Watch Before Buying a Laguna Jointer // It Might Save You Money
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 1 окт 2024
- I returned the Laguna JX8 Sheartec Jointer and replaced it.
Craftex CX08: www.busybeetoo...
Sheartak Spiral Cutterhead: sheartak.com/s...
Craftex CX08HC: www.busybeetoo...
Check out my buddies Morgan and Cole for more woodworking videos.
Morgan: / @morganhurst_redridge
Cole: / @masonwoodshop
/ @garynelles
Just finished your video...I replaced the striaight knife setup in my Dewalt 735 with the Byrd shelix OEM. Been very happy witn it.
Great machine and great choice for the head!
Wow I was considering the laguna 8” jointer ….. it looks like a really nice machine. Yes when u buy a new machine, it does need to be setup. However it shouldn’t be that involved. I really appreciate your videos. Feel like I dodged a headache. Thank you sir !!!
Looks can be deceiving. I have no problem going through an involved set up process as long as I only have to do it once or very infrequently. The problem with this machine is the act of even just turning the machine on would throw it out of alignment.
Thanks for watching my video. Let me know what you end up buying please.
Sorry to hear all the issues you have had. I was having issues as well when setting up with only feeler gauges and no proper dial indicator. The dial indicator was unbelievably helpful for getting things finely, finely tuned and since then I haven’t had any issues, but it hasn’t been that long either. It sounds like yours was a dud. Really hoping mine continues to keep square and doesn’t have any issues in future.
It’s good to hear that you’re having better luck than I did. Laguna did tell me that they estimated 10 to 20% of their jointers had the same problem that mind did. Yes, I definitely had a dud.
Sorry to hear about your issues with the Laguna JX8.
I received mine about a year ago and love it still. I did watch your 2 videos on the setup and adjusted what I thought needing adjustment. Also the Laguna tech visited my shop on another issue shortly after I received my new jointer and he spent about 20 minutes further making adjustments. Those were the last ones made. Today I jointed up 2 pieces of curly maple approximately 8” by 36” and have zero complaints about the quality of the output.
For the amount of time you spent adjusting yours I can only assume you asked Laguna to come out and check it out. I also live in southern Ontario and had no issues in getting the Laguna rep out.
Hopefully the Busy Bee model gives you the joy and results you strive for.
Glad to hear somebody had good luck Roger. No a tech was never offered to me. They knew and admitted there were unresolved issues with their jointers.
I did this 12 yrs ago with my 6" Jet cabinet jointer. I paired it with a a Byrd, Shelix cutter head.
It makes total sense to do it on day one. Thanks for watching and commenting. I appreciate it!
Laguna seems to have hit or miss quality in a lot of their products. One would think they would want to fix it. I also have heard tons of complaints about their total lack of customer service. I do have one of their 16HD bandsaws for cutting up bowl blanks. One turning friend, Leo Van Der Loo lives up there in Ontario. I sent him a piece of California Bay Laurel, which here in Oregon, we call Oregon Myrtle wood. Marketing......
I use to think Laguna was a really good company, but I’ve had a lot of people reach out to me privately to tell me that they have had similar problems with their jointers as well. My neighbour has a few of their machines and so far he’s happy with them. To be honest, I don’t know if I will ever buy another Laguna machine. Thank you once again for commenting and watching one of my videos. It means a lot.
I am curious about General tools. I know they used to make really high quality tools. Don't know how the quality changed when they moved manufacturing to China.
@@robohippy yes general did make very good machines. I have no idea why their quality is not what it once was. If anybody else reading this knows, please let us know.
Thanks for the video, I upgraded my 6” jointer and my Dewalt planer to Shearak and nothing but impressed with the quality of the cuts. I am now looking to replace my 6” jointer and have been on the same journey that you took so your video is very helpful. Thinking of doing the same thing and buying the Craftex and replacing the head. How has the jointer been performing?
I really haven’t had any issues with it. The cut quality is great (with the Sheartak head. If I was going to criticize it the only thing I can really say is the dust collection needs improving. It seems to spit out the back side of the jointer. Maybe the spiral orientation of the segmented head pushes the chips in that direction while it spins. I haven’t taken the time to try retrofitting some thing to direct the airflow better in that area but I plan on it down the road. Oh and I guess the fence I got was slightly twisted, but busy bee replaced it. I’m glad you found the video helpful. Thanks for tuning in, I appreciate it.
It’s ridiculous that Canada has so many import restrictions. There are so many good quality tools available to the rest of the world.
I think we can pretty much get anything but we have to pay so much money for duties and fees it’s just ridiculous.
Hey Gary, my favorite species of wood is cedar (hey...I'm from BC!). I have the Craftex 8" jointer with the OEM helical head, it seems to do a decent job for me. I did, however, Frankenstein a King 15" planer with a Shelix cutter head. It took several hours, but with some RUclips tutorials, it went smoothly and was worth the effort. Like you, I now have an unused straight knife cutter head just hanging around my shop collecting dust. :)
Hey Stan, thanks for your comment. Ya the OEM helical head left a surface that I could see the milling marks pretty easy with the naked eye. Thanks for tuning in!
About 4 years ago I bought a 15” grizzly straight knife planer and ordered a Byrd shielix helical head to make the switch (day 1). It was a pain and I needed to visit a buddy’s shop to press the bearings onto the new Byrd head. Overall cost was about the same as buying a spiral (but not helical) version of the same machine from grizzly. The helical inserts cut at a slight angle compared to making 1” cuts straight-on like the spiral version.
No regrets. The 15” planer has seen lots of wood, and took few nicks due to hidden screw or nails. I’ve rotated the cutters a couple times using sharpie to mark the used face, but still on the same set of carbide inserts.
Hey Ralph it’s nice to hear of more people having good experiences! Keep up the good work!
Frankenstein. .. i received my Sheartek cutterhead for my 8 inchjointer today!!!!! I have many Crafted machines.. I love them... Busy Bee uses the same manufacturer as Grizzly.. my tables away is identical to the model they sell.... great video
Hey Andy, good to hear! Thanks for watching and commenting. I appreciate it!
Jarrah is my favourite species of wood.
I bought the Laguna 8 inch helical head jointer and it came straight out of the box perfect.
I did watch your 1st 2 videos and I was concerned as they are an expensive investment. I went ahead and I love the machine. Best of luck with your new machine.
I’ve never tried jarrah. Glad to hear you’ve had good luck! Thanks for tuning in. I appreciate it.
I was so close to getting a JX8 last year, but after numerous venders told me they had been trying to get in contact with them, and would get no answers on backorder dates, I decided to go with Powermatic 8" Helical Head. Premium price over the Laguna, but it was dead accurate out of the crate. A year later and I've made zero adjustments other than cut of depth and dialing in 90 which takes all of 10 seconds. Glad to see I made a good decision.
You certainly made a good decision. I only adjusted my 6” king once when I bought it in 2007 and it was still in perfect alignment when I sold it in 2022. Thanks for watching!
I like white oak and I am considering a frankenstein jointer myself
Do it!
Laguna is losing a lot of business based on quality and customer service.
True
White Oak is my favorite species as I prefer to make outdoor furnitire. I was having similar issues but I follwed your video (many viewings), all seemed okay. Just recently I again was having trouble keeping the fence at 90 degrees to the table. I reviewed you video again and got the fence back to 90 degrees but I dont have faith that it will stay. I had high hopes for this machine but am really disappointed. The adjustment mechanisums seem poorly engineered and haphazard. It is doing the job for now but
I'm hesitant to move it now and have to inspect the lumber and fence after every board. I really wish I had chosen Powermatic.
Sorry to hear you are having issues. Your comment doesn’t specify which jointer you have. Laguna or a Craftex like I have now? I’d love to hear back from you.
@@garynelles I have the Laguna JX 8
Since a jointer is one of the core shop machines, it should just “work” and stay that way once it’s adjusted. Sorry to hear that you are having issues with yours. I hope Laguna steps up and fixes yours.
I have the craftex with the OEM helical head. Absolutely love it. No issues with cut quality whatsoever
That’s how it should be. I’m glad you don’t have any issues. Thanks for sharing!
Frankenstein… at least I’m thinking that way now!
I’ve really been liking the aftermarket cutter head and the price was right! Thanks for watching!
I guess I don't understand. If the Laguna tables were co planer to each other, and the cutter aligned to the outfeed table, why didn't you get straight flat boards, you would have to, right?
Did you watch the whole video? I thought I made it clear that the Laguna JX8 would not keep/hold the adjustment after it was set up perfectly. The grub screws and cams continually slipped and we’re incapable of staying locked even though they were tight.
I@@garynelles I did but I missed it. thanks for getting back.
I problem bud.
Im gonna say butternut for now. Glad you're up and jointing again.
I’ve never actually used butternut. I’ll have to give it a try. Walnut is great stuff. The colours that come out of it when it’s air dried are ridiculous.
Walnut and Frankenstein.
A year ago I bought the craftex 12in box planner (table top) with the helical head and honestly have had the same issue as your buddy. Quite a bit of marks to sand off after having to change the carbide bits. I'm glad I found your video! I was looking at getting this jointer but I'm reluctant to pay the extra for the sub-par helical head! Thanks!!
The only thing I’m not happy about is the dust collection. It seems to spill out at the far end of the cutter head into the fence area and behind the in feed table quite a bit. I’m going to have to try to retrofit some kind of a shroud to direct the airflow better in that area.
If your helical head is leaving tracks after roating/swapping carbide inserts, were you tightening them with a torque wrench?
I think the issue with the OEM Craftex head is likely the number of rows and inserts compared to the aftermarket one. I would hope the inserts were equally torqued at the factory. Just my two cents. Thanks for watching and commenting!
What a headache. Glad Laguna took the machine back at least.
Ya. Me too. Thanks for watching another video Kevin!
I watched 29 seconds.
GONG
Sorry for asking but I don’t understand your comment. Does “GONG” stand for something that I’m unfamiliar with or is it a spelling mistake and you meant “GONE”?
Walnut and I just bought a laguna…. Have not even set it up and opened the crate and it had been used… wood shavings were left in the machine ….
Yikes. It would seem as if somebody has already abandoned that machine. I’m speechless. Best of luck to you.
If you do decide to unpack it and set it up, I do have a pretty comprehensive set up video.
Laguna JX8 Assembly and Proper Table Alignment
ruclips.net/video/l-3p0AyqUPc/видео.html
@@garynelles yes it came fully assembled it even had chips and saw dust in it? Like they tried it before shipping and then didn’t clean it out…. But with that said the indeed and outfeed tables are like in the “v” configuration lol to the blades …. Ugh
Wow. I’m beside myself.
@@garynelles yeah sucks both dealer and laguna are like we will see we will talk to the other mean while I have an expensive paper weight in my garage not even sure if I should take the time to complane or not
I picked up a Powermatic out of Nashville some years back. I've been satisfied with it. My Laguna experience was far from good. Purchased their dovetail trunion cabinet saw. Nightmare! Those phone calls only frustrated me. Sold the saw a big loss. Gave the guy two cross cut tables and an auxiliary fence. Forewarned him and he was still took it. Stumbled across the Canadian made green cabinet saw . Hopefully my table saw issues are solved.
Ya I doubt I’ll ever buy a Laguna machine again. Was the new saw a General? Thanks for watching Francois.
cherry is my fav -- great video - it is refreshing to hear honest feedback versus others on RUclips who are just about product placement. I've seen a ton of these laguanas showing up on the RUclips community lately
Thanks for your comment Shawn. I really get encouragement when people comment on my videos. The Laguna jointer is a beautiful looking machine with a lot of issues. I wonder when they will get all the bugs worked out. Thanks for watching!
I love cherry but my wife wants everything painted so I don’t get to use it much. I also still have a soft spot for red oak even though it has fallen out of favour the past decade or so. Great discussion on the jointer. I appreciate the honesty. I have had good luck with my craftex machines so far. They are generally a pretty good value.
So far the Craftex has been fine. The only small complaint I have is that the fence is slightly twisted but it still makes the edge square so I haven’t made an issue about it.
I have some rift sawn red oak that I’ve had for about 10 years. I really need to use it up.
Thanks for your comment and viewership, I appreciate it !
Hard Maple and Frankenstein! Thanks for the open and honest video Gary! I bought the Dewalt 735X planner and have not used it yet but similar to you have already looked at all the potential helical cutter head options before i even bought it! After looking at the usual suspects and their costs (Shelix, Lux Cut, etc.), I stumbled upon Sheartak and the pricing was better and wondered how good their cutter heads are - now I have some idea! I have always been nervous about the quality of Craftex and post purchase support as BusyBee gets some bad reviews on the support side of things on a fairly regular basis. How have you found their support thus far?
Walnut for me.
I would wear out the blades in the 735x before upgrading the head. That machine works great and you’ll get at least a year out of the blades before needing replacing (unless you do tons of woodworking).
I actually had to have the original Craftex fence replaced because it wasn’t flat at all. I did have to send pictures but it wasn’t an unreasonable process at all.
Where in Canada are you?
@@garynelles Thanks for the reply. Yes. I planned to used the blades just to see how they work, sound levels, how long the last and to have something to compare them to if/when I choose a helical head. I am in Edmonton and am always envious of the prices of hardwood and baltic birch out east! Glad to hear that they replaced the fence without any hassle - thanks for sharing your experience.
Gary I also bought a straight knife jointer and swapped the head before turning it on
I knew I couldn’t be the only one! 👍Thanks for sharing, commenting and watching!
I ended up finding a good used King jointer, and like you changed the straight knifes head to a sheartak segmented head. Been very happy with the results.
Ya once my dewalt 735 planer blades are dull I’ll drop in a ShearTac head for sure. Are you in Canada Chris? Thanks for watching!
I was thinking of doing the same to my DW735, i still have a few sets of blades left. I'm about 20 KM north of Toronto @@garynelles
Love Walnut and Maple. But Sepele is wonderful!
Walnut is my favourite and when paired with maple it’s reeeeeeal sharp! Thanks for watching!
Gotta mention that twisted fence!
Ya the fence original fence was twisted enough it wasn’t possible to get 90 degree edges. The replacement one is barely twisted but it doesn’t seem to be affect the results so I haven’t made an issue about it. Thanks for watching Mr. Jesse.
Enjoyed the video ! Cheers
Thanks Robert. I appreciate you letting me know.
Paduk.
Thanks for doing the video. I bought a Laguna Sheartec 8" also, but the alignment is spot-on. Stinks that you were unlucky and got a lemon. Mine is good to go and I use it almost daily. Really enjoy your videos!
Thanks for watching and your kind words. I’m glad to hear you are having good luck with the jointer. I’ve had an overwhelming number of people reach out asking for help and how to get their money back. I bet at least 50 people have contacted me.
maple - obviously here because having cahllenges with new BX8 hoping I can resolve looking for best instructions to level bring it to true
Laguna JX8 Assembly and Proper Table Alignment
ruclips.net/video/l-3p0AyqUPc/видео.html
Let me know if my other video helps. If your machine doesn’t maintain adjustment/alignment then you need to call Laguna. Thanks for watching!