Jointer Recomdations

[Malinois Dad]

Hello all.
My shop fit out is almost complete. One of the last pieces of equipment I would like to buy is a jointer. I'm leaning toward a 6" JET or Powermatic, but was wondering if anyone has a recommendation to share?

 

[Muttley000]

If you can swing an 8 inch you won’t be sorry. I love my old DJ20 Delta I updated with a helical insert head.

 

[smorgasbord]

How are you set for thickness planers?

The combo machines get you a nice wide jointer as well, far wider than 8".

 

[luvmytoolz]

My vote would be for something along the lines of a 10" or even the 12" Jet combo with a spiral head. Sensational machine and awesome in a smaller workspace.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

It kind of depends on what you intend to do with it and how big your parts are going to be.
Are you milling rough lumber into workable boards or edge-jointing for panel glue-ups? How long are your pieces? Are you re-sawing with a bandsaw? Making small boxes, tables, blanket chests? The size of your shop space can play into this to some degree too. The answer can be quite different.

A typical 6" Jet, Powermatic, etc would be fine, for the smaller parts or somewhat longer edges.
The wider Jointer/planer combo machines will gain you some width (per dollar spent) but you often lose out on bed length. This is limiting, as far as straightening edges though, since they have shorter bed (in comparison to dedicated jointers)

For me, a 6" Rigid jointer (with a spiral head) does the job well enough. A larger 8" model would just be too big for my space. I could occasionally benefit from wider, but it's not worth the added cost ($$$ and space) I do mostly smaller tables, boxes, drawer parts, etc. generally not jointing anything more than 4 or 5 feet long. YMMV

 

[cpw]

I had the 6" RIDGID jointer and the DW735 planer.  I replaced both with a Minimax FS41e, which uses a similar amount of space overall - but is more functional than either machine.  I have a Tersa head which makes knife changes easy.  The RIDGID jointer with straight knives was a pain to get aligned the few times I did it.

 

[SoonerFan]

I went with a Jet 8” helical head. The helical head cutters are a huge improvement and to me are worth the extra investment. I like the length of the in feed and out feed tables. I build mostly tables and cabinets and have had the jointer 4 1/2 years. Just a few times since I owned the jointer have I wished it was wider.

Jet/Powermatic (owned by same company) support is terrific by the way. Only issue I have had (DC remote died. They replaced right away. And if you have setup questions the tech support line is great.

 

[MikeGE]

I have the Minimax FS30G, with Tersa cutter block, and could not be happier with it.  It replaced a Holzmann HOB260NL that was a nightmare.  The Xylent (helical head) option was an additional €700 and I would have to wait about six months for the machine to be built.  The Tersa version was in stock and I had it a week after I placed the order.

 

[onocoffee]

I've used the Powermatic 6" Parallelogram jointer and that's quite nice - though I feel mesmerized by the spinning helical head as I look down. In my home shop, I've got the 6" Cutech that I got used for a great price. It works well enough for the projects I'm currently doing. I mounted it to a custom cart to bring the table to 920mm but I want to add weights to the base to give it more oomph.

A buddy of mine is a custom furniture maker, and much more advanced than me, he's using an 8" Cutech jointer. In his case, he mounted it to a bench and built outriggers to extend both his infeed and outfeed sides.

 

[kevinculle]

I have a 6" Jet that I upgraded to a Byrd head quite a while ago.  It does a very competent job...if I were buying today I might upsize to 8" but I don't find the 6" to be a significant handicap.  When I have wider pieces to put a flat first face on, I go with a sled on my 13" DeWalt...also with Byrd head.

 

[ChuckS]

You can live without a jointer if you have a thickness planer and are willing to build and use a very simple sled for jointing tasks.

I sold my jointer and have used the thickness planer for both thicknessing and planing tasks for at least the past 15 years.

If you're interested in learning more about this space-saving option that can handle much wider boards than 8", I can share more.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

[member=63643]cpw[/member] I have the same pair, though my Rigid jointer has a spiral head. It is way better than the straight knives. I use the jointer for edges quite a bit, something that the planer can't really do.

I have used a sled, to flatten a few piece that were nearly 7" wide. It does work, but is not exactly ideal.

 

[rvieceli]

Depending on what you are doing, bigger is generally better. An eight inch jointer would be preferable to a six inch. Even if you do mostly edge jointing an eight usually gets you a longer bed.

prices on new stuff have risen , but don't overlook the used market. generally quite a few jointers on Facebook Martketplace. Don't be afraid of an older machine as well. Mostly more heavy duty than current offerings and there not a lot of things to go wrong. Usually only two bearings on the head.

I have a 16 inch Oliver that rolled out of the factory in 1945 and it's one of my prized possessions. Works like a champ.

Ron

 

[Malinois Dad]

Thanks for your input everyone. I do have a "benchtop" thickness planer (Laguna PX12) that works well in my opinion. I have seen some YouTube videos about using a sled on the planer in lieu of a jointer, and I'm open to giving that a shot. If I try that, I thought about using my track saw to establish a reference edge on the side of the board, the final cutting on the table saw. I feel the track saw with a good blade leaves a nice enough finish for my current needs?
I'm not currently building anything that would be an issue with a 6" jointer. My wife has been selling a ton of peanut feeders, suit feeders, and bird houses so I've been building them in bulk using white cedar. Woodworking is a new hobby for me and I'm learning more every time I work in the shop and enjoying every minute of it. My goal is to build my skill set and tackle some furniture in the future. I'm a commercial electricain/HVAC controls tech by trade, so doing anything with wood is all new.
After some of your suggestions, I looked at Delta 8", but per their website the only current model is a 6" benchtop jointer, and not to look down on that, I'm just thinking I would quickly outgrow a benchtop unit? Maybe I'm underestimate the capabilities of the benchtop machines?
My wife has been looking Facebook marketplace for used equipment, and that's certainly an option. I acquired my tables saw that way.
At this point, thanks to all of your help, I'm leaning toward a new 8" Jet with a helical head, if I can sell my wife on the cost difference over a 6" machine. Or, looking into building a sled for the planer until I save some cash to justify an 8" machine.

 

[jeffinsgf]

Let me share that you're in a very, very strong market for quality vintage machinery. From Central PA westward to Detroit is the "happy hunting ground". Not sure why, but I'm sure happy to live in the middle of it. Listings are plentiful and prices are reasonable. Most of my stationary machinery is rebuilt vintage equipment, and I wouldn't trade it for new.

It's just weird that over the past 60 or 70 years, stationary machinery has gone downhill on rails, while power tools have evolved ever better and better.

 

[jeh]

Let me share that you're in a very, very strong market for quality vintage machinery. From Central PA westward to Detroit is the "happy hunting ground". Not sure why, but I'm sure happy to live in the middle of it. Listings are plentiful and prices are reasonable. Most of my stationary machinery is rebuilt vintage equipment, and I wouldn't trade it for new.

It's just weird that over the past 60 or 70 years, stationary machinery has gone downhill on rails, while power tools have evolved ever better and better.

I'll second you on finding second hand equipment though not necessarily vintage. Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist are loaded up with machines for sale. Your only issue will be moving whatever you buy home with you. Some of these machines are incredibly heavy. I recently bought a Powermatic 8" jointer and it weighs in at just over 600lbs. I had to bring in some muscle to move it into my basement.

In terms of moving heavy equipment a tablesaw, sander, planer or drill press are easier than a jointer because there are lots of places to lift. A jointer has to be picked up in the middle and not on the wings. My old jointer and the new one had/have steel rods for lifting with straps. The alternative is a mobile base and sheets of plywood to get through a yard. If you have stairs to your basement an 8" jointer is probably an impossibility and a 6" could be tough.

For reference I have the Powermatic 8" parallelogram model and I would have bought the 12" if I thought I could have gotten it into my shop. At 800+ lbs it was just too much.

 

[ChuckS]

Thanks for your input everyone. I do have a "benchtop" thickness planer (Laguna PX12) that works well in my opinion. I have seen some YouTube videos about using a sled on the planer in lieu of a jointer, and I'm open to giving that a shot. snip.

This is one of the simplest sleds. My sled is made of just a single 3/4" plywood sheet, and it has served me well. I have two sleds, one longer for full-length lumber.

And I use this kind of reusable shim (with hot melt glue), without sawing off anything:https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/sho...MI3MD_3veMiwMVECutBh0phyIOEAQYASABEgJ99vD_BwE


The use of rough lumber has saved me some money as there's quite a price difference between rough lumber and S4S stock. In addition, my lumber places often offer rough lumber at discounted prices, but never on S4S lumber.

 

[Malinois Dad]

Thanks for your input everyone. I do have a "benchtop" thickness planer (Laguna PX12) that works well in my opinion. I have seen some YouTube videos about using a sled on the planer in lieu of a jointer, and I'm open to giving that a shot. snip.

This is one of the simplest sleds. My sled is made of just a single 3/4" plywood sheet, and it has served me well. I have two sleds, one longer for full-length lumber.

And I use this kind of reusable shim (with hot melt glue), without sawing off anything:https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/sho...MI3MD_3veMiwMVECutBh0phyIOEAQYASABEgJ99vD_BwE


The use of rough lumber has saved me some money as there's quite a price difference between rough lumber and S4S stock. In addition, my lumber places often offer rough lumber at discounted prices, but never on S4S lumber.

Thanks ChuckS. I am going to give this a try over the weekend.

 

[ReneS]

I have a Wahuda 10 inch bench top jointer. It has worked very well, and it still has the original cutter.

I have pushed a lot of rough sawn pine through it over the past couple of years. Once I got my technique down, flattening and squaring boards became quite easy. I use the boards mostly to build cabinets.

Getting a handle on making the two tables co-planar was a bit of a challenge, but it wasn't overwhelming. I got things dialed in pretty quickly, and then a year later I fine tuned things without much effort.