Jet 6" Jointer Questions

[fdfrye]

Hey guys,

I have an older Jet jointer I am working on cleaning up. I started by getting some new Freud knives for it (found them cheap on Amazon and they had better reviews than the Jet ones).

Next I went to install the new knives and discovered that 2/12 screws holding the cutterhead knive plates had become wedged tight with pitch and sawdust and stripped as I tried to remove them.

After getting everything apart, I decided the cutterhead itself had probably never been cleaned and it might be a good idea to take it out and give it a little TLC.

Here came the big problem. This is an older model Jet (before the blue paint scheme even) but it is almost identical to the current models as far as assembly and parts goes. I made it mostly through the (current) manual as it described how to remove the cutterhead and realized the bolts holding the cutterhead to the base fall down through the base. The manual describes the bolts in the current model as screwing upwards into the cutterhead being held tight by a locknut.

So...it looks like on this older model, the only way to remove the cutterhead is to take the entire machine apart! I can't verify, however, because I do not have the original manual and don't know where to find it. You NCWWs could do me a huge favor by helping me find:

A. The original manual or
B. a replacement cutterhead that will never make me take the machine apart again or
C. replacements for the 2 or 3 damaged plate screws...

Keep in mind I bought this older, used machine because my budget isn't super high, so paying $200 for a nice, new cutterhead would almost be like paying double for the machine....

 

[Travis Porter]

Why are you even taking the cutter head out? The bearings are sealed and as you take the blades out you should be able to clean it up. I would leave it in place.

I am not sure what you mean about plate screws. Are you talking about the screws that wedge the blades in?

As for a manual, you might check www.owwm.org if no one on the site has a manual.

 

[fdfrye]

I was only going to take the cutterhead out because it seemed difficult to get a brush or cleaner on the head with such a narrow slow in the bed. It isn't a necessity, but I also wanted to be up close and personal with the knives and plates and screws and springs as I toyed around with everything, just to be really precise. I did mean the wedge screws or gib screws or whatever when I referred to "plate screws." Thanks for the link to OWWM..I will check that out next.

 

[Travis Porter]

Taking out the head is not something I would do unless I was planning to replace bearings or do something substantial. Too many opportunities for something to go wrong.

As for the head itself, I would only remove and install 1 blade at a time. I have read (I don't know this) that taking all the blades out could cause it to warp and that you should only do one at a time. Once you get one out, get you a brass brush or an old tooth brush with a bit of kerosene and clean out all the gunk. Aligning the blades can be a challenge. David Fenton helped me do mine the last time I did a set and he used a dial indicator to assist with the alignment. It took a long time (couple of hours), but they were as close to perfect as you could ask and the quality of cut was impressive.

As for the knife tightening bolts or whatever they are called, prepare to be in sticker shock. They should be the same from model to model as nothing much has changed, but when I had to buy some for my planer way way back they were 75 cents each. They are metric and very very short so I couldn' t just go to a hardware store and buy them. Personally, I thought the original bolts were too soft as they rounded over way too easy.

I had a jet jointer that I bought new around 1991. I think it was before the blue color as well. Mine was an open framed base silver color jet JJ6. It served me well for many many years. The only issue I ever had with it was the motor pulley had a tendency to come loose.

 

[JimmyC]

Danny,

When I refurbed my 8" jointer and I needed gib bolts I went through Grizzly (even though I don't have a Grizz jointer) because I had an odd size. You can contact their service dept. with the proper size and I'm sure that they can help. The bolts were $1.00 a piece, but of much better quality than the originals.

Good Luck,
Jimmy:mrgreen:

 

[gazzer]

. I have read (I don't know this) that taking all the blades out could cause it to warp and that you should only do one at a time.

I have seen this warning too, and have always followed it; however I have always been skeptical about it. The head is a big chunk of metal that should not be stressed too much by the knife holders. It seems to me that gradually and sequentially loosening all of the screws should prevent any issues regardless of how many knives you remove.

Actually the big reason for me to do one knife at a time is that tracking the location of 3 loose things at the same time tends to be too much of a challenge!

fdfrye: You should be able to ramp each table down to give sufficient room for cutterhead access. They move away from each other as they are lowered. Removing the cutterhead is not likely to cause big problems; however it's one of those things that you don't do unless necessary.

-G

 

[JimmyC]

I took all of the blades out of mine at the same time and no warping happened, but it was a pain in the a** to get the blades aligned:no:. From now on, one at a time.

Jimmy:mrgreen: