15" or so Planer recommendations

[Rich Riddle]

Hello,

I am looking at 15" planers. One a bit larger would be acceptable, but not less. I am interested in a head like the Byrd that's on my 8" old Jet jointer (the blue days). Grizzly has a sale until the end of the month, so a decision will likely be made in the next week if that's the direction recommended. I am open to all other manufacturers and have absolutely no experience with Grizzly. Lots of old woodworking iron, and I am not opposed to it if a Shelix head fits and parts are readily available. Your suggestions and experiences will greatly be appreciated.

[Jim Andrew]

I just got my Grizzly 453px set up and running, and boy am I impressed. The boards just sail through this thing.

[Rich Riddle]

I just got my Grizzly 453px set up and running, and boy am I impressed. The boards just sail through this thing.

I am looking at it as one of the options. It seems to be about $1000 cheaper than the next lowest priced segmented cutter head planer. The strange thing is that many of the competitor units look amazingly alike but just more expensive.

[Steve Juhasz]

The grizzly 453 is a "generic 4-post" design. The Byrd Shelix head you want for it fits about 20 different planers. Most of them, whether powermatic, steel city, grizzly, shop fox or whatever color is painted on them, are totally identical. Just go for the one whose color scheme fits your shop decor. Their belts, gears, feed rollers, castings, chains, everything basically, is the same. Unless some one is really in love with the mediocre mustard, i cannot imagine why they would purchase it over the grizz which is 1/3 the price.

[Danny Hamsley]

Exactly. My GO453Z does such a fine job that I bet the finished planed surface is as good as you can get. It is just about perfect every time and i use the planer a lot.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hammer A3-41 with the new Silent Power head.

Comes with a free 16" jointer attached............Rod.

[Rich Riddle]

Hammer A3-41 with the new Silent Power head.

Comes with a free 16" jointer attached............Rod.

Rod, I have the catalog for Hammer but didn't notice a price. I am betting about 5K.

[Mike Tekin]

Actually over 6k by the time you add the silent cutter head and freight...lol. Great company- I would love to own one but common sense tells me no because I'm just a hobbyist

I have the grizzly 15" ( the most current one) and looked at them all- they are all basically the same like someone else said- it works great and have zero complaints- paint may not be as nice as a powermatic but it's a piece of machinery and less than half the price if the white an gold ones:)

Also, according to my feb add in one of the magazines, that 15" is going up at least 100 dollars- powermatic and jet also mentioned price increases the first if the year.



Rod, I have the catalog for Hammer but didn't notice a price. I am betting about 5K.

[Rich Riddle]

Only 6K, why not order one for you and Rod as well?? Back to reality.

I read several reviews and am leaning toward the NON-segemented head model Grizzly but am trying to decide between the G0453 and the G0453P. Those two models seem to have differences with enclosed wiring/open wiring and a different switches. Does anyone have experiences, preferences, or ideas between the two models? The selected Grizzly 15" model will receive a Shelix head to go with a Jet jointer with a Shelix head. One cannot purchase a unit direct from Grizzly with a Shelix head. Actually, ordering the NON-segmented head gives me an extra head for about the same money as ordering it fabricated with Grizzly's segmented head.

It will be my first endeavor with Grizzly power tools though some experience exists with ordering small chisels and such. If reading the site correctly, it looks like these prices last until December 31, 2012.


Actually over 6k by the time you add the silent cutter head and freight...lol. Great company- I would love to own one but common sense tells me no because I'm just a hobbyist

I have the grizzly 15" ( the most current one) and looked at them all- they are all basically the same like someone else said- it works great and have zero complaints- paint may not be as nice as a powermatic but it's a piece of machinery and less than half the price if the white an gold ones:)

Also, according to my feb add in one of the magazines, that 15" is going up at least 100 dollars- powermatic and jet also mentioned price increases the first if the year.

[Cary Falk]

I have the G0453Z. The magnetic switch is located in the cabinet with the motor as should be with the G0453P. The post that the switch is mounted on makes a nice place to mount a DRO. The only other differences with the 453 and 453P will be cosmetic like handwheels and paint color.

[Thomas Bittner]

I purchased the Delta DC380, the reason I picked that model was the table stayed the same height while the cutter head went up and down. I then could use support tables for long boards and use the same tables for the rest of the shop as all my machines are the same height. I recently added the Shelix head (which is the exact same cutter as the Grizzly)and am very happy with that upgrade. The other machines I looked at were built about the same quality as the Delta as far as I could tell but again the deciding factor was the table height issue.
it was a pretty expensive machine for me especially with the addition of the new cutter head. The machine has worked well except for a annoying leak in the gearbox but a new gasket solved the issue when I finally got around to fixing it.
i have run a lot of boards through it and it has paid for itself over the years. Of course then I had to buy a dust collector as I had wood chips up to my elbows but that's how it always seems to work in this hobby.

[David Kumm]

I would not automatically assume that all planers made of the same design at the same factory are identical except for paint. Some companies may specify a second round of machining on the castings and tables to higher specs. Gears, bearings, and motors can and may be different. Not saying those variations amount to the price differences but I'd ask the sellers what separates their machines from the others. The answers would be interesting. Dave

[Rich Riddle]

I would not automatically assume that all planers made of the same design at the same factory are identical except for paint. Some companies may specify a second round of machining on the castings and tables to higher specs. Gears, bearings, and motors can and may be different. Not saying those variations amount to the price differences but I'd ask the sellers what separates their machines from the others. The answers would be interesting. Dave
One of the potential candidates is a General International. One of the models has the motor mounted on top like the former Delta 15" models. I like that because the head moves, not the height of the table. Not sure if it's worth the extra double price though.