Which underpinner?

[janelewis]

I need advice please. I am an artist but for 10 years have been framing my own work using an incredibly basic but well made Kimberley, hand operated underpinner. It still works but I want to upgrade to one, preferably benchtop, which drives the wedge in from underneath so I don't have to turn the frame over each time.

I really wanted the replacement Kimberley machine (c £300)but they are out of production. Does anyone have one they want to sell on?

Failing this I am looking at Cassesse, styles 79 or 88. I am reluctant about this move as it is a lot more expensive (considering the amount of use it will get) and the space is a factor also.

Any advice or second hand machines?

[dottad]

Hi,

Just to let you know that I use the Kimberley underpinner too. Lion have an updated one in their new catalogue. The link below should hopefully take you there. They are priced at £195 + VAT.


http://www.lionpic.co.uk/index.php?sess ... ctid=2518A

[osgood]

My advice is to buy Cassese. There are too many advantages to ignore. I have a Cassese 3099 Ultra and having test driven so many other brands, there really is no other choice worth considering.

These are some of the benefits of the 3099 Ultra and most of them apply to the less advanced models too:

1. Unique double-action Cassese rebate clamp preventing corners from off-setting. VERY POWERFUL CLAMP SYSTEM
2. Unique pressure sensitive control of wedge insertion. No pressure adjustment required - when changing between softwood and hardwood timber.
3. Pressure sensitive wedge sensor. Even if the cartridge runs out mid-way through joining a corner.The join remains clamped while the operator replaces the cartridge, so you always use 100% of the vee nails in a cartridge.
4. Patented self-adjusting back supports: Are adjustable to the shape of any moulding profile, to prevent gaps in the top or bottom of the joint.
5. Safe : will not fire vee nails without mouldings in position.
6. Quick-Change top clamp : to adjust between softwood and hardwood mouldings.
7. Unique driver blade that is the same shape as a vee nail, so it can push a vee nail into surface of joint without pushing the joint upwards.
8. Memorise 1500 profiles for instant setup
9. No accidental vee nails out through the top of joints
10. Controls and screen on the side of the machine, not on the front where a support table needs to be.
11. No mechanical protrusions at the back to prevent operation from the back.


These are some of the benefits of the Cassese vee nails:
1. Rust-protected
2. Lubricated for smoother penetration and for minimum wearing of the machine.
3. Cassese vee nails are individual, without glue.
4. Manufactured with high quality steel
5. Cartridges are colour-coded to identify the size of vee nails they contain
6. Each cartridge contains a minimum of 275 to 290 vee nails. Thanks to the cartridges, you use 100 % of the vee nails.
7. Special vee nails for very hard timbers are available. Cartridges labelled HW individually
8. POWER STRIP (patented) Cartridge vee nails (except #5) are produced with a corrugation in the middle that improves the resistance of the Wedges and make them join even harder materials without difficulty
9. Due to cartridges, there are no parts to be changed or adjusted on your machine, when you change the size.
10. Cartridge vee nails are made from a special steel alloy which gives shape memory properties to the wedge. This way, when it penetrates into the moulding, it spreads its wings which try then to come back to their initial position.
11. In addition to the 5 usual sizes (5, 7, 10, 12 & 15mm), 2 smaller sizes :3mm & 4mm ideal for fillets.

[Merlin]

Hi Jane
Welcome to the forum.
I do not know the Kimberley. Yet the Cassese is a very good underpinner for the reasons quoted above.

One point in your thread that puzzled me was drives the wedge in from underneath so I dont have to turn the frame over each time

Does the Kimberley pin from above the moulding then.

[osgood]

Woooops! Forgot the most important benefit of Cassese vee nailers.

They make superior joints!

and don't forget - You get what you pay for!

[kev@frames]

Framers Corner, Charnwood (now framers corner), and Alfamacchine are all very good as well for basic "jobbing" use.
Had all three and no complaints about any of them.
When I replace with will be with a framers corner or alfamacchine.

I used to keep two underpinners, one as a back up. As that was never used I sold it on to a collegue and as far as I know it is still going.

alfamacchine has separate driver and clamp pistons, which is useful if you need to stack into hard woods like ash regularly. Bit pricey at first glance, but good engineering, like most italian equipment.

Charnwood/framers corner are solid well made, nothing much to go wrong apart from driver springs every now and then, which are cheap enough to keep in the spares drawer. Although the alfa looks like a lightweight, it is in fact a brute of a machine, very powerful indeed when required, but very adjustable and easy to use either way round. Nice twin action clamp, head clamp and pin action on the pedal.

11mm wide powertwist wedges with alfa mean you cannot use universal wedges (taurus etc), but casesse make a very good wedge for the alfas.

someone told me the morso chain driven (manual) underpinner is supposed to be very good, too.

[markw]

Osgood - you forgot to mention that the cassese pneumatic underpinners dont rely upon springs - big advantage over a lot of machines that do - this inevitably becomes a weakness as the springs wear.

[osgood]

alfamacchine has separate driver and clamp pistons, which is useful if you need to stack into hard woods like ash regularly. Bit pricey at first glance, but good engineering, like most italian equipment.

Kev,
Do yourself a huge favour and check out and test drive a Cassese vee nailer before you make your decision. I had an Alphamachine for many years prior to the Cassese and the difference in joint quality is like chalk and cheese. The same high joint quality is evident on even the simpler Cassese models

Why limit your choice to just chalk? Try the cheese too!

As far as being pricey, don't we explain to our customers that if they spend a little more they will get a better quality framing job?
When we are being someone else's customer, we need to keep in mind all those benefits of spending more money, that we often tell our customers when they only want to be cheap!

[janelewis]

Thank you everyone for your advice, it does seem as if the Cassesse is the one to look out for (in my case preferably a good secondhand one).

John, if you don't know the Kimberley, it is a clamping device which you clamp the corner in then turn over and place on a plinth where the hand operated wedge driver comes down to push the wedge in. As I said very basic, but very sound.

As you can imagine by the time you get to the third and fourth corner on a large hardwood frame the whole proposition is getting pretty unwieldy! Hence my need to upgrade.

[kev@frames]

cheers Os, I will bear that in mind when it comes time to stand down the alfa.
If they work down there, upside down, they must be worth a look
And we are still not mentioning the cricket!

kev

[osgood]

Cricket???? What the hell is cricket??? Never heard of it!!!

[kev@frames]

muhahahahha... muhahahahaaaa



i just know that gloat will backfire on me