Multifix toolholder Vendors

So the body is 90mm dia 65mm deep. And the pins are approx 85 in the loose position before tension is applied not 80 as I said earlier.

Anyone one know how to upload pictures from a iPad ?

Edited By karl starkie on 18/02/2021 20:36:38

Karl - Steve Lawes posted (on page 2, near the top) a link to a Multifix catalogue - I think page 5.jpg has some dimensions which you can compare to your particular model. Failing that, I would imagine that one of the suppliers might help you out - someone has said that the PeWe Guy is very helpful, and I know from experience that emailing Create Tools in China usually gets an answer.

Edited By Steve Pavey on 18/02/2021 21:28:23

Dragging this thread back from the grave ... I've been trying to find the Create Tools website but createtool.com has "Thank you for choosing our service, your space has expired, please renew as soon as possible, please notify us to open after renewal" - at least, that's what M'sieu Google says the characters mean. Is there an alternative way to contact them?

CreateTool was (are?) based in Wuhan and I suggest that Covid has possibly put them out of business. There are other firms supplying holders etc on AliExpress or PeWe tools in Germany.

Matt

Hi Dave

I bought a multifix clone set from PeWe tools last year, as they do a size which fits my Myford 254 perfectly, very pleased with the whole thing, can't recommend the toolpost and service highly enough.

There was a wait for the items to be stocked, but that was made clear at the time of ordering, and they turned up by the date promised.

Rotagrip do supply multifix posts but not in the size I required.

Dave

Thanks for the replies.

Matt Harrington I may be showing my age, but Aliexpress always seems a bit too like the "wild west" ("wild east"?) for me, with unknown quality, difficult returns, potential import duties and long lead times ... but that's all said without any real knowledge.

Dave Wootton I have a genuine Swiss A size Multifix set from a previous lathe and was hoping to use it on my new-to-me 254S, but the lathe centre-to-top slide distance is only 20mm. I haven't tried fitting it yet because I'm still repairing some things on the lathe but, according to this, it should be OK with 10mm tools ... but only just.

I was interested in Create with the idea of selling my genuine Multifix and buying a more suitable size at Chinese prices - what size did you buy from PeWe and what did it cost?

BTW, I realise that I could remove the top slide and make a spacer but would prefer not to do that.

Dave

Edited By Dave Sawdon 1 on 17/11/2022 10:14:46

You have pretty much nailed it in fairness...

But, I'm actually pretty happy using it because there are a couple of things which de-risk AliExpress (compared to other sites doing direct from vendor in the far east like Wish or Banggood, and their own B2B sister AliBaba) IMO:

1. The dispute process is very E-Bay like, in that it's straightforward to raise a case and the company (who are acting as an escrow of sorts between buyer and seller to guarantee delivery) will generally refund goods which turn up damaged or not as described in photographs without question unless the seller specifically wants to send a replacement...
2. No Returns, just refund/replacement.
3. Presence and reputation on the platform itself is clearly very valuable to the more established vendors, so they go to some effort to ensure they're accurately representing what you'll get (within the confines of their English Language Skills at least).
4. Almost all serious vendors will happily have an email conversation and answer questions or post pictures to help you decide to buy, and the platform enables this.

With a bit of experience buying over the platform in order to get comfortable with how it works, and get a feel for what does/doesn't make for a good vendor/advert, then it's pretty safe; certainly no worse than eBay, just slower!

It's still worth doing some careful research before spending any serious money with an AliExpress vendor, but on the whole I find it to be a generally very positive experience, with some really interesting (and hard to otherwise obtain) products and equipment available inexpensively with relative ease.

​

All this is to say that buying a comparatively expensive toolpost over AliExpress would definitely feel sketchy as a first purchase, and might not be the BEST way to ease yourself into it...

But in all likelihood you would actually be fine, and (based on when I was looking for more Multifix-B toolholders for my lathe) save 50-60% (accounting for Import Duty and VAT which are payble on both german and chinese origin goods alike these days) over the PeWe tools price...

For what I strongly suspect from the photographs and lead times are in fact the exact same product, but for branding.

Probably violate forum rules, etc, but ...

A happy friend in Johannesburg obtained a dozen or so size A holders and the toolpost from these folk in June.

**LINK**

He says the holders also fit his orig Swiss toolpost just fine...He was also very content with the pricing..

Looks exactly like the Createtool product - maybe they renamed or were incorporated?

Information straight from the horse's mouth end of Jan 2021 here. No further information since then:

https://www.practicalmachinist.com/forum/threads/multifix-toolholder-clone-review.222390/page-6#post-3700927

Edited By DC31k on 17/11/2022 12:53:40

Create tools certainly have gone dark. My website enquiry two months ago and my direct email to Nina Wang received no reply. Thank you for the alternative suggestions.

I've just bough an aa set from Rotagrip with 4 toolholders and they were wiling to swap the v groove for a standard one for £340. Aliexpress obviously have a number of vendors but the same thing from them would cost me £340. So no great price saving there and perhaps a lot more security and peace of mind dealing with a well established company in Birmingham. Having said that I've no doubt you would get what you order from Aliexpress 99% of the time, sorting out the 1% would lose you the will to live. Interestingly they are not exactly the same, mine has a circlip at the top, the Aliex one has an expanding metal band.

Regards

Martin

Hi Dave

The size I have is size AS, as far as I know PE-WE are the only suppliers for this size which suits my 254+ perfectly, I cannot remember the price I ordered the basic set and some extra toolholders, making a total of six and it was in the region of £350 ish I think, I did not have to pay any extra tax or import duty.

I've added a couple of pictures of the post fitted to my lathe, the toolholder in the pictures is 1/2" square, I added this because someone got very excercised on another forum saying only 10mm max tools could be used on one of these fitted to a 254, so the pic shows this is not the case. The set has had quite hard use over the past year with no problems, very satisfied with it.

A friend bought one of the Aliexpress sets for his Warco, not sure what model but larger than a mini lathe and not rusty, and although not as well finished as the PE-WE one it works well and he is very happy with it.

Bit of a sidetrack but ... I'm intrigued to see that spirit level device for finding centre height. Is it really better/easier/faster than trapping a 6" rule and making it vertical?

I also have reminded myself that I have bought holders etc from paulimot.de :

Paulimot

Matt

Dave

You have probably started something that could rumble on for ages!!

All I can say is I find it quick and easy to use, liked it so much in my home workshop I bought another to use at work. I also have made a centre height gauge similar to the Geo H Thomas one which does still get used for things like tiny boring tools, and upside down tools in the rear toolpost.

The lathe is on adjustable pads on a concrete floor and the levelling done with a precision level.

Dave W