Advice on Jointer

[Clifton]

im looking at a used Grizzly G0500 8"x75" jointer. anyone know anything about this model? is it a good buy in good condition but needing blades at $450?

 

[ehpoole]

I will leave the review for others with that model, but if the cutterhead uses straight knives then they are inexpensive and easy to come by and not worth worrying about too much provided the cutterhead is in good condition otherwise, but if it is an indexed carbide helical/spiral head cutterhead then replacing all the carbide inserts can be a bit costly if the existing inserts are worn out (such are usually four sided) or physically damaged.

But, in general, an 8" jointer is a good general purpose jointer for most woodworking operations since the vast majority of work, and most lumber, tend to be 8", or less, in width. If you do not already have a thickness planer then you will want to also add such to your collection as both jointer and planer compliment one another, each performing a different but equally vital role in most shops.

 

[Clifton]

i need a planer as well, what do you guys think of the Jet 707400 jointer/planer, it would save me floor space and money by getting two machines in one, thoughts?

 

[Jeremy Scuteri]

Re: Help selecting a planer

I think you are asking for major headaches with that jointer/planer.

 

[SubGuy]

Of the people I know who have had the combos, some have great success, some loath the machine. It's greatest downfalls are the lack of in and outfeed length on the joiner side and the time required to change it over. Some machines are better than others, but if you don't spend the equivalent of both machines, you may end up with what you paid for.

 

[ehpoole]

i need a planer as well, what do you guys think of the Jet 707400 jointer/planer, it would save me floor space and money by getting two machines in one, thoughts?

The benchtop jointer-planer combinations are not a particularly desirable option as they are basically glorified benchtop planers (and a rather low end to middle of the road benchtop planer at that) that tend to combine all of the very worst features of benchtop jointers and planers into a single compact unit. They are compact and lightweight, just not especially desirable. Just the fact that these combo units often sell for the same or less than a decent benchtop planer should tell one something about the compromises involved when trying to combine the two functions into one and we have had other members purchase such in the past only to promptly return them for a refund after trying to use them for the first time.

Now, if you want to look at the much larger stationary jointer-planer combination machines then those are often very viable options so long as you choose a model that is not too much work to switch between the two modes (some older designs required some very heavy lifting while better designs minimize such) and you do not mind the inconvenience if regularly switching modes and readjusting height/depth. However, realize that a combination machine is generally not as desirable as two separate machines as one typically goes to the jointer with a board and then immediately to the planer, which means having to regularly switch between modes and regularly having to change height/depth adjustments which can get exhausting if things are not well planned strategically. One downside of the combination machines are their unusually short (by American design standards) infeed and outfeed beds, which can complicate effectively jointing longer boards, particularly if they are off by a good bit (twist, cup, bow), that would otherwise easily have been handled by the longer beds of a stationary jointer (but this issue is common to many European design jointers). Where these units most excel is in jointing unusually wide boards since the jointer is the same width as the planer, but most shops will not have a lot of opportunity to exploit such unless the need exists to regularly work with really wide boards and it is possible to occasionally joint the face of wide boards using a planer for those rare occasions such need arises when your jointer is too narrow. That all said, if you are tight on space then they can be a space saver since they occupy less space than a typical American style stationary jointer (since the beds are so short) and just a bit more than some stationary planers, but they are very heavy and often more expensive than two separate stationary machines (or, especially, a stationary jointer plus benchtop planer combo, which is cheaper still) but do not forget to consider the added hassle of always needing to switch between the two modes when deciding if such is an ideal solution for your shop. If you can accept the downsides (very short jointer beds, frequently switching between modes, weight, and cost) of such units in exchange for their two prime strengths (wide jointing capability and space savings) then such may be a good fit for you.

But most will want to avoid those benchtop combination jointer-planer solutions as they are not worth it unless one enjoys punishing oneself.