Replies

1. 
   philip_r | Feb 05, 2009 11:53pm | #1

   I'll comment since you mentioned the 10" from Griz.  I have owned the 10" with the Spiral Cutterhead for a couple of years now.  http://www.grizzley.com/outlet/10-Spiral-Cutterhead-Jointer/G0480   It is a big heavy machine that is a dream to use.  There is no question that this jointer will last a lifetime.

   With that said, I would have purchased the 12" model, if it were available at the time.  http://www.grizzley.com/products/12-Jointer-w-Spiral-Cutterhead/G0609X  When the 12" came out, it was about $100 cheaper than the 10" I got. 

   Get the biggest jointer you can afford... it will never disappoint you.  I highly recommend a spiral cutter - you'll thank yourself over and over and over...  In fact, I love them so much, I'm going to upgrade my planer...  based on the free shipping, it looks like the http://www.grizzley.com/outlet/Extreme-Series-15-Planer-w-Spiral-Cutterhead/G1021X2 is the winner.

    

2. 
   WillGeorge | Feb 06, 2009 06:09am | #2

   Big is better IF it is still a good tool! If you can afford it, get a jointer as big as you can afford.. OK, I use a 6 inch and happy with it...

3. 
   jeffs | Feb 06, 2009 09:07am | #3

   I love my DJ20.  Occasionally I wish it were wider but I really like the long infeed table. It has been trouble free for a long time. If in the market today I would consider one with a parallelogram design and a spiral cutterhead- though I get a very good surface with my "regular" knives. They are spendy to replace. Spiral cutters seem to be easier to deal with when you get nicks in the blades.

   Jeff

4. 
   BioHaz1906 | Feb 07, 2009 08:06am | #4

   Edsea,

   I got a 6" jointer when I didn't know what a jointer really was, but I heard that I needed one.  You say that many say get at least an 8" jointer, well, when you think about it there is not that much more that you can get out of the 2".  Knowing that I don't have an 8"+ jointer I simply purchase my wood in smaller widths which isn't that big of a deal seeing as though you normally have to glue board up anyway.  Plus if you look at the nature of the problem between 6 and 8.  If you need to glue up a 20" box top then you need to joint 3 boards either way.  So to me the 6" or 8" isn't an arguement.  The question would be could you afford the 10" or 12" over the 6" because using the same theory on a 20" top you would only have to joint 2 boards instead of 4 on the 6" jointer.   My theory really comes into effect when you get into like a 48" top.  4 boards on the 12" as opposed to 8 on the 6" or 6 on the 8" Now that is where you would really save the time and your purchase would be worth it, but without you even having a tablesaw, do you really think you will be doing work that large?

    

   Bio

   
   

   ---

   Edited 2/7/2009 12:09 am ET by BioHaz1906

1. 
   edsea | Feb 07, 2009 07:41pm | #5

   Bio, well you hit the real essence of my situation -- I'm not sure of what I'm doing nor sure of what I will do with this stuff in the future.  And, I do have a table saw, in fact my Dad bought it right after WWII when he was building wooden boats (a big honking 8" craftsman from Sears :).  I have toyed with woodworking as I needed things and always adapted my projects to the tools available -- when I decided to make more of a hobby out of WW, I (as suggested by someone on the forum) took several classes (woodworking academy in Alameda, CA). Much of the time on our projects was spent truing up the boards with jointers, planers, and tablesaws etc. -- I learned the obvious, that most fine woodworking projects required this effort -- as opposed to running down to the local supplier and buying dimensioned lumber. As far as what will I build: I have a few projects in the queue: a large coffee table (it will have a marble or granite top), a bench/cabinet for our entryway, racks etc. for a wine celler (I have some old redwood for this), and I have several Oak logs off of my property that I want to make something out of ?? boxes ??  So being interested in resawing, I have a good bandsaw on order. Never even thought of dust control -- after lots of scary research-- I have a cyclone on order that I will hang on the outside of my shop building.  I have a Makita portable planer 12" that I will use initially -- it worked well the few times I have used it. I have two old but heavy and accurate Makita chop saws -- a 10" and a 14" that I use for most cross cutting.  I have a spot and power drop reserved for a new cabinet saw (SawStop?) but will wait as I also hear how many survive with a good bandsaw and no table saw -- I do not plan to make cabinets or need to cut sheet goods on the table saw as I use a straight edge and a circular saw for that when I have to.  So back to the jointer -- I can afford a 12" at least at Grizzly-like prices.  I am just getting gun-shy about getting all the "large" iron before I totally understand what if anything I will do with it.  However, as many have said, I want to buy this stuff once and most of the time have what I need -- I realize you always will find projects that could use more than you have but I want to minimize that.   Anyway, I just located a DJ20 on craigslist but it is a 10 hour round trip drive to get to??   Wow, that was a long answer just to agree with you, thks,  Ed

    

1. 
   BioHaz1906 | Feb 07, 2009 08:52pm | #6

   Edsea,

   No problem, I too wonder about am I getting what I need or should I get what I want.  If you can afford the 12", go with it, but if you are tossing and turning between 6" and 8" well, don't toss to much.  I would love to have a 12" + jointer, but as you can see you can do with a 6" or 8" what you can do with one that size if you are patient and I think that is one things that everyone needs to learn in this trade....patience.  Originially, I found myself a non-handtool person, but as I get deeper in the trade I am trying to learn about them and how to use them.  Some of the best projects were built with nothing but handtools.  If they could do it many years ago with those then we probably can build just about anything with the smaller, lower end power tools we have now.  Ok, maybe not anything but you get where I'm coming from. 

   Good luck to you and if I were you I would jump on the 12".  You definately won't ever wish you had less.  Instead, you'll start being upset that you only have a 12" planer and you would be on a quest for a 20"+ one :) 

   Bio

2. 
   piker | Feb 08, 2009 05:13pm | #7

   I worked for years with a 6" Rockwell Beaver (made in canada) with 36" tables & a fixed, non-adjustable outfeed table. Aside from a real PITA to set the knives (non-adj. o/f table) It served me well for at least 15 years, building furniture & cabinets. For the last 5 years I owned it I used an 18" extension I added to the outfeed table & it was a big help. Replaced it with an 8" Craftex (Grizzly) with 60" tables that I have been using for 15 years & it also has been a real worhorse.  Aside from the extra 2" width, the big advantage is the length of tables when straightening 8' or 10' lumber. If I could have bought a 6" jointer with 60" tables at the time, for less money, that's what I would have bought - but they still don't seem to be readily available. I rarely need to straighten/flatten an 8" wide board as I seldom use any thing wider than 5" or 6" when gluing up table tops or raised panels. Moved 8" Craftex to my shop at our cottage & replaced it with a 1975 Delta 8" with 62" tables. Finally have it working as good as my old Taiwanese import 8".

3. 
   Rich14 | Feb 08, 2009 05:43pm | #8

   edsea,I'm not sure whether Bio's advice was tongue-in-cheek or not. Following his logic, no matter what size one gets, it makes no sense, until a 48" behemouth (if such a thing exists) is in one's shop! LOL.You can do a LOT with a good 6" joiner. Grizzly's joiners are not only good value, they are simply excellent machines. That said, an 8" machine IS an improvement over a 6" model in the increased capacity it will give you. The size increase is not insignificant. And a 10" is "better" than an 8".I have a 12" joiner/planer, but I worked on a 6" machine for a long time and built several houses full of furniture and laid several thousand square feet of hardwood flooring before buying the larger stuff.During that time, I also had access to an 8" joiner and it really made some jobs much easier.But there is nothing that will elude you if you have a QUALITY 6" joiner, if you plan the work properly. It's just that you'll have to "solve" certain elements of construction differently. Not worse, just differently.(BTW, no matter what machine you buy, get a head with "drop-in," self-aligning blades. On some, this is built in. On others, it's an add-on that you have to set up just as you would with "loose" knives, but just ONCE. The SECOND time you change knives you will whisper grateful thanks for that wonderful bit of engineering.)The final decision in these kinds of things comes down to how much you have to spend and how much room you have in your shop, since length and "foot print" go up considerably with width. If you can afford it, definitely, get the biggest machine you can within those constraints.Rich

1. 
   edsea | Feb 09, 2009 06:59am | #9

   Rich,

   "I have a 12" joiner/planer, but I worked on a 6" machine for a long time "

   How do you like your combo Joiner/planer as opposed to individual units.  That certainly is another option, the combos I've seen have shorter tables but probably sufficient.                  Ed

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Feb 09, 2009 12:27pm | #10

   I've got a combo machine and while you have to be just a bit more organized in your work flow, it isn't any significant inconvenience.  The change over is quick, and simple and doesn't seem to affect precision in the adjustments.  All combo's aren't the same.  Make sure the change-over works well for your shop layout. 

   As far as size, it does matter, but what matters more is what kind of projects you intend making.  Definitely go with 8" if possible--even if you just make small boxes--there is lots of lumber over 6" and available without premium price.   The difference will reduce the number of glue joints considerably. 

   If the budget is  tight, and whose isn't these days, 6" machines are available used relatively often, in part because so many feel the need to upgrade to the 8" machines.  Let the first owner take the depreciation and if you want to upgrade a few years down the road you will be able to sell the machine for about the same as you paid for it. 

   I like to make 18th century reproductions, and the widest boards possible are the rule.  I went with a 16" combination (Hammer A3-41).  Is it necessary to have that width--not absolutely.  But it is nice, and a major labor saver on some occasions. 

2. 
   Rich14 | Feb 09, 2009 02:14pm | #11

   edsea,Steve covered it. I have the Hammer A3-31 which is 12" wide. His machine is not only wider, but has a much more robust fence than the one on mine. Amazingly, the fence on my under-$300, 6" grizzly (2000 model) was more robust than the one Hammer fits to this machine.But it's a matter of different styles between European machines and the ones we're used to here. While it feels "flimsy" because it comes so completely loose when unlocked, and because it is a light-weight aluminum affair, it performs exactly as it needs to when locked down.Rich