Woodworker's Journal 1985-9-3, страница 12

, . . The Joint-Matic 4200 is a new system in joinery that offers operating convenience, efficiency and accuracy that can not be compared to anything on the market. The Joint-Matic will help you produce woodworking pieces of elegance, precision and beauty more quickly and expertly than you ever thought possible. Now, in minutes make . . . Mortise, Tenon, Sliding and Through Dovetail, Box Finger Joint and much much more. Exclusive features of the Joint-Matic are so advanced in design and simplicity that set up time has been all but eliminated.

Features:

• Built for ruggedness and rigidity the table and slide unit have extra deep ribbing allowing a more accurate and chatter free cut.

• The base is heavy ribbed 1/2 inch thick casting, hardcoal, anodized aluminum to a 52 Rockwell.

• The adjustment screws are rolled thread with a thread pitch of 3/4-16.

• Accuracy can be achieved to as close as .OOltn of an inch.

• Comes equipped with a 1-3/4 H.P. router.

For Your Brochure Please Send S2.00 to:

20425 Beatrice

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Joint-Matic Machine Is protected Bv U.S. Patent 4,163,165

Workshop Income

Product Liability, Part I

by Leonard D. DuBoff

In November of 1978, a California jury awarded the victim of an automobile accident $120 million after his defectively designed Ford Pinto caught fire and exploded, inflicting serious personal injury. The size of this judgment against the Ford Motor Company staggered the nation.

Unless you happen to own a Pinto you're probably thinking, "What does this have to do with me?" The answer is that if you regularly sell your crafts you might find yourself in court being sued by one of your customers for an injury if the customer claims that a piece you created is defective. The same laws that apply to the sale of a car by Ford apply to a sale by you. In one sense it seems quite logical and fair that the laws apply equally to all regardless of size. But when we look at the law we see that it wasn't designed with the small business in mind.

HISTORY OF THE LIABILITY LAW

To understand the present state of liability law, it might be useful to briefly examine its roots.

It all began with a craftsman. In 1804 a Mr. Seixas went to a warehouse to buy some brazilletto wood. I've never run across any myself, but the learned judge who wrote the legal opinion assured posterity that it was of considerable value. Mr, Woods, the warehouse man, sold Seixas some peachum wood instead, which is virtually worthless. Neither party, apparently, knew the difference between brazilletto and peachum.

When Seixas discovered the error he tried to return the worthless wood in exchange for either brazilletto or his money. The warehouse man refused because he had already given the money to the original owner of the wood. Seixas sued Woods and tost. He lost because even though Woods had written brazilletto on the invoice, he never warranted the wood as such and, besides, he did not know any more than the buyer did about different kinds of wood.

"... if you regularly sell your crafts you might find yourself in court being

sued by one of your customers for an injury if the customer claims that a piece you created is defective.

The result of this case can be amply summed up in the Latin maxim caveat emptor: let the buyer beware, This maxim was repeated time and again in both English and American cases until comparatively recent times. But now the pendulum has swung the other way and the rule has become caveat vendor: let the seller beware. The change

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