I’m tired of losing 4+ inches of good stock due to snipe on my Delta 22-540 planer. I have seen good reviews on benchtop models, but where are the reviews on the larger models with roller stands (jet, powermatic 15 inch, etc.)? Need some advice on buying a planer that has good resharpenable knives and virtually no snipe.
Thanks,
Brian
Replies
It is only 13" but the DeWalt DW735 is a pretty nice machine. Virtually no snipe, built in blower and 3 cutting knives for a finish ready top. The only drawback is that the knives are reversible but they are supposed to be disposable.
My guess is that the 735 did not come without snipe. When I got mine, there was big time snipe. I then bought the infeed an outfeed attachments and it helped some.
I am ready to srtart on a QA lowboy this week but I am waiting on a new straight edge to make some adjustments on my jointer. I am also going to use it to work on my planer. The factory rep told me to allow for an 1/8 gap under the cutterhead. I am hoping it will work. I have some nice cherry 1 1/8 thick that will have to be flattened and planed to 1" It is relative flat now so it will not be a problem, but I hate like the dickens to have to cut my pieces an extra 3-4" to give me enough to cut off and still have my desired lenght.
I an not sure who has reviewed planers recently, however most of them, at least the four post models are made by the same outfit and painted different colors, The parts are interchangeable. When I was looking for a new planer, I didn’t find any real difference between the manufactures. I contacted several companies and ask them what separated there machines form the others and all I was told was that everyone had better quality control than everyone else.
I ended up buying a used Jet 16 inch version of the four post planer, for about the same money I could buy another lunch box model. I am very happy with it. It is big heavy and no snipe. One draw back I found with the 16 inch is it is not a common size. There are a lot more 15 and 20 inchers out there. The advantage to the 15 or 20 inch is Grizzly sells a Byrd Shelix head for them for a lot less than Byrd sells them directly. The 16 inch Byrd is $400 more than the 20 inch Byrd Shelix head from Grizzly. Just something to look into if you think you may want to upgrade later.
I purchased a 3 hp 20inch Grizzly in 1996 and have never had a problem. I work primarily on weekends and make 2- 3 major projects a year( light use). I sharpen the blades myself on a modified Makita waterstone sharpener. I have never needed to even replace a belt. Keep it adjusted and there is no snipe. With this tool I am very satisfied, which is not the case with some of my other purchases.
It's not the planer that snipes--the planer and woodworker snipe as a team! I believe snipe has as much or more to do with feeding technique (at least on smaller to medium sized machines) than the planer or how it is adjusted. Some infeed/outfeed support is good, but too much would get in the way of the technique that I use to get absolutely zero snipe. If you're interested, please look back to the thread '15" planer snipe problems'. I can't bear to type it again. I guess to kind of bugs me how these "got a problem with my machine . . ." type discussions tend to focus only on the parts and not the technique or the material. Definately nothing personal against you! Hope to talk to you again.
Brian
Hi Brian
If you have room to keep a stationary planer, you certainly won't regret getting one. I bought a used 15" planer last fall for about the price of a mediocre benchtop unit. It is much quieter to operate and does not snipe unless provoked by poor technique. Blades are big and heavy, presumably can be resharpended many times. It is also less tedious to use, as it will take off a lot more material per pass.
There is a learning curve with stationary planers because there are more possible adjustments. Blade replacement takes some practice on my machine, for instance. Once you wrap your brain around what's required though, stationary planers are a pleasure to use and will be a "lifetime investment".
davidb
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