Good afternoon I have a problem, more so a question. I’m fairly new to this woodworking hobby. Needing something to do, I stared this hobby around 2014, just before retiring from both the US Army Reserves and Baltimore City Fire Department. In 2015, I was told that one of the more important tools I needed was a jointer. I saw a “great” sale for a Porter Cable bench jointer for around $300 and with military discount it was even better, about $250 before tax. So, I brought it. At that time, I did not know how to use it nor what the difference between it and a planner. I thought I would learn how to use it later. After buying it, I “played” with it and it seem to work. I pulled it out in 2018, for a project but my material did not seem to get level like I want it to. I thought it was due to operator error. In 2020, I finally read some books, took some online classes and viewed a whole lot of videos to better learn the art of woodworking. So, jumping up to what is happening now, a few weeks ago, I was building a crosscut shed. I was trying to square up my material. I knew I only needed to take off about 3/16”. I kept running the wood on the jointer but could not get it right. So, I did it another way to complete the project. After that I tried to figure out what I was doing wrong and tried to contact the makers of Porter Cable. With no one to talk to, the site led me to one of those live, online help text things. But the person who I was texting seem to know a lot less than I, she did not know what a jointer was or how to work with them. (Nothing against women, I have learned a lot from women woodworkers) She finally sent me a Delta JT160 jointer site, “How to adjust the parallelism……” Today I pulled out the jointer to make sure the in-feed and the out-feed tables were parallel. They were not, but that was not the only issue. Both tables had a crown or bow in them. The out-feed was minor, about .03” from one end to the other. Keep in mind this is a bench jointer so, the entire jointer is only about 36” or less. The in-feed side was even worst, more than .31” (yes more than ¼ inches) off. These are a cast iron tables, so I would not think they would bow like that in storage. It looks like I have an expensive paper weight. So, what is a good starter jointer for a beginner woodworker?
very good video. I am considering upgrading to an 8" with a helical cutterhead. I am curious if the Helical blades can be rotated WITHOUT taking the screw completely out? Also If a screw is dropped into the machine would it be easy to recover. I wouldn't want to drop a screw in the machine and have it damage the cutterhead.
Do you recommend the rigid as a viable option. With current covid situation I am having a hard time getting a jointer in time for use this summer. Everything seems to be on back order for months. I can get the ridgid in a week or so through home Depot but don't want to spend money on something that is not acceptable or better
I have a Jet 8 inch helical jointer. But mine is setup perfect and I don't get those kind of lines in the wood as in this demonstration. It almost looks likes something was really out of alignment.
Nice demo of board after jointing (chalk rubbed on board), BUT those grooves/lines on the spiral head cut board tell me that the cutters on the spiral head are not off-set so that each row of cutters overlap and eliminate those lines. I have a spiral head on my 6" on my jointer with offset cutters and NEVER have those lines. I can start sanding at 180 grit because the finish off the planer is much better than you showed. Inspect the cutter head to make sure the carbide cutters are offset row to row.
That's funny, Mark, because I've never seen a jointer or planer with a helical head that DID NOT leave these shallow linear grooves. The cutters are aligned as the manufacturer designed, so there's "misalignment" on the machines we tested. I know it doesn't make sense, but it's the nature of these helical heads. I bet if you'd rub chalk on a board that's just been jointed on your machine, you'd see these too. They're subtle, but I'm confident they're there. And you're right, they do sand out quickly if your machine didn't make the grooves too deep. The best ones can be sanded away with 150 grit quickly; the worst ones need 80 or 100 grit to remove (but these are rare). Take a look at your jointer with an open mind, and I'll be you'll find the same. I'd be interested to see your results.
The cutters are on an angle which help prevent tear out but because the knives are square and the cutter is at an angle you end up with one side of the cutter a little higher than the other side. The more knives you have the better the cut will end up but you will always end up with a surface that needs sanding. The advantages of the knife being at an angle greatly overshadows the lines that it produces especially if you are working with figured lumber. You can really ruin a expensive board with straight knives if they are not razor sharp and let's face it the only time that really happens is right out of the sharpening shop because a sharp edge dulls the fastest.
I prefer the switch on the front side of the machine. If something goes wrong and you have your work piece firmly gripped with both hands you can easily bump the stop button with your knee or side of your leg. Also like how you showed the cutting finish. A jointer made a big difference in my wood working arsenal. I could only afford a 6 inch but by using your head you can flatten boards wider than 6 inches.
I haven't had mine for too long to comment if that's what it'll look like when the inserts start to dull, but what I have done are nothing like that. I think when he mentions that it's an exaggerated version, he definitely means it. (I've got that same Shop Fox model)
From what I can see of the helical vs the straight blade, they both have pros and cons. Con on the helical is that you have to make sure ALL those cutting heads are the same height. If they aren't they make the hills and valleys. Straight edge con is one chip and you have to replace the whole blade. Helical has less chatter than straight, but again you've got to be sure the alignment of each little cutter head on every row around the spindle holding the blades is as close to the same height as possible. I think I'm going to stick with the straight knife.
@@WatcherNine From what I hear alignment of the helical cutters is much easier. They are self aligning. Get a nick in one, just turn that one a quarter turn and you're good to go. I was just concerned about those ridges and that Bob said it takes more sanding to finish the board. I'll take a good look at this when our Woodcraft store re-opens in April.
John, I definitely recommend a helical-head jointer and planer. The benefits (stays sharp longer, runs quieter, makes less tear-out) far outweigh the one minor negative. You won't be disappointed in a helical head!
Are you just really tall or do every one of these floor models come to below the waist? That half stoup to work at that height looks like pure murder on the back and shoulders.
@@Wood Thank you for the explanation. That is good information to have when planning the layout in a small shop. (Mental note: the outfeed table/workbench will be in the way. Get a portable roller bar.)
Not in my opinion. If you have a 12” wide board that is cupped an 1/8”, you would have to plane an 1/8 “ off of the full 12” to remove the cup. But if you rip the board in half you can clean the cup and remove less than a 1/16”. If you do this and leave your board longer than needed, you can minimize the grain mismatch by shifting the two halves until the grain lines up when gluing the boards back together. If you absolutely need to flatten a wider board you can put the board on a sled shim it so it won’t move and then run it through the thickness planer.
Hi Joyce. Not everyone can afford a professional jointer or one that is 8, 10 or 12 inches wide from the start. I bought a 6 inch and you can get board perfectly flat even if they are 12 inches wide. You just have to be smart about it.
Good afternoon
I have a problem, more so a question. I’m fairly new to this woodworking hobby. Needing something to do, I stared this hobby around 2014, just before retiring from both the US Army Reserves and Baltimore City Fire Department. In 2015, I was told that one of the more important tools I needed was a jointer. I saw a “great” sale for a Porter Cable bench jointer for around $300 and with military discount it was even better, about $250 before tax. So, I brought it. At that time, I did not know how to use it nor what the difference between it and a planner. I thought I would learn how to use it later. After buying it, I “played” with it and it seem to work. I pulled it out in 2018, for a project but my material did not seem to get level like I want it to. I thought it was due to operator error. In 2020, I finally read some books, took some online classes and viewed a whole lot of videos to better learn the art of woodworking. So, jumping up to what is happening now, a few weeks ago, I was building a crosscut shed. I was trying to square up my material. I knew I only needed to take off about 3/16”. I kept running the wood on the jointer but could not get it right. So, I did it another way to complete the project. After that I tried to figure out what I was doing wrong and tried to contact the makers of Porter Cable. With no one to talk to, the site led me to one of those live, online help text things. But the person who I was texting seem to know a lot less than I, she did not know what a jointer was or how to work with them. (Nothing against women, I have learned a lot from women woodworkers) She finally sent me a Delta JT160 jointer site, “How to adjust the parallelism……”
Today I pulled out the jointer to make sure the in-feed and the out-feed tables were parallel. They were not, but that was not the only issue. Both tables had a crown or bow in them. The out-feed was minor, about .03” from one end to the other. Keep in mind this is a bench jointer so, the entire jointer is only about 36” or less. The in-feed side was even worst, more than .31” (yes more than ¼ inches) off. These are a cast iron tables, so I would not think they would bow like that in storage.
It looks like I have an expensive paper weight. So, what is a good starter jointer for a beginner woodworker?
I have the Jet 8” jointer with helical head, awesome machine.
very good video. I am considering upgrading to an 8" with a helical cutterhead. I am curious if the Helical blades can be rotated WITHOUT taking the screw completely out? Also If a screw is dropped into the machine would it be easy to recover. I wouldn't want to drop a screw in the machine and have it damage the cutterhead.
Well done Bob.
Do you recommend the rigid as a viable option. With current covid situation I am having a hard time getting a jointer in time for use this summer. Everything seems to be on back order for months. I can get the ridgid in a week or so through home Depot but don't want to spend money on something that is not acceptable or better
Thanks for the knowledge about different types of 6" Jointer's !!!!!!!!!!!!!
I wish there were more compare/contrast of the features. Particularly why you'd chose one feature over another.
I have a Jet 8 inch helical jointer. But mine is setup perfect and I don't get those kind of lines in the wood as in this demonstration. It almost looks likes something was really out of alignment.
Nice demo of board after jointing (chalk rubbed on board), BUT those grooves/lines on the spiral head cut board tell me that the cutters on the spiral head are not off-set so that each row of cutters overlap and eliminate those lines. I have a spiral head on my 6" on my jointer with offset cutters and NEVER have those lines. I can start sanding at 180 grit because the finish off the planer is much better than you showed. Inspect the cutter head to make sure the carbide cutters are offset row to row.
That's funny, Mark, because I've never seen a jointer or planer with a helical head that DID NOT leave these shallow linear grooves. The cutters are aligned as the manufacturer designed, so there's "misalignment" on the machines we tested. I know it doesn't make sense, but it's the nature of these helical heads. I bet if you'd rub chalk on a board that's just been jointed on your machine, you'd see these too. They're subtle, but I'm confident they're there. And you're right, they do sand out quickly if your machine didn't make the grooves too deep. The best ones can be sanded away with 150 grit quickly; the worst ones need 80 or 100 grit to remove (but these are rare). Take a look at your jointer with an open mind, and I'll be you'll find the same. I'd be interested to see your results.
The cutters are on an angle which help prevent tear out but because the knives are square and the cutter is at an angle you end up with one side of the cutter a little higher than the other side. The more knives you have the better the cut will end up but you will always end up with a surface that needs sanding.
The advantages of the knife being at an angle greatly overshadows the lines that it produces especially if you are working with figured lumber. You can really ruin a expensive board with straight knives if they are not razor sharp and let's face it the only time that really happens is right out of the sharpening shop because a sharp edge dulls the fastest.
I prefer the switch on the front side of the machine. If something goes wrong and you have your work piece firmly gripped with both hands you can easily bump the stop button with your knee or side of your leg. Also like how you showed the cutting finish. A jointer made a big difference in my wood working arsenal. I could only afford a 6 inch but by using your head you can flatten boards wider than 6 inches.
The main thing to look for in a 6 inch jointer is 2 more inches.
Yep that was what I was going to say lol.
I would say 6 more inches for end game
That's what she said.
@@chrisgriffith1573came here to that the same thing 😂
ah.. I thought you were gonna give us the low down on which works best.. But thanks for the insite..
4:02 You said you came get 4 cut sides from each Bit. Does the Bits have cutting edge on the other side to get 4 more?
Hey Bob
After you review these joiners do you donate them to a charity or a high school with a woodworking class
VERY NICE
Good Info.
I've heard a lot of good reviews on helical cutters. After seeing this, I'm not so sure.
I haven't had mine for too long to comment if that's what it'll look like when the inserts start to dull, but what I have done are nothing like that. I think when he mentions that it's an exaggerated version, he definitely means it. (I've got that same Shop Fox model)
From what I can see of the helical vs the straight blade, they both have pros and cons. Con on the helical is that you have to make sure ALL those cutting heads are the same height. If they aren't they make the hills and valleys. Straight edge con is one chip and you have to replace the whole blade. Helical has less chatter than straight, but again you've got to be sure the alignment of each little cutter head on every row around the spindle holding the blades is as close to the same height as possible. I think I'm going to stick with the straight knife.
@@WatcherNine From what I hear alignment of the helical cutters is much easier. They are self aligning. Get a nick in one, just turn that one a quarter turn and you're good to go. I was just concerned about those ridges and that Bob said it takes more sanding to finish the board. I'll take a good look at this when our Woodcraft store re-opens in April.
John, I definitely recommend a helical-head jointer and planer. The benefits (stays sharp longer, runs quieter, makes less tear-out) far outweigh the one minor negative. You won't be disappointed in a helical head!
Are you just really tall or do every one of these floor models come to below the waist? That half stoup to work at that height looks like pure murder on the back and shoulders.
@@Wood Thank you for the explanation. That is good information to have when planning the layout in a small shop. (Mental note: the outfeed table/workbench will be in the way. Get a portable roller bar.)
As it should be
All those joiners there and not one thing to say about any specific one... wasted chance.
@@Wood You haven't seen me there before, I'm not going there now. I watch people to see how they feel about the tool. I have already read the specs.
@@Wood You can follow ME if you want...
6 inches joiner are too small
It’s not the size that matters, it’s how you use it.......
Not asking for a comment like that
Not in my opinion. If you have a 12” wide board that is cupped an 1/8”, you would have to plane an 1/8 “ off of the full 12” to remove the cup. But if you rip the board in half you can clean the cup and remove less than a 1/16”. If you do this and leave your board longer than needed, you can minimize the grain mismatch by shifting the two halves until the grain lines up when gluing the boards back together. If you absolutely need to flatten a wider board you can put the board on a sled shim it so it won’t move and then run it through the thickness planer.
Hi Joyce. Not everyone can afford a professional jointer or one that is 8, 10 or 12 inches wide from the start. I bought a 6 inch and you can get board perfectly flat even if they are 12 inches wide. You just have to be smart about it.
@@andrewalters9272 would you be able to tell me how to accomplish this?