Input on which biscuit joiner

[Dan Mitchell]

I'm thinking of buying a biscuit joiner & am wondering which models people like and don't like. Oddly, I can't seem to find a reasonably recent magazine/tool guide review of these. Anyone know of a good review, or have other comments?

TIA

Dan

[Greg Magone]

I have the Porter Cable 557.

I haven't done very many biscuit joints yet so I can't comment on lots of experience. However, I'm a professional engineer and can say the machine is built solid and built to last. It appears to be designed well and made well so I can use it for a long time.

Of course, it is also a bit spendy. But I think it is well worth it.

[Peter Pedisich]

Dan,

I have the DeWalt biscuit joiner - about 4 years old.

I would reccommend the Porter-Cable 557.

The Porter-Cable, in my opinion, is a superior design, having the handle attached to the fence, as opposed to the body like the DW.

The new Freud also has the handle on the fence.

Dan, try to avoid the P/C biscuits, I find them to be too tight or too loose about 15% of the time.

Good Luck,

Pete

[Mike Henderson]

I have the DeWalt, also. Get the PC that offers the really small biscuit. It's really handy to have when you need it.

(or I'll sell you my DeWalt so I can buy the PC.)

Mike

[joe milana]

I borrowed my nephews PC, then bought a lamello top 20. I rarely use it and almost always reach for the dowelmax first. If the choice is between PC or dewalt, look at the PC.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,
I bought a PC for $189.00 & it came w/a $30.00 rebate a few years ago.
For $159.00, it's a keeper - despite not being used for much.

Had I to do it all over again, knowing what I know now, I'd have put that $159.00 towards something else.

[Richard McComas]

I guess I'm the odd ball, I like my Dewalt. I have Dewalt at home and the PC at work. I prefer the Dewalt mostly because of ergonomics. I seldom use a biscuit jointer other that for attaching face frames to cabinet boxes. I have no need of Small biscuits like pc can do.

[John Carlo]

I have used the PC for years. Love it. Last year I built a cabinet that had small quarter round shelves on both the right and left sides of the main bookcase. I found the De Walt could get into the tight corners better with less protrusion on the sides. Both work very well for me.

[Frank Drew]

Not much love for Lamello; is that because it's fairly expensive?

I had a Dewalt (I think; it's since been sold), and it was a pretty good machine but I would have liked just a bit more accuracy in the fence, since getting the biscuit precisely where you want it is pretty much the point of the whole exercise. A friend who has the Lamello Top says he has no complaints on that score.

[Philip Johnson]

I can't believe no one has chimed in with the Festool Domino. I just picked one up and only tried a few test pieces and must say I am impressed. I started out looking at biscuit joiners and ended up with the Domino. Sure it is expensive but I think it will do more and do it better and faster.

[Jerome Hanby]

Before I bought mine, I did my usual ridiculous amount of www research. I knew I didn't have the money for a Lamello, so it was basically a choice between Freud, Porter Cable, and Dewalt. Freud got eliminated pretty fast based on reviews. I liked the fact that the PC handled the FF size biscuits, but all the talk about some change that PC was forced to make because of some design infringement issue, the drawbacks in the "new" design, and the dificulty in telling which version you were getting pushed me to the Dewalt. It works well and I have no complaints, but I suspect the "correct" Porter Cable model would be a better machine.

[Bill Orbine]

I can't believe no one has chimed in with the Festool Domino. I just picked one up and only tried a few test pieces and must say I am impressed. I started out looking at biscuit joiners and ended up with the Domino. Sure it is expensive but I think it will do more and do it better and faster.

I have the Festool Domino and I have the Lamello Jr. These joinery machines are both very different concepts and one works better than the other on different concepts. For most intents and purpose, the biscuit joiner is the all around machine because it's very productive. The speciatly machine, Domino, is excellent for frames, smaller stile & rail doors (such as cabinet doors). The Festool can do things the biscuit joiner does, but in most cases the biscuit is "good enough". Most guys are a bit thrifty because the Festool is quite a big investment. So is the Lamello biscuit joiners. I hear the Porter Cable is a good machine for the budget mined woodworker and works well and is used in the trade. The more expensive machines are really quite useful for the more serious minded woodworker such as myself because woodworking is my occupation and thee machines have serve me well.

On another note, what's more important than the cost of the machines (Dewalt, PC vs. the Lamello) are the biscuits themselves. I find that using the Lamello, Virutex (I stock) are better biscuits than the Porter Cables biscuit. I feel the biscuits themselves makes the the selection of biscuit joiners more irrevalent.

[Jerome Hanby]

I can't believe no one has chimed in with the Festool Domino. I just picked one up and only tried a few test pieces and must say I am impressed. I started out looking at biscuit joiners and ended up with the Domino. Sure it is expensive but I think it will do more and do it better and faster.

I was wondering the same thing about the Freud doweling tool. I look at that thing every time I go in Woodcraft. If it were closer to $150 than $350, I'd probably have one.

[chris beserra]

I like my Craftsman. It's made by Ryobi. After all the sales, discounts, and gift cards I had it was under $30:D It does everything I need for gluing up panels. I haven't done any face frames or miters yet.

[Rob Young]

I bought a PC 557 and I've been very happy with it. The ability to do the FF size biscuits is great. But later if I need to do a panel, I can use the 0, 10 or 20 size too.

[Bill Spievak]

I've used 3 until they died and was OK with each until it died. Usually the fence was damaged and replace once or twice in its life. I use them in a shop where lots of others pick them up and sometimes drop them. The DeWalt held up well as did the PC. I wasn't as happy with the Frued, not the new model. My current on is a Makita, and it is a keeper. It is about 2 years old and runs smooth, fits my hand, is light and relatively small. I will buy another. I have used a Lammelo, and really liked it - very smooth, very accurate, and very solid. But, I would only purchase it if I could keep others from using it. I have the Domino at home and a Makita at home, no one uses them and until the Makita goes I won't consider a Lammelo.

[glenn bradley]

+1 on the PC557. Very nice machine.

[Chris Padilla]

PC557 here...have done everything I've wanted. I like the extra blade for the FF biscuits.

As far as biscuits themselves, I have both Lamello and PC brand and both tend to be all over the map. One simply needs to sort their biscuits BEFORE glue up to get the right snugness one desires. Sometimes I like a fat, tight biscuit, other times a just right fitting...others I like a real loose fit.

I also have a Festool Domino and while both machines can be used on the same project, they do cut different joints. The domino is obviously more of a mortise/tenon tool designed for larger pieces while the biscuit cutter can handle the smaller "mortise/tenon" joints. Sure, the Domino does have very small tenons in its arsenal where it could directly "compete" with a biscuit cutter in certain applications.

[Sean Nagle]

I've used the Lamello Classic extensively for well over 10 years. My only regret is not buying the Top 20. As another poster has mentioned, Lamello biscuits are very high quality. I used PC biscuits once from a local source once that were inconsistent in thickness (usually too thick). I keep a good supply of Lamello biscuits.

[Brian W Evans]

I've only ever used my Makita 3901, but I have no complaints. Does what it's supposed to do.

I'll agree with everyone else who's said this, though: stay away from the PC biscuits. By the time you're done tossing all the ones that don't fit, they're more expensive than the good ones.

[Danny Hellyar]

Dan, I too have used the Dewalt biscuit joiner for many years now and it works great. I don't use it a lot but it has worked wonderfully well when I have used it. I've heard that the PC is very good as well. Can't see any reason to buy anything more expensive unless I were using it all day long on a frequent basis.

[Doug Donnell]

I have no experience with the others, but I have a Ryobi and I would suggest staying away from it. Mine was a gift from a well meaning non-woodworking parent. It is good enough that I haven't justified buying something else, though I don't use it much as I find it a bit frustrating. I wonder if I would use a more robust joiner more often?

The tool is typical of Ryobi, an economy price point tool that will do the job but suffers from light weight construction. In particular, the stamped fence has very imprecise adjustments and one must be very careful to set the fence and then not knock it out of adjustment. When I use it, I typically try to use the bench surface as a reference point or other alternative fence and avoid the fence on the tool altogether.

For my own purchases, I try to buy a tool that will be of higher quality, even though I am not a professional or even a very active hobbiest. I would only consider the Ryobi if I really, desperately needed a joiner and it meant the baby didn't eat if I bought a better one.

Of course, there are other joinery methods...

Good luck!

Doug

[Chris Padilla]

I've only ever used my Makita 3901, but I have no complaints. Does what it's supposed to do.

I'll agree with everyone else who's said this, though: stay away from the PC biscuits. By the time you're done tossing all the ones that don't fit, they're more expensive than the good ones.

Instead of tossing the fat biscuits, but them in a vise and squeeze them. Works just fine....

[Don Dorn]

I've only ever used my Makita 3901, but I have no complaints. Does what it's supposed to do.

I'll agree with everyone else who's said this, though: stay away from the PC biscuits. By the time you're done tossing all the ones that don't fit, they're more expensive than the good ones.

I'm sure the others are perfectly fine, but I have the Makita too and have never felt the need to have anything else. The chips really fly and the fence is solid as a rock.

[Tom Cross]

I have three biscuit joiners - Ryobi, Dewalt and Lamello Top 20. The Lamello is so much superior to the others. The runout is near zero - just plunge away and move on. Others have considerable runout so sometimes good results and sometimes not.

The Lamello STEP system allows you to adjust the blade up or down in 0.1 mm increments up to 2.0 mm up or down. I use the STEP system a lot to center biscuits or to offset one surface from another by a precise amount.

I also have the Festool Domino which is perfect for face frame and carcase assembly. I use the Lamello Top 20 to attach face frames to carcases.

The Lamello Top 20 is pricey just as the Festool Domino is. They are the best one can buy and I hihgly recommend both. They get frequent use in my shop.

[Stephen Edwards]

ditto for the makita

[Todd Young]

PC557 gets my vote. I go for reconditioned ones just to save a few $$. I use it mainly to attach facings on plywood shelves.

[Dan Mitchell]

Thanks for all the great replies, while it sounds like there are a couple good choices, from what I'm reading I think I'll check out the PC 1st.

I very much appreciate the input!

Dan