best jointer for under $450

[Josh Goldsmith]

What is the best jointer for under $450? I have been looking at Craftsman 6" jointer, Ridgid, delta. I thought about buying the craftsman becuase i have a craftsman 22124 tablesaw and thought it would be cool to match ( i know i am stupid;) ) but wanted some experts to help guide me spending my money correctly. I am open to your comments. Thanks Josh

[Mark Rios]

May I suggest you check out the Grizzly G1182Z. On sale-marked down from $455 to $345.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/mach-specs-pdfs.aspx?key=450

Alot of people here like the Grizzly stuff.

[Bill Fields]

Josh--I agree with Mark.

Not familiar w/ the Griz, but it has some good reviews.

In my (the ultimate cheap-skate) case, I just bought a HF 6" rabbiting jointer for $200.

After about a day and a half assembly time (world's worst instruction manual--accompanied by the world's worst Owner's Manual) it seems to work OK. Motor is strong enough (I replaced the stock belt with a link belt). Knives sharp and well adjusted--did a very good job on pine and oak as long as the cuts were below 1/16".

The unit is very low/short, and would have been very uncomfortable to use, so I bulit a fairly deluxe mobil base on 5" casters, and this, along with judicious use of 3 layers of 3/4 ply, stiffened up the flimsy base and raised it to a workable height.

MOST people would not have the patience or time to go thru all of this--but I do. I am strictly a beginner/hobbyist, and my business gives me short breaks of a few days of down time to work on frustrating projects like this.

Spend a little more OK-maybe alot more percentage wise) and you will use the HF build time to do actual wood work.

BILL FIELDS

[Vaughn McMillan]

Not wanting to highjack Josh's thread, but I have a related question. I see the Griz G1182Z seems comparabe to the lower-priced G1182HW, except the "HW" model has a lighter gauge base, and handwheels. Is there an advantage to the adjustment levers as opposed to handwheels? Seems to me the handwheels would be preferable, so is there a good reason to spend the extra $30 on the "Z" model with levers? Stiffening a light cabinet would not be a problem for me. Does the "Z" have other advantages I'm missing? I also see Grizzly is closing out some of their 6" jointers. Is there any info available about what's coming along to replace them? (I'll fully understand if Papa Griz chooses to remain quiet on that question.)

On a separate note, but still related to the quest for good jointers in this price range, Jim McCarty has a lightly-used Rockwell Delta 37-600 6" jointer for sale in the Classified forum (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=26558). Looks like a great deal for the price, and I'm close enough to Jim's location I'm sure there's a way I could get it home. It has a 36" bed as opposed to the 47" bed on the Grizzly models, and a stand as opposed to a cabinet (but it has wheels...bonus). Is there enough advantage to the longer bed (and new vs. barely-used) to make it worth spending up to twice as much for a Grizzly? My current projects tend to center around shorter lengths of wood, but I foresee furniture projects in my future. As I see it, any money saved on a jointer puts me that much closer to a small drum sander (which I suspect will pay for itself in relatively short order, but that's a whole other thread).

Any thoughts?

- Vaughn

[Joe Mioux]

Vaughn,
There have been previous threads regarding the adjusting arms vs hand wheels. In those threads, the general concensus was personal choice. They both do the same thing.

Longer beds are much better because they will support the board being jointed better than a short bed. You want to minimize the amount of board hanging over the edge as the unsupported weight may cause the board to lift in its middle thus not providing a good jointed face.

Joe

[Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan]

If you are looking at "New" then I'd say the Grizzly is most likely a good bet, but have you thought of finding an older one?

Just a thought.

Cheers!

[scott spencer]

Iv'e been very happy with my Griz 1182HW and recommend it or any variation of it in this price range.

I've read good reports from most owners of the Orion made jointer, but the fence support mechanism does not looks as robust as most others to me. It probably won't negatively impact performance, but if you're looking for differences that's one I'd check out.

The Ridgid design is closer to the Griz's, but with the open base with splayed legs. It's a bit lower and shorter than the Griz.

Delta has two stationary 6" jointers. The 37-275x is a nice machine but typically runs ~ $580. The JT360 has a smaller motor, open stand, and less substantial fence support for < $400.

[Matt Meiser]

I previously had the Delta open stand jointer and liked it, except for the fact that it was only a 6". If you are sure you don't want an 8" jointer, I would look for a used 6" for a little while. People are always upgrading. I think I sold mine for about $250 last year.

[Larry Reimer]

May I suggest you take a look at the Palmgren jointer. I realize it's about $30.00 over your budget, but I think it's still worth a look. I have one and am very satisfied with it, accuracy and repeatability - it's got it. Also has excellent dust collection. If you don't have a dealer near you take a look on Amazon for the specs - and it's an American company.

[Karl Laustrup]

Josh,

Sent you a PM this morning.

Karl

[Russ Massery]

I have one in the classifieds well within your budget if you live in my area;)

[Charlie Plesums]

Having owned a 6 inch jointer, I found it nearly useless, so recommend that you save your money for an 8-12 inch or larger unit (I jumped to 16 inch, but some call me crazy).

If you are working with good hardwoods, they must finish to over 6 inches wide to get the FAS grade. In fact, in my experience, most rough FAS boards are at least 6 1/2 inches wide when rough. Therefore when you invest in good wood, you won't be able to joint it on a 6 inch jointer. If you are only building very small projects (such as jewelry boxes), you will probably find a 4 inch bench top jointer adequate, but for furniture, I believe 8 inch is minimum.

Since the whole idea is to make the board flat, then look for a long table as well. if part of the board hangs over the end, then that part isn't "considered" in determining the overall flatness.

[Josh Goldsmith]

thanks for all your relplies!:D I took a look at the grizzly. It looks nice from the computer screen. I think i might like the 1182HW better than the 1182Z because of the hand wheel instead of the lever on the Z. The only thing i wasn't sure was does the HW has a dust port? Talk to you soon.
Josh

[Jim Becker]

Josh, if the dust collection hood isn't included, it's cheap to make or buy...don't base your decision on that small thing!

[TW Summers]

I am looking at equipment purchases as well.

Any thoughts on the Grizzly versus the Yorkcraft YCJ?

http://www.wilkemachinery.com/Yorkcraft.tpl

Thanks in advance for your consideration

[Mark Rios]

Josh, I had the Z model and the levers didn't really come into play. Once set they didn't get moved (except for once when I was just practicing :eek: :rolleyes: ), During set up I found the info from the rest of the group to be just as stated, personal preference. The jointers are the same in regards to the motor, fence, table, etc. The only difference is that you have to assemble the base on the regular model whilet he Z model has a one piece base. One other thing though........the Z modle comes with a superboss, really neato Grizzly logo plate on the front. I do miss that plate. I should have taken it off when I sold the jointer.

Hmmmmmm, does the G0586 come with one? :D