Fletcher 3100 wanted

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Jag62
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Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Jag62 »

Hi all,

Looking for a Fletcher 3100. Must be in great condition.

Cheers,

Neil
jaybee173
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by jaybee173 »

There's a couple on ebay at the moment - see here https://ebay.to/2WqxDP0

Regards

J
Jag62
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Jag62 »

Thanks, saw those but condition didn't look great.
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Not your average framer »

Hi neil,

How much do you know about the Fletcher Terry 3100. They don't wear out and they looked pretty much o.k. to me and I have a Fletcher Terry in my own workshop, so I'm quite familiar with them the one in the first picture is the newer one as the casting at the bottom of the two guide tubes is finished in black. It's only a personal opinion, but for me the Fletcher Terry is better engineered that the Keencut flat material cutter and the sliding bearing on the Fletcher Terry are self adjusting, so no periodical adjustment needed.

The Keencut machines have a rotating cutting head with a bearing in it which develops excess play over time and needs readjusting from time to time. The Fletcher Terry has separate tool carriers which are locked in place by a thumb wheel, which when locked in place, guarrantees no unwanted side to side movement at all, for the life of the machine.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
Jag62
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Jag62 »

Hi Mark,

I don't know a lot about them tbh but having read a couple of your reviews on the machine I like the sound of its simplicity & minimal maintenance requirements. I just thought both ebay machines looked quite heavily used and that first one mentioned that bolts were missing & a small part broken. This may be simple enough to rectify but I just need a machine that I can guarantee will hit the ground running. They're also both a long way from home.

Cheers,

Neil
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Not your average framer »

Fair enough. There come along fairly regularly, so it's probably worth waiting for the one that you want.
Mark Lacey

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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by KeencutTechSupport »

Not your average framer wrote: Fri 18 Dec, 2020 6:02 pm It's only a personal opinion, but for me the Fletcher Terry is better engineered that the Keencut flat material cutter and the sliding bearing on the Fletcher Terry are self adjusting, so no periodical adjustment needed.

The Keencut machines have a rotating cutting head with a bearing in it which develops excess play over time and needs readjusting from time to time.
Hi Mark, interested to know what Keencut cutter you are referring to here, we are always interested to get feedback and learn from the framing community. Thanks.
Jag62
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Jag62 »

TechSupport, I've sent you a PM re my Excalibur 5000 and reason for now looking at the FLetcher 3100.

Regards,

Neil
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Not your average framer »

Over the years I have had plenty of different items of Keencut equipment and Keencut was very much a favorite brand for me. I never used to be all that botheredabout under taking all the maintenance of any of these. In more recent times, I have been less limited in my ability to pay for equipment which costs more to acquire and I've been less able to carry out routine mantenance myself, since becoming fairly severely disabled after having suffered a stroke, which has made my less able to carry out many of the routine maintenance tasks as before. I an sorry to be put on the spot and having to explain why I have switched some of my original Keencut for Fletcher Terry equipment, but the lack off sliding Nylon bearings, or self adjusting / self compensating bearings is of particular importance to me as it avoids the need for regularly needed to adjust the nylon bearing to allow for the wear that occurs over time, which I now find very hard to do since becoming severely disabled following suffering a stroke.

In fairness to yourselves, I would freely acknowledge that Fletcher Terry equipment is significantly more expensive that many of the equivalent items made by Keencut and that it is perhaps unfair to compare diiferent items manufactured to sell at different price levels as though they had not been manufactured to sell at different prices. Your equipment employs various nylon bearings which if they are not regularly adjusted to allow for wear can affect the perforance and accuracy of operation. Down time while carrying out routine maintenance is a big problem for me now that I am disabled. I generally this level of routine maintenance and adjustment is avoided on the Fletcher Terry items of equipment, because of the different types of bearings, which are used in their designs. However the Keencut equipment is cheaper at the point of purchasing as new, which is much more affordable to new framers starting their own businesses and new businesses usually don't have bottomless pockets, when it comes to spending money, so I don't want to make too much about this as I think that supplying equipment which is more than adequate for what is needed at a more affordable price is a good thing.

I switched from owning a Keencut 4000, when you stopped supplying the glass cutting wheel for my machine, because as soon as I needed a new glass cutting wheel, the machine would have become of no use to me, for cutting glass. I still have a Keencut Oval 6, but I was offered a Fletcher Terry 1100 as free to a good home and this enables me to undertake long thin mounts, which are not possible on the Oval 6. I still have a Keencut Ultimat gold, which I still use as my main mount cutter. I have mainly bought secondhand equipment and as you can probably easily recognise, the effective price difference between a Keencut mountcutter and a Fletcher Terry mount cutter, becomes less significant when buying it as a secondhand machine, but as there is a significant difference in how often routine maintenance and adjustment is needed. There is a balance to be considered and more recently for me, price was less of a factor. So I switched to the Fletcher Terry, because that was also what was available at the time.

I was never particularly disappointed with anything produced by Keencut which I had previuosly owned, but when it came to replacing what I was previously using a couple of Fletcher Terry machines came my way, otherwise it still might have been Keencut. I still also have the Keencut Oval 6 as well.
Mark Lacey

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KeencutTechSupport
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by KeencutTechSupport »

Hi Mark,

Sorry you feel put on the spot that was not my intention, I was just interested in your comments and curious to know what of our machines you were comparing to the current FT 3100. You mention the Excalibur 4000, I think you must mean System 4000 and yes we had supply issues on the white type glass cutting wheel but we have always advised those still using this version of the machine (that went out of production around 25 years ago) that they are available here:https://www.glassparts.co.uk/plastic-wh ... white-wire

Anyway, we do appreciate your post it is always interesting to know how the second hand market feel about our machines because is an important part of the purchasing cycle. To be able to sell a used machine for a reasonable sum to contribute towards upgrading to a new one does two things, firstly it obviously helps sell new machines. Secondly, it introduces new starters to our products and hopefully they go one to buy new products as their business grows.

I am a little puzzled regarding your note about our products being cheaper than FT, they are very comparable, in fact the it is the other way round, although the Excalibur 5000 only costs about £25 more than the FT3100 (Lions website https://www.lionpic.co.uk/workshop/shee ... l-cutters/). FT products are good in their own right but in many cases very different from ours and it is often those differences that form the basis of peoples choice. We endeavour to try and make the right choices with the design options but it is customer feedback that drives that.

Thanks Mark and glad to hear you are still using the Ultimat Gold and Oval 6.
Jag62
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Jag62 »

Well, today I have to say I've been mightily impressed with customer service from Keencut.

After seeing a comment on this thread from Keencut Technical service I contacted them and I was contacted by Andy. He identified my Excalibur 5000 as one of the very early machines which had sadly missed out on the free cutting head upgrade (when the new ratchet version was developed). Andy spent an hour on the phone with me this morning going through a step by step check process to help me try to identify and eliminate the issues I've been experiencing with the machine (mainly glass fracturing at 11cm from bottom due to cutter being deflected by the release mechanism). After spending about 20 minutes servicing the machine in accordance with Andy's instructions I'm amazed to have a machine that now cuts straight, true, to correct dimensions & an extremely clean cut.

Needless to say I'm not now seeking a Fletcher 3100 !

An interesting point Andy made whilst on the call is that all Keencut products are designed with the layman in mind and that they don't want users to have to develop any particular skills/techniques to use a machine - the machine should just simply do its job. This does sometimes mean the occasional service is required to keep things working as they should - as I just found out !

Massive kudos to Andy, especially as this is just to help me keep an aged machine running and won't result in me purchasing a new Excalibur - yet !

Cheers,

Neil
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Richard Photofusion »

^^^

Shortly after we bought our steeltrak, I asked them if there was a way to support substrates that weren't using the twin wheels. Couple of days later, a package arrived with the support.
Oh, Steeltrak has production stops - any chance of this for the Javelin Big Bench? Codlaparw production stops for the big bench.
Slight axial wobble on the Javelin cutter; new bushings arrived.
Slight play in the cutting head of the SteelTrak; a phone call, with hand holding, problems resolved.

This is why I'm a vocal supporter of Keencut. They listen, they support, they understand, and they care. They're UK based, so they're there when you're there.

Now if only there were a way that I could upgrade the javelin for the Evoluiton 3. Would love lift and hover, as well as to try using the fabric rotary blade for cutting some of the Baryta Rag papers we churn through.
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Not your average framer »

I've had plenty of really great back up and after sales support from Keencut and I've only ever bought keencut items as secondhand. I would guess that Fletcher Terry don't have that option in the UK.
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by KeencutTechSupport »

Richard Photofusion wrote: Tue 22 Dec, 2020 7:43 pm ^^^
as well as to try using the fabric rotary blade for cutting some of the Baryta Rag papers we churn through.
We do have a rotary blade attachment that fits on the old Javelin style head if that is any help. You would need to use it on a cutting mat. If it is any interest the details are here https://www.keencut.com/product/textile ... r-simplex/, just contact sales@keencut.co.uk or call 01536 263158 after the New Year.
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Richard Photofusion »

Thank you, that looks very interesting - I'll be in contact in the new year.
Jag62
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Re: Fletcher 3100 wanted

Post by Jag62 »

Still looking for a Fletcher 3100
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