Thoughts on this Rikon 8" Jointer

[Scott Winter]

I'm beginning to assemble my hobbyist wood shop, and am researching jointers. I came across this one from Rikon, and wanted to see if anyone had any feedback on it? I can't seem to find any reviews on the 8" model which worries me. Not sure if maybe it is a very new model, or just junk that people steer clear of. The fence looks a little underwhelming, but the price seems solid for an 8" model.

I will not be doing any huge projects that would require a full sized model, so I feel this bench style one would be more than enough. Most boards will probably be under 48" in length.

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/8-benchtop-jointer-with-insert-cutterhead-rikon?via=573621bd69702d0676000002%2C5797ca6769702 d0da200058a%2C5763ff4869702d3ae30009de

It is advertised as a helical cutter head, but in looking at the pictures it just looks like straight inserts.

[Dave Mount]

Can't comment on the machine itself as the is the first time I've seen it, but the cutters do appear to be helical, in that they are set in a helix around the cutterhead. That said, there are not very many cutters on the cutterhead. It also appears (not certain) from the picture that the cutters are not set on a bias, but are parallel to the axis of the cutterhead.

This entire machine costs only modestly more than what I paid for the Shelix head I put in my standard size 8" jointer, so you can't expect much from the cutterhead. Unless it spins at incredible speed, you have many fewer cutters doing the same job. Likely to struggle having enough power to face joint a wide board, and I assume you're face jointing or you wouldn't be worried about having an 8" jointer (versus a narrower one).

The functioning of a jointer depends mostly on the flatness of the tables and the ability to get (and keep) the tables and cutterhead in the same plane. Hard to judge that from a picture.

Best,

Dave

[David M Peters]

My initial thought is that the corners of warped boards will get caught in those table bolt holes.

$600 seems like a pretty steep price for this thing.. I'd see what that kind of money would get you in your local used market.

[Bill White]

Similar in design to the Cutech.

[Paul F Franklin]

Unless it spins at incredible speed,

Spec sheet says 12000 RPM, but also says 20,000 RPM no load speed, so that's how they are attempting to get decent cut quality with fewer than normal number of inserts. A likely side effect of that is that I'll bet the thing really screams.

[Jim Becker]

I'm going to guess that unit may have a Universal Motor instead of an induction motor and if that's true, it's going to be LOUD to run just as a benchtop thickness planer typically is. That's not a horrible thing, but it may be a consideration for some.

[Earl McLain]

Not a helical head, the retailer correctly labels it as a "segmented" head. May still be a better cut than a straight knife, but the biggest advantage may be in being able to rotate/change individual inserts.
earl

[Scott Bernstein]

I haven't used one of these small bench top jointers, but I can't imagine it would be great. It probably is a screaming-loud universal motor, as has been mentioned. Dust collection is probably not great. I would either go with a full-size 8" jointer (for not that much more, really, and probably could find one used around the same price) or stick with a hand plane for now until you are able to get something of adequate size. If you do obtain this jointer, I bet you will outgrow it very, very quickly. You could just buy your wood S4S for your first projects while you work on your skills and decide on equipment.

I purchased a Grizzly 6" floor-standing jointer when I started; used it for about 2 years before outgrowing it. I now have a much, much bigger machine and wish I had gotten that first.

[Bill Dufour]

I would buy a used regular 8" jointer and hacksaw off the outfeed table if space required. It would be no worse and cost less then that screamer.
Specs do not say AC motor so I bet it is ac/dc 20,000+ rpm
Bill D

[Monte Milanuk]

Similar in design to the Cutech.

Not just 'similar', but pretty much *identical* to the Wahuda 8" I purchased a couple months ago, other than the color/branding.


I haven't used one of these small bench top jointers, but I can't imagine it would be great.

Compared to hand planes, it's *awesome*. Ask me how I know ;)


It probably is a screaming-loud universal motor, as has been mentioned.

So does my DW735 planer, my miter saw, and all of my routers. When you wear hearing protection in the shop anyway, it's a non-issue.


Dust collection is probably not great.

The 4" port works fine. A little leaks out here and there, but the same can be said about my bandsaw, table saw, and even my planer. It'd probably do better if I had a better DC system, rather than a 1.5 hp mobile setup - but it is what is, for now.


I would either go with a full-size 8" jointer (for not that much more, really, and probably could find one used around the same price)

I find this to be *highly* location dependent. Where I'm at... jointers... other than *overpriced* 6" floor models... only show up on CL a couple times a year, if that, within a 100+ mile radius. If I'm willing to drive 3-4 hours each way over to a couple mountain passes to the metro areas, *hoping* that the machine is as advertised, that changes somewhat. The 'wait for something used' approach doesn't work everywhere.


stick with a hand plane for now until you are able to get something of adequate size.

Tried that... found myself avoiding a lot of projects because I don't particularly like flattening and thicknessing rough lumber by hand. Sounds cool and all, but in real life, not my thing.

[Scott Winter]

Not just 'similar', but pretty much *identical* to the Wahuda 8" I purchased a couple months ago, other than the color/branding.



Compared to hand planes, it's *awesome*. Ask me how I know ;)



So does my DW735 planer, my miter saw, and all of my routers. When you wear hearing protection in the shop anyway, it's a non-issue.



The 4" port works fine. A little leaks out here and there, but the same can be said about my bandsaw, table saw, and even my planer. It'd probably do better if I had a better DC system, rather than a 1.5 hp mobile setup - but it is what is, for now.



I find this to be *highly* location dependent. Where I'm at... jointers... other than *overpriced* 6" floor models... only show up on CL a couple times a year, if that, within a 100+ mile radius. If I'm willing to drive 3-4 hours each way over to a couple mountain passes to the metro areas, *hoping* that the machine is as advertised, that changes somewhat. The 'wait for something used' approach doesn't work everywhere.



Tried that... found myself avoiding a lot of projects because I don't particularly like flattening and thicknessing rough lumber by hand. Sounds cool and all, but in real life, not my thing.

How would you rate this for a hobbyist woodworker? Where would you say the limits of this would be?

[Mike Kees]

Scott I would look for a used machine with an induction motor(way quieter). If you start with one that you outgrow it is relatively easy to sell and move up.

[Art Mann]

If I were the OP, I would weigh the opinion of someone who actually owns something like it a little heavier than someone who never owned one.

[Bill Carey]

Not just 'similar', but pretty much *identical* to the Wahuda 8" I purchased a couple months ago, other than the color/branding.

Compared to hand planes, it's *awesome*. Ask me how I know ;)

So does my DW735 planer, my miter saw, and all of my routers. When you wear hearing protection in the shop anyway, it's a non-issue.

The 4" port works fine. A little leaks out here and there, but the same can be said about my bandsaw, table saw, and even my planer. It'd probably do better if I had a better DC system, rather than a 1.5 hp mobile setup - but it is what is, for now.

I find this to be *highly* location dependent. Where I'm at... jointers... other than *overpriced* 6" floor models... only show up on CL a couple times a year, if that, within a 100+ mile radius. If I'm willing to drive 3-4 hours each way over to a couple mountain passes to the metro areas, *hoping* that the machine is as advertised, that changes somewhat. The 'wait for something used' approach doesn't work everywhere.

Tried that... found myself avoiding a lot of projects because I don't particularly like flattening and thicknessing rough lumber by hand. Sounds cool and all, but in real life, not my thing.

2nd all of that. I've had the Cutech 8" for about a year now and, like you, most of my stuff is smaller and the Cutech (now Wahuda) handles 90% of what I do. Loud - yes. Wear ear muffs. It leaves a great finish and I have not turned the cutters yet. Fence started at 90 and is still at 90. I wouldn't want to joint 8' boards on it all the time, but have done some. For my limited space and budget, and smaller projects, it works great.

[Monte Milanuk]

How would you rate this for a hobbyist woodworker? Where would you say the limits of this would be?

So far, the only quibble I've had is the 'extensions'. Do they work? Yes. But with rough cut lumber that has a considerable cup/bow to it, I ran into some headaches where the tail end of the board would drop inside the bars of the infeed extension, which was a bit surprising / unsettling the first time it occurred. Seemed to only really happen with certain combinations of cup/bow/twist (sorry, wasn't taking exact notes at the time). So yes, in a perfect world, full length solid in/out-feed beds would be great. But as the boards got closer to flat, it became less and less of an issue, as far as I could tell. Definitely way more of an issue thus far than the holes in the table top for the bolt heads, that someone mentioned in passing earlier.

Most of my actual projects are somewhat smaller still at this point, and cross-cutting to rough length before jointing seems to 'solve' a lot of the length issues that people (including me) worry about

If you *do* live in or near a metro area, and/or have a lot of patience to wait for it, 'big iron' will probably beat this any day of the week - not gonna lie. But if you have limited space, it sure is nice to be able to bolt this thing on top of a roll-around tool cart and still have some storage underneath. Similarly, if you only have 110v readily available (vs. 230v), it sure is nice to be able to face joint an 8" wide board vs. 6". I don't believe it has any provision for rabbeting, which my previous 6-1/8" floor-mounted jointer had... but TBH, I never used that feature. I haven't tried to see how well it handles taking larger bites off yet - which is something that a 'regular' jointer with a 230v multi-horse induction motor would probably excel at.

It's met my needs thus far, and hopefully will continue to do so until I have everything else in my shop upgraded to where I want, at which point I'll probably be shopping for something nicer.