15 inch planer question

[Rudy Fuselier]

I am thinking about buying a 15 inch planer. Some have the motor mounted above while others have the motor mounted down below. Is one any better than the other? Help

[Mike Cutler]

Rudy. I have the Jet 15", 3HP planer. The bed on mine moves up and down. Sometimes it would be nice to have the cutterhead move, and the bed remain stationary to allow for a longer infeed and outfeed surfaces. I believe that one of the Delta models operates this way. I'm happy with the Jet. One thing to remember is that a stationary planer takes up some room in the shop, and at 500+ lbs, they are heavy.
You may want to consider the spherical cutting head, or the ESTA system, instead of the supplied cutterhead and blades.
Good luck, and have fun looking at all the different machines.

[Frank Pellow]

I have the Delta 780X 15" planer and the motor and blades are above. From what I have read, it is prefereable to have these below and a big reason given is that it easier to change the blades if they are below. But, I am not speaking from experience because my planer is new and I have not yet had to change the blades.

[Mark Singer]

I have the Jet 15" and have changed the blades pretty easily. I made a pair of blocks per the instructions...it seems to work well.

[Joseph N. Myers]

Rudy,

I have 3 planers, 2 with the motor on the side (the 12" type) and one with the motor in the bottom (18" WoodMaster). I don't think the location of the motor really matters, except for the weight issue, as they all use belts to turn the cutting cylinder.

I think the big different is which moves to change the thickness and to that end, my preference is the top moving (the ones containing the blades), the bottom staying stationary. This way, any auxiliary infeed/outfeed stands/rollers would remain at the same height when changing the thickness.

It is one of the reasons I use the smaller planers instead of the larger one (in addition to the smaller ones being faster). In fact, only use the larger one when need the variable speed rate and/or wider boards.

BTW, I think that with planers, the blades are always on the top, otherwise if they would be on the bottom, wouldn't it be a jointer?

Regards, Joe

[craig carlson]

My 15" planer has the motor on the top. The last time I changed the blades I ended up taking the motor off as it was easier setting up the blades without having to work around the motor. One of these days I'll upgrade to a 20" one.
Craig

[Joseph N. Myers]

Craig,

Boy, that sound like a pain.

What if you just want to move one of the blades left/right as in a nick in the blades (i.e., hitting a nail).

Regards, Joe

[Ted Shrader]

Rudy -

I have a 15" Powermatic (motor down in the cabinet) - the feed table moves up and down the cutter head is fixed. It has worked just fine for me so far. Blade changes are easy - one cover to remove.

The only advantage to having having the feed table fixed and the cutter head moving is that you can set up longer in/out feed tables. I have a small shop (garage) and don't have the room. The attached roller feed tables on the PM work just fine for me.

Regards,
Ted

[craig carlson]

Joe,
If I have a small nick, the drum sander will take it out. If it gets to bad then I'll change the knives. After owning BSA'S and Harleys for four decades I'm used to taking things apart! Actually the whole process is only about 15 to 20 minutes worth.
Craig

[CPeter James]

I also have the Jet 15" and did a lot of research before I bought it. The motor under and the moving table have several advantages. One being less snipe. The table is always under load, unlike the moving head which is subject to lifting. The blade changing issue is important to me as I plane hundreds of feet of rough oak and pine and need to sharpened the knives from time to time. i can take the knives out, sharpen them (I have the Makita grinder) and put them back in under 45 minutes. I have a small shop and the rollers in the base are large enough to allow me to roll it up to the wall when not in use. After 5 years of using it, I would buy the same one again.

On the subject of the spiral knives, check out what replacements cost. Also, on the same subject, carbide is NOT a good deal. The don't get as sharp as the HSS and you have to send them out to be sharpened at a high cost. I have the green silicon carbide wheel from Highland Hardware on my Makita and it takes only a couple if minutes to do each knife.

CPeter

[David Dixson]

Rudy,

I have the motor under version also and like it very much. My planer is a 15" Yorkcraft which performed very well in a recent test by one of the woodworking magazines, earning a best buy rating. It has cast iron extension tables that have a nice set screws to help with alignment, eliminating the need for the typical "wing shims" most cast iron extensions need. It also comes with a mobile base built in. I've not had it long, but the lumber I've ran through it (Georgia grown black walnut) has come out beautifully with the standard HSS blades.

The Yorkcraft is sold by Wilke Machinery out of Pennsylvania.

Dave

[Rudy Fuselier]

Thanks to all of you who responded. It sounds like the motor from under is the preferred location. I really do appreciate the advice. I hate to make a mistake on such an important purchase.

[Alan Turner]

I have the motor under 20" form WoodTek, and while not a great planer, it works OK. I like the rollers on the top for returning stock to the infeed side. With heavy timbers, this is a real advantage, but maybe you can do this on the motor over models as well.