I believe the Fireball squares are cast at a foundry in Spokane and then machined in California, but what about the fixture tables? Maybe closer to where they’re being machined? The video showing the squares being machined was neat so it makes me curious to see more of both the foundry and the finishing process for the fixture tables.
–Larry
The fixture tables are made overseas. Producing this item in the US is not practical due to reasons of cost, ability to deliver in quantity, and reasonable delivery times. Most of our fixture blocks are machined in the US, but the table is just an entirely different beast to get made here.
Thanks for this clarification Eli, it makes sense and is understandable. However, that said, I would encourage you to include the country of origin on the website. Why? Well Jason has made a name for himself selling his squares, most of which were marked Fireball USA, so by implication, unless told otherwise, customers may tend to expect that the other premium products are also made in the US. I know I was hoping to find a Fireball USA cast into the table that will be delivered this week.
It would still be cool to see the foundry and finishing operations for the tables.
–Larry
I just left this as a review for the 60x30 table, but it probably makes sense here as well.
The pallet and packages arrived in great shape, no obvious damage. There had been a minor repair to one corner of the pallet where a new “foot” had been screwed on. The wooden top of the crate and bubble wrap inside was very helpful in preventing the table from getting wet as I had to work in drizzle to put the legs on.
Getting the table off the pallet is a bit challenging. Some suggestions would be helpful to have in advance of delivery: Have a long (say 5-6") partially threaded 3/4" socket head screw which allows the unthreaded portion to bear against the table holes, leaving enough exposed for hooks or straps. A large washer to prevent hook or strap from slipping off is also helpful. Insert the SHCS in the middle of one end side and lift the table enough to get a 2x4 underneath, then repeat on the other end so that there is room to either feed straps or forks underneath the table. Have something to act as a safety while installing the legs, I used a section of cribbing timber about the length of the legs. Have a 17mm hex on hand to tighten the SHCS for the legs.
I got the fixed legs with casters and the stout legs and casters are deluxe. The casters are large enough and compliant enough that I was able to roll the table over a 1/4" threshold with no issues. Being able to reposition the table easily is extremely valuable in a small shop. With the casters locked the table is very solid.
The quality of the table and clamping kit #3 is outstanding. I would say the table itself is nearly a work of art. The whole team at Fireball deserve thanks and credit for producing such a fine product. The effort that went into packing everything well so that it arrived in excellent condition is also remarkable.
The one somewhat sour note was discovering that the table was not made in the US. To be clear, I never saw a claim that it was; I made an assumption based on the Fireball squares that I’d purchased in the past. I would encourage Fireball to provide country of origin on the website. The pride in design, execution and delivery is evident and the result is worth the cost. It is sad that a table like this cannot be made for this price in the US, but I think it should be noted that the Asian factories are capable of producing very high quality product when the customers are willing to pay for it. I can imagine that Fireball put a great deal of time and effort into finding the right foundry and factory to produce this table and the quality of the product I received bears this out. I think that it is on par with the other US and European industrial machines I am familiar with.
The videos on the testing of other tables, design of the Fireball tables, and choices that went into the clamping system were very helpful in making my purchasing decision. Although I’ve only just received mine, I can see that the entire system is very well thought out. In a world where standards are already set it takes courage to come up with a new design and bring it to market. Well done!
–Larry