Reviewed: Hafco T13S benchtop thicknesser

Words and photos: Andrew Potocnik

For part-time use, smaller bench-top thicknessers are well worth considering. They run on single phase power, are portable and powerful. They have enough width capacity for most woodworker’s needs and can handle timber up to 150mm thick and 330mm wide.

This machine is easy to manoeuvre due to its small overall size of 510 x 320mm footprint and 410mm height. The standard universal 1.8kw 2.4 hp, 240 volt single phase motor features power feed rollers and anti-kickback fingers and it also has a spiral head with HSS cutters.

Handles top and bottom make the unit easy to move around.

Set-up required very little effort. Lift out of the box, attach a dust chute (which angles left or right) and connect a 100mm or 63mm hose, plug the machine in and it’s ready to go. Allen keys required to attach the dust chute are housed above the cutterhead, so you don’t need any extra tools.

The Hafco has a repeat cutting depth mechanism, a depth of cut gauge and extension in-feed and out-feed tables. These fold up for storage or transportation but not with the dust chute in place. The chute also obscures clearly detailed information regarding rotation of cutters which is printed on the back of the cutterhead assembly.

Depth adjustment and the dust chute

The single speed in-feed zipped timber through at a rapid rate, but the motor didn’t mind this. It didn’t show any audible signs of strain when I machined 260mm wide redgum burl, nor when set to its maximum cutting depth of 3mm. The machine buzzed along without a fuss leaving a clean surface on all timber trialed. I did detect snipe on some longer boards and the machine will not handle timber thinner than 19mm. This can of course be overcome by inserting a support board which, in effect, reduces the distance between the cutters and the main bed.

The flat machine top has two rollers which come in handy when returning thicknessed boards back for subsequent passes, or just for resting timber while other boards are machined. The raise and lower handle is also located on top of the machine and adds 80mm to its overall height. Overall, based on size and performance, this machine won’t let you down.

Pricing and information from www.machineryhouse.com.au

Andrew Potocnik is a wood artist and regular contributor to Australian Wood Review.