Help set up vintage Craftsman 6" jointer

[jon harriman]

Hello all,

I have an older 6" Craftsman jointer. Its small, maybe 38" in bed length with a fixed outfeed table. I have replaced the knives as the ones on it were in bad shape from years of abuse. I got a magnetic Jointer Pal, knife setting tool to put in the knives. I believe I need to set the knives slightly higher than the outfeed table for a straight cut. Is this correct?

If so, I guess I need to shim the jointer pal slightly to get the knives set higher than the table. I was thinking of shimming with a playing card or a dollar bill to slightly raise the magnets over the knives above the level of the table. Does this sound like the right approach?

I am just a hobbyist and will one day upgrade to a better machine, but would like to be able to use this one for now. Any input would be really appreciated.

[Scott Coffelt]

Your knives need to be the same height as the outfeed table, having higher will produce snipe at the end of the cut. I usually just use a straight edge and adjust until the blade just hits the SE. I do this across the blade in three spots.

[Mike Cutler]

Scott. I hate to disagree, but I believe that the jointer knives should be a few thousandth's above the outfeed table. John the Jointer pal should leave the knives at the correct height. when you are done. If you were to place a piece of material across the table(s), with the cutterhead in the middle,and then rotate the cutter head by hand you should see that the material move just slightly back towards to infeed table when the knives "catch" it. A dollar bill may be too thick and a playing card will certainley be too thick.

[John Hemenway]

Is yours like this one?
http://www.owwm.com/PhotoIndex/detail.asp?id=2815

There is a manual at:
http://msgulfcoast.org/eom/Craftsman/Planer/113206931.html
Page 22 has the knife setting procedure. They recommend 0.003" higher that outfeed.

[jon harriman]

I tried using the Jointer Pal as is, and it set the knives at the height of the outfeed table. My results have been a convex bow in the wood when edge jointing. I have read here under the search feature that the knives need to be a couple thousandths above the outfeed table.

John,

That is the jointer I have. The link for the manual is not coming up when I try it?

[John Hemenway]

Jon,

Try it now, I edited it.

[jon harriman]

Thanks John!! The link is now working and I see that I was on the right track. I will fiddle with it (the jointer) some more tonight after work.

[Mike Cutler]

Jon.
What is the height of the infeed table?
Try to set that infeed table approximately 1/32"-1/16" inch below the max height of the knives.
Set a sheet of paper on the outfeed table and use it as a "shim" for the Jointer Pal to set the knives. I always thought that the jointer pal did this for you? hmm....
The convex edge that you are ending up with may be caused by not transferring the weight to the outfeed table soon enough,one more thing to check for is that the tables don't have a dip or rise to them and that they are flat across the length, with the exception of the infeed table being a little lower

[Garry Smith]

I have one of these jointers tucked away in a corner. I have had it for over 27 years. I refused to wear a ring so my wife bought me this jointer(I picked it out) instead of a wedding ring.
It is very difficult to set the knives as they want to creep up when you tighten down the gibs. The stationary outfeed table is a very poor design. I hope you like yours better than I like mine. Being this is my wedding ring I cannot get rid of it and it would be kinda hard to loose it.

[Lee DeRaud]

I have one of these jointers tucked away in a corner. I have had it for over 27 years. I refused to wear a ring so my wife bought me this jointer(I picked it out) instead of a wedding ring.
It is very difficult to set the knives as they want to creep up when you tighten down the gibs. The stationary outfeed table is a very poor design. I hope you like yours better than I like mine. Being this is my wedding ring I cannot get rid of it and it would be kinda hard to loose it.But at least you don't have to wear it when you go out drinking.:D:cool::p

[Scott Coffelt]

Scott. I hate to disagree, but I believe that the jointer knives should be a few thousandth's above the outfeed table. John the Jointer pal should leave the knives at the correct height. when you are done. If you were to place a piece of material across the table(s), with the cutterhead in the middle,and then rotate the cutter head by hand you should see that the material move just slightly back towards to infeed table when the knives "catch" it. A dollar bill may be too thick and a playing card will certainley be too thick.

If that is the case then then as the board goes through the blade it will have a slight gap between the wood and the outfeed table, as the wood comes to the end the board it will want to settle down (drop) on the table and will leave snipe. But hey, what do I know my boards do not have snipe and are flat and true with a straight edge. I don't have it handy, but I have a nice tutorial somewhere at home on how to set knives.

Good Luck.

[Steve Clardy]

I think I've got the same jointer. And the original knife setting gauge.
My manual shows to set the knives .001 above the outfeed table.
I've always done it that way. No snipe.

[Mike Cutler]

Scott.
I won't claim to be right or wrong. A few thou' above is the way I was taught. I think the actual snipe would be so minimal, that it wouldn't be a factor if the knives were a few thou' above.
If you're method works for you though, stick with it, and certainly don't change it on my account.

[Michael Hartery]

I have this same joiner. I just salvaged it from my Grandpa's garage.
The beds are a bit rusty. Will that compromise the flatness of them?
Is it possible to have them re flattened?
Does any one have this mounted on a smaller base?

[Larry Edgerton]

Check the outfeed table in relationship to the infeed table. That particular jointer is known for warping as the cast iron aged, bringing the tables out of plane. If the tables are out of plane it is junk, you will never get a good flat cut out of it.

I threw one out back in the 70's for that reason.

[george wilson]

It is true,you must leave the blades slightly higher than the outfeed table,or the wood will rub against the outfeed,and start going uphill as you push the board over the jointer. .001" is not much to worry about.

I have never found the jointer pal to be useful at all. As soon as you start tightening the gib screws,the Pal loses its grip on the blades.