Jointer knife compatibility

[Maurice Arney]

Hi folks... Wondering if I could get some opinions on something. I have a Shop Fox W-1857 8 inch jointer with 4 straight knives, 8"x3/4"x1/8". The machine has been discontinued and I can't find a set of knives specifically designated for that machine. However, there are knives with the same specs available for other jointers from other manufacturers. Logic is telling me that if the knives are the same size, they should work for any machine regardless of manufacturer. Is my logic flawed? Am I missing something?

Also, I can only find that size sold as a set of three so, if this works out, my thought was to buy four sets (12 knives) giving me three full sets of four knives. What do you think?

Thanks!

[Greg Quenneville]

That will work…its only the dimensions and steel quality that matter.

Too bad you can’t get just four and have each set sharpened while the other set is installed. (Assuming that they aren’t disposable knives)

[Maurice Arney]

Thanks for the input. I think technically they can be sharpened but I have reservations about if I could sharpen them accurately.

[Richard Coers]

There could easily be a second issue, the angle in which the cutting head slots are milled into the head.

[Greg Quenneville]

Thanks for the input. I think technically they can be sharpened but I have reservations about if I could sharpen them accurately.

You could send them out to a sharpening service. Further to that, there is a jig you can make to hone them with your own stones.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUoEPgcqUFc

And this: https://www.oellasawandtool.com/categories.php?category=Planer-%26-Jointer-Knives/T1%252dHSS-Sets-

That’s a link to Oella Saw and Tool. I buy some shaper tooling from him…great service. I pay extra for shipping around the world just because of the quality and service. He sharpens and he sells very good grade knives is sets of four.

Greg

[Bruce Wrenn]

Most sharpening services can custom cut and balance a set of knives for you. Check out Global Tooling. They are currently out of the four knife set, but have the three sets of knives in stock. Order two sets, and have the old ones sharpened. This will give you a total of ten knives, which means two sets and two spares. The three piece sets are around thirty bucks, while the four piece sets are over fifty bucks, meaning extra knife is $20. Call Dynamic Saw (888-528-0808) and see what they charge to sharpen a set of knives.

[Andrew Hughes]

I recommend you buy a set of four. Mixing and matching is a crap shoot. You might end up with one knife heavier then the others. I’ve found even a matching set of three can have a heavy knife. It’s always one knife thicker then the others. Not good for different reasons
New knives should be weighed they should be close. Look for M2 or T1 if they don’t say what hhs hard pass.
Good Luck

[Gary Petersen]

American National Knife (1) sells knives of that size in sets of three or four. I bought a set of knives from there for a no-brand 6" jointer my Dad gave me that were a size I couldn't find anywhere else. The quality was good.

https://www.americannationalknife.com/8To12.asp

Gary

[Mel Fulks]

I recommend you buy a set of four. Mixing and matching is a crap shoot. You might end up with one knife heavier then the others. I’ve found even a matching set of three can have a heavy knife. It’s always one knife thicker then the others. Not good for different reasons
New knives should be weighed they should be close. Look for M2 or T1 if they don’t say what hhs hard pass.
Good Luck

YEP to all of Andrew’s post.
High grade knives can be bought, same size and they will all weigh the same. Low grade stuff cut off the same steel can have DIFFERENT
weights.

[Bill Dufour]

I would contact a knife maker and ask if they will make up a special set of four or eight knives. If they are really making there knives it should not be a problem. If they are just repacking stuff from suppliers not so much. All four knives need to match each other. All eight do not need to match.
BILL D
Amana will sell one knife for some sizes. Ask for a special order

[Maurice Arney]

Thank you everyone for the great input. Lots of information I hadn't considered. I particularly liked William NG's video on making a jig for sharpening knives shared by Greg. I'm going to look into buying knives from Oella or American National.