Pros and cons - Morso F v Morso EH

[Jon_Brooke]

I've got a Morso F and haven't used an EH - what would be the pros and cons of investing in the automatic machine?

[GeoSpectrum]

Speed and no knee problems. I looked at this and went for saw in the end but my workshop is full of dust anyway.

[prospero]

There are probably advantages if you are doing high volumes of frames, but if that were the case then a saw
setup would maybe a better option. If the operator had health issues then an EH could be good.
But an F is simple and very little to go wrong. Once you start adding complicated systems you run the risk of a
catastrophic failure that could hold up work for days and weeks and be very expensive. Unless you have a very good
reason I would stick to a manual model. You lose the 'biofeedback' when you automate things.

Same with pneumatic underpinners.

[Not your average framer]

A Morso EH has higher running costs and would need a higher through put of work to cover those cost, plus any breakdowns on a Morso EH tend to need the machne to go away,rather than to be repared on site. The framers where I was originally trained had a Morso EH which stopped working and it was taken away to be repaired and it did not come by for about 6 to 8 weeks. Fortunately they had a manual Morso as well, but it did slow things down a bit in the intervening period. It's a big decision and I suspect that there's a lot more to consider than you might think!

If getting a Morso EH being a greater through put of work, then whatever underpinner is going to need to handle a greater through put as well and in the case of where I was trained they needed benches to store work in between the morso and the underpinner as sometimes there was a bit of a log jam. There was one full time employee who spent all his time cutting and joining large numbers of multiple framing orders. While I was here they upgraded to a faster underpinner to keep pace with the Morso EH.

I would suggest having a back up manual morso as well, so that you can still oporate if the EH is down and being repaired.

[Gesso&Bole]

Maybe I should have kept hold of the Morris Minor and not replaced it with more up to date cars as they came along!

I think it makes good business sense to invest in the latest and best equipment you can. I don't have a big business, it's just me and my machinery, but I can churn out much more product in the same time because of the kit that I have - these days it means I don't have to work as many hours for the same result.

I do currently have a manual Morso, but I did used to have an EH when I employed staff. For the bespoke volumes that I do, I doubt I would notice the speed differential, but the wear and tear on your knees is important. I will almost certainly be going for the EH the minute I have any difficulty with my knees. As for the comments above about reliability and repairs, I only ever had one issue with the EH, and that was fixed next day on site.

[Jon_Brooke]

Thanks for the advice.