miter tip, I have noticed there is a greater possibility of a breakout.
Very cool tools, even cooler content.
Cool tool. . Thanks for the video. Cheers, David
Thanks David
Thank you for your videos. I have a Felder sliding saw. I have leaned a lot of watching your videos. My question for you today is where did you get the tool vest you wear in your videos?
Thank you Joe. The vest is a Blaklader Bantam Kangaroo vest. I like it much better than the aprons I previously used. I think I purchased it from: theworkwearstore.com/31201310-Bantam-Kangaroo-Vest.html
Very interesting Steve - I've never seen anything like that before - like a domino on steroids :-) Cheers
I agree. Unless you go to one of the large woodworking shows such as IWF or AWFS in the US, I would venture to say most have probably never heard of this system. That was the case with me until I first saw it in 2000 and I ended up purchasing the MU2 at the 2002 show.
I'm curious, how long of a slot can this cut? I actually built a pneumatic face frame notcher that I found out later was suprisingly similar to a hoffman dovetail machine.
I have milled slots 83mm deep. According to the website, it can go 3-3/4" deep. The notcher sounds similar to the Morso unit which is neat to watch function.
@@extremewoodworker Its actually not a stationary blade / guillotine like the morso. Its a router mounted on set of vertical rails, with pneumatic clamping and pneumatic router movement. Its shockingly similar to the hoffman considering I hadn't seen one before. I built it after seeing a us concepts notcher and the mechanism of one of my pneumatic hinge borers.
William Smith - I just Googled "Hoffmann Dovetail" and found a website 'hoffmann-usa.com'. Looks pretty comprehensive - Hope you find what you are looking for!
Yes Annabelle, a link to Hoffmann-usa is provided in the description as well.
I went to the website also
You know its going to be expensive when they never show a price anywhere ....
@@billystray7007 Not sure why prices are not showing up for you. This link shows the prices: hoffmann-usa.com/woodworking-machinery/hoffmann-bench-top-dovetail-joining-machines/
welcome back!!
Thank you.
Hey Steve I really enjoy your videos. Do you have an instagram account?
Thank you. I do not have Instagram or Twitter.
Nothing like a piece of equipment that you cant find the price of on the internet. One place I found you have to request a quote.
Talk about discouraging potential customers. Just get an msrp out there or something. Hoffman that is not you
Edit:
I still gave a 👍
About $4500
Hi William. A link to Hoffmann-usa is provided in the description. Pricing for machines, accessories and keys are on their site.
@@pdschu6599 thanks.
Seems reasonable for how quality it looks.
Heck if I had that I would actually make things with dovetails. I swore those of when I started woodworking.
@@extremewoodworker thanks
Looking forward to your videos