Greetings...

As for the 12" planer:

I saw a timberframe where the Makita 12" was used on the timbers. I thought they looked great!

Not sure how much was the tool vs the experienced timberframer using it!

Joel

Hello,
One suggestion instead of the Mafell saw would be to try and find a 13" makita. Makita of US does not make the tool anymore but Makita of Japan does. It takes a little while to get it but I find it to be a well balanced tool. It certainly is much light in weight than the mafell 13" or the makita 16"...it does only cut 5 inches. I have that saw and a bigfoot and I love them both. Makita 13" is good for drop cuts b/c of its weight. It you wnat help finding a makita 13 drop me a line.
Brice

Well, the auction was last weekend and i'm afraid the farmers around my area don't have much extra cash. All the prices where low and we ended up buying back one peice of equipment....
So the bigfoot saw looks like the winner because it's the cheapest saw and close enough to 4" cut for me...
however, bigfoot doesn't reply to me, is there a better place to buy a bigfoot than from the makers?
also, does anyone have the 14" bigfoot?

I get the feeling that bigfoot is not a large company. They don't make the whole saw - it's just an adaptation of the skil 77 worm drive saw. Got mine at Amazon .

Mark, I have a used 12" Makita planer which I will be selling. It has a set of extra blades as well. I purchased it from Timberwolf Tools (used) about a year and a half ago for the purpose of doing my own frame. It worked quite well on dry hemlock (not my favorite wood). Let me know if you are interested. The planer has not been abused and works quite well.