Matt Meiser
05-01-2005, 5:22 PM
A few people have asked, so here is a review. I received my Yorkcraft 8" jointer this past week and I am very happy with it. I ordered it last Friday and couldn't believe when I called the trucking company Monday night and they said they could deliver it the next day. The trucking company delivered on a liftgate truck (no extra charge since I requested it from Wilke at the time of the order.) They backed right up to the overhead door of my shop and rolled it in.
Setup was very easy, other than hoisting the top onto the base. I used the hooks I have welded to the loader bucket on my tractor to lift it up and set it in place. Doing it this way, I was able to do everything myself. If you don't have mechanical means to lift the top, make sure you have help! Since I don't have a 220V outlet drop where I have the jointer, I rewired the motor for 110V operation. This was a simple matter of removing a cover plate and connecting the right set of wires together.
I did have one minor problem which was solved by a trip to the hardware store. The machine screws that hold the return spring mechnaism for the blade guard were too short. They seemed to only engage threads in the casting by about 1 turn. When I tried to install the blade guard, they pulled right out. Longer 5mm screws fixed the problem.
The only other suggestion I have is to drop the included 4" dust connector and go to a 6". I was able to make one very easily from some plywood and an HVAC register boot, but it would have even nicer to have it out of the box. To install my hood I need 4 longer metric machine screws.
The machine is nicely built with heavy castings and a heavy sheet metal base. Wilke includes a built in mobile base. I wouldn't have purchased one separately, but its going to be nice to have one. I didn't have to do any adjustment on the knives or even the setting of the outfeed table. I took some test cuts on pieces of cherry and walnut. The finish was very smooth. Even the pushblocks are nice, much more stable feeling than the ones that I had on my old Delta 6" jointer. The jointer has plenty of power--the motor didn't even changing pitch when face jointing 6" wide stock.
I'd definitely buy again. In fact, I'm starting to look at 15" planers and if I don't find a used one first, I'm pretty likely to buy the Yorkcraft.
Setup was very easy, other than hoisting the top onto the base. I used the hooks I have welded to the loader bucket on my tractor to lift it up and set it in place. Doing it this way, I was able to do everything myself. If you don't have mechanical means to lift the top, make sure you have help! Since I don't have a 220V outlet drop where I have the jointer, I rewired the motor for 110V operation. This was a simple matter of removing a cover plate and connecting the right set of wires together.
I did have one minor problem which was solved by a trip to the hardware store. The machine screws that hold the return spring mechnaism for the blade guard were too short. They seemed to only engage threads in the casting by about 1 turn. When I tried to install the blade guard, they pulled right out. Longer 5mm screws fixed the problem.
The only other suggestion I have is to drop the included 4" dust connector and go to a 6". I was able to make one very easily from some plywood and an HVAC register boot, but it would have even nicer to have it out of the box. To install my hood I need 4 longer metric machine screws.
The machine is nicely built with heavy castings and a heavy sheet metal base. Wilke includes a built in mobile base. I wouldn't have purchased one separately, but its going to be nice to have one. I didn't have to do any adjustment on the knives or even the setting of the outfeed table. I took some test cuts on pieces of cherry and walnut. The finish was very smooth. Even the pushblocks are nice, much more stable feeling than the ones that I had on my old Delta 6" jointer. The jointer has plenty of power--the motor didn't even changing pitch when face jointing 6" wide stock.
I'd definitely buy again. In fact, I'm starting to look at 15" planers and if I don't find a used one first, I'm pretty likely to buy the Yorkcraft.