I just bought a Jet drill press on Amazon. The normal price is $399 but Amazon had a one day sale with an extra $17.50 off and then there is the standing $25 off any tool over $199. On top of that I get a $100 rebate from Jet having already bought another tool in their discount scheme this quarter so the net price of the drill press is $256.50. I did a similar thing with their air filter and got a tool that is normally $250 for $125 after all the discounts ($50 off, $25 standing, $50 Jet cash back).
So yes there are some really good deals on tools on occasion. These Jet tools are exactly the same as the Delta models.
Now compare my tools deal with the price of a dishwasher or a washing machine. For $800 I get a piece of crap that has a cabinet made out of thin steel, a cheap motor, bearings etc and is produced in vastly larger quantities. What gives here? I just spent $100 on a part to fix the clothes washer door lock and another $15 on wheels for the dishwasher china basket.
Compare the cost of the machine tools to even the type of hand tools they sell in Home Despot. Its quite amazing the amount of iron and steel you get for your money. Then take into account the fact that Amazon is paying for the shipping which is not cheap on the bulky items and is presumably making some sort of profit.
Bottom line is that the tools themselves must cost next to nothing to produce or the system simply could not work.
The big cost in machine tools is table saws. My Unisaw cost me as much as all the rest of my big tools put together. OK so it has a pricey Baldor motor but the margins on the rest of the machine are way better than those on the bulk of $400 workshop tools. I can see a way that a company could make a profit on those, but no way can I see how a $400 band saw makes money.