straightedge and jointer knives

[Eric John]

Hello everyone,

I am supposed to pick up a used jointer. It will be my first, before now everything planed by hand. I have two questions though, it is used, and as such will need a really good cleaning and setup. its an 8 inch model, the tables are 76 inches long overall. obviously a 50" straightedge would be nice ,but at 80$ hard to come up with right now. can i get by with a 38" strightedge? or will it be futile to try. Also where can u get decent hss knives? I never had to get them before so i just dont know. any suggestions?

Thanx for your help

Eric

[David Wong]

Here is an article on making your own alignment bars for setting up a jointer - link (http://www.woodcentral.com/articles/powertools/articles_511.shtml). I have seen an article with illustrations before, but I can't seem to find it. You should also look at Bob Vaughan's jointer setup videos.


Bob Vaughan demonstrates his technique for setting jointer and planer knives.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...b+vaughn&hl=en (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-572604587960322121&q=bob+vaughn&hl=en)

Setting Jointer knives with Bob Vaughan.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...b+vaughn&hl=en (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2983839096587014177&q=bob+vaughn&hl=en)

Planer Knife Setting with Bob Vaughan
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...b+vaughn&hl=en (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-986589700074242027&q=bob+vaughn&hl=en)

[Bill Rogers]

Here is a source for Joiner Knives and one of the best things for you is that they also are in Florida:

Whiteside, Byrd Tool, CMT, Amana, LRH and more 10% discount with coupon code "smc10" and free shipping at $75
http://www.holbren.com
800-838-3547

[jim gossage]

The larger the straight edge the better. However, I believe you can do the job with a 38" straight edge. You will be able to check the flatness of both table without any problem. As long as the tables are both flat and you are very careful with your measurements and tolerances, you should be able to get the two tables co planar even with your 38". Just realize that with only 17-18" of your edge on each table, if you are off by 0.002" at the end of the edge, your table might be off by 0.005" at the opposite end.

[Chuck Wintle]

you could joint 2 long pieces of wood and put the jointed edges together to see if there is gap at the midpoint of the wood or if the pieces are not touching at the ends. tune the jointer until you achieve the straightest edge.

[Don Jarvie]

What kind of Jointer? Knives are also available on Amazon for reasonable money. Get a copy of the manual online and use that as a guide to set up the jointer. As long as it's not been beat a few adjustments and elbow grease and you should be good to go.

A 48 inch level will also work. Use the level as a straight edge and not as a level. If your tables are off you will be able to see it between the level and table.

[glenn bradley]

I 'get by' with a 36" steel Lee Valley straight edge. It has met all my needs including 50-odd inches of cast iron tablesaw and a 76" jointer. 24" would have left me short a few times but 36" seems to do everything I have to do. YMMV.