Low cost planer - should I?

[Dan Karachio]

Hello,

I have been sitting on this too long. I need a planer and am sick of borrowing my neighbors. I hate wasting money on cheap tools, but I want to be a little thrifty right now. I have read good things about the Rigid 13 lunch box planer. Seems you can get it for around $300 and that's pretty darn reasonable. I am just a home user/hobbiest. I do not want to spend more right now.

Whattya think?

[Guy Belleman]

... and have been happy with it, until I can afford a bigger, more professional one. I am a teacher, living overseas during the school year and in Virginia during the summers, so I have two shops and have two of most items, including planers.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/12-1-2-Planer/G0505

I have found that I get better results, less snipe, by having table that goes all the way through the planer, hooking on both ends.

[Bill Huber]

I have the Ridgid 4330 and it does a great job for me.

I had a 1300 which has a 2 blade head where the 4330 has 3. I really did not see much difference in the cut. The dust collection on the 1300 was better then on the 4330.

The features are just about the same.

1300 you have to lock the head, 4330 you do not.

I really don't think you can make a really deep cut but I have never tried.

So bottom line is if you can find a 1300 used and in good shape get it, if not the 4330 for around $370 is a good planer.

I have a friend that found a really nice 1300 for $200 and it still had the second set of blades that came with it.

[Brent Leonard]

My Ridgid planer has served me well. I have previos 2 blade model.
I like working with Hard Maple alot, and it does a fantastic job if you feed the wood in the proper direction of the grain. If you do get a little wave in the grain, spritz some water on the wood and it is virtually tearout free. It makes wonderful cuts in Oak. Poplar and walnut I put through it also with excellent results.

Snipe is the biggest complaint I and others have from what I have read. Some people build a long table that goes all the way through the machine. They seem to report eliminating snipe altogether doing that.
I have learned just the right amount of pressure of lifting the board on exit to almost do away with snipe.

If you have the money, get it. I don't think you'll be disapointed for hobby use.

[abram godshall]

if you are not in a hurry, checklist craigslist daily. you can get some good used pieces on it.

[Andy Bardowell]

I have one also Dan (portable planer) got it on sale and thought if I burn out the motor I'll then get that Steel City 20" that I coveted but it has performed so well that I'll stick with it. It depends I guess on the amount of board feet that you are going to run through it.

[Rob Price]

OP- you didn't specify which Rigid planer you're looking at, but I assume it's the older 2 blade model- it has consistently received good reviews.

I tried the newer 4330, but found that without a spindle lock, the head would travel down during a cut from the vibration. The handle is mounted on the side, and gravity would pull it down to 6 o'clock during operation. I called Rigid and all they had to say was, 'the new design doesn't need a spindle lock' and that there was no way to tighten it. I returned it and got a dewalt planer.

maybe they've fixed the problem, that was about a year ago.

[Igor Petrenko]

I've got used 12'' craftsman for $100. It does it's job well for me for more than a year now. And there is no snipe if I guide board in and then catch it and guide it out by hand with a little pressure directed up.

[Bill White]

My older DW733 has sure been a workhorse. I use a slave board for smaller, thinner work.
Bill ;)

[Mike Minto]

and have had very good success with it. my shop space is extremely limited, so it's on a mobile base. dust collection seems better with my 2.5" shop vac hose than with the 4" dust collection port, oddly enough. occasional tear out if i don't pay attention to grain orientation, but mostly smooth surfaces are the norm. no noticeable snipe, imo. mike

[Peter Scoma]

I was in the same boat and purchased the Ryobi on sale for around 175. So far no complaints. Snipe is so so but my experience has been that any lunchbox planer is going to snipe. One day I'll get a 20in grizzly floor model but for the meantime the ryobi was a pleasant surprise.

PS

[David Keller NC]

Well, if you want to be thrifty, then a low initial purchase price is not the way to go. This may sound counter-intuitive, but you are far better off paying the extra $200 for a Dewalt "lunchbox" planer with 2 speeds and a 3-knife head than any Rigid, Craftsman, or cheap Delta.

There are a couple of reasons for this. The dewalt can be setup to pretty much eliminate snipe - and I do mean eliminate it, not just reduce it. That means that you'll get at least an extra 4" out of every board you put through it, and with many elcheapo planers, and extra 8" (both infeed and outfeed snipe). The second reason is that the Dewalt has subtantial re-sale value. Really cheap Rigid, Ryobi, and others you may be able to get a few bucks for - perhaps $50 in well-used condition, perhaps $100 in near pristine condition.

[Mike Henderson]

Sometimes you can find a used unit for a decent price. I bought a used Dewalt 735 for somewhere around $325. Keep your eyes open and let your woodworking friends know you're in the market. That's what I did and a friend had upgraded to a bigger planer and wanted to sell his Dewalt.

I understand the point David is trying to make above, but sometimes all you have is all you have and you have to buy what you can with it. For example, I'd like to have a Sawstop TS but just don't have the money for it.

Mike

[Ray Dockrey]

I agree with the above. Sometimes you just have to settle for what you can afford. If you don't have the extra money you just don't have it and you have to get what you can afford. I have the Delta Shopmaster planer with the single speed and two knife cutterhead. I got it on clearance from Lowes for $150 a couple of years ago and I have to say it works beautifully. I get really nice cuts from it with no snipe whatsoever. I have often thought about upgrading but i don't have the money to do so right now and I really have no reason to.

[Ross Ellis]

If it's a Ridgid 1300 you can get blades. For a 4330, No BORG's in my area carry blades. Not sure if its everywhere. I have to order the blades online. The 4330 works great for small stuff, but I definately consider it a disposable tool. The blade thing is a pain when have to wait a week to get replacements. Not to mention paying $7.00 per set more for shipping. I keep an extra of blades on hand now.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Hello,

I have been sitting on this too long. I need a planer and am sick of borrowing my neighbors. I hate wasting money on cheap tools, but I want to be a little thrifty right now. I have read good things about the Rigid 13 lunch box planer. Seems you can get it for around $300 and that's pretty darn reasonable. I am just a home user/hobbiest. I do not want to spend more right now.

Whattya think?If you are buying new from HD, swing by the post office and get a "moving kit." There is a 10% off coupon for Lowes in there, that most HD's will honor. Coupon expires in June, at least in the ones I picked up yesterday. Because I work for myself, 10% off of a job order will buy some nice tools at no net cost to me.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I've got one of the older 2 blade, spindle lock Ridgid planers. It works like a champ!