Parks Machinery

[Dan McGuire]

I have stumbled across an oportunity to purchase a couple of machines. The first is a 12" planer made by Parks. The other is a Delta sanding center. I only had a few brief minutes to look at each machine and did not think at the time to write the model number of the Parks machine.

It appears to be industrial grade, 220 volt, not a piece of plastic on it anywhere. According the seller, her husband purchased the machine out of a cabinet shop in Ohio some years ago. It has 3 knives and comes with a replacement set of knives. She is asking $250 for the machine

Not knowing much about industrial grade machinery, I turn to those in the know, does Parks make quality equipment? It is an impressive looking piece of equipment, and I am interested in seeing it run, however I would like to here other opinions on the overall quality of this manufacturer before I pursue any further.

[Dev Emch]

I have stumbled across an oportunity to purchase a couple of machines. The first is a 12" planer made by Parks. The other is a Delta sanding center. I only had a few brief minutes to look at each machine and did not think at the time to write the model number of the Parks machine.

It appears to be industrial grade, 220 volt, not a piece of plastic on it anywhere. According the seller, her husband purchased the machine out of a cabinet shop in Ohio some years ago. It has 3 knives and comes with a replacement set of knives. She is asking $250 for the machine

Not knowing much about industrial grade machinery, I turn to those in the know, does Parks make quality equipment? It is an impressive looking piece of equipment, and I am interested in seeing it run, however I would like to here other opinions on the overall quality of this manufacturer before I pursue any further.
Parks woodworking used to make some very nice, LIGHTWEIGHT woodworking machines. I say lightweight because this planer does not weigh more than two of your cars!:D For a home shop, the 12 incher has proven itself to be a darn nice planer. Also note that this planer, as is the case with most 12 ish planers, has a solid infeed roller and solid chip breaker. Also the cutter head is a good head but its a slightly different design than what is considered the standard. Still very good however.

Edit. $250 bucks for a nice parks 12 incher is a good buy! I would be on this like flys on you know what!

[tod evans]

jump on it dan! it`ll be the last planer a hobbiest should ever need...02 tod

[Steven Wilson]

If it's a single phase motor and it works properly then it's worth $250. Nice planer that should give you years of service

[John Bush]

Hi Dan,
I "inherited" a Parks 12"er 13 years ago and it has proven to be an excellent machine. Mine is 5hp 220vac single phase with the cast iron base. It is quite heavy but easily managed with a mobile base. It has a clutch mechanism for the drive rollers and ,from my hobbiest perspective, a heavy duty machine. I changed the knives recently(~ $55 from Infinity) and the finished surfaces are great. It took me ~2 hrs to change the knives and tune up the whole machine using the article and video by Robert Vaughan(In FWW from several years ago-let me know if you need them).
The $250 price is good- I'd jump on it. Good luck, JCB.

[jerry cousins]

i've been using a parks 12" planer for 10 years + - a good machine - very dependable. just check on the babbitt bearings. check here for all you want to know about the company and the machine.
http://www.owwm.com/

jerry

[Dan McGuire]

Thanks for all the quick replies, however the good reviews of the Parks planer has put me into a quandry.

Being on a limited tool budget, I am at a point where I have to make a descion of which of the two machines that I should purchase.

The other machine I looked at was a Delta sander center (31-735A) She is asking $250 for that machine as well. Both machines come with manuals for operation and both seem to be a good deal in terms of price, I have not seen either run as of yet.

Currently, nothing more than a hobbiest, working in the shop when I have time and need for something, just completed a desk for my girls computer.

Should I complete the woodworkers trinity (tablesaw, jointer and planer) for wood dimenisioning? Or should I step out there and get the finishing machine. I am in a dilema and would like some opinions

[tod evans]

dan, my 250 would go for the parks where i in your shoes..02 tod

[Richard Wolf]

From the other side. The Parks is a good machine at a great price, but, are you going to be satisfied with a 12" planer. A year down the road the Parks may leave you desiring something bigger. It also takes up alot of room for a lunch box size planer. Try to invision where you want to be in a year or two?

Richard

[Carl Eyman]

I've had that planer for about 30 years. I've never had a sanding center. I may have day-dreamed of a wider planer, but have gotten along without it. I rest my case.

[Bruce Page]

Dan, $250 for either machine is a heck of a good deal. Sanding centers are nice (have one) but it is not an essential woodworking tool, there are many ways to improvise around one. A planer on the other hand is one of the basics to almost any WW shop. I’ve never used the Parks but from everything that I have read about them, it is a very solid and long lasting machine. Go for the Parks, if you out grow it, you will easily be able to get your money out of it.

[Chet Parks]

If I were closer, I'd buy the planer in a heart beat, maybe sooner.

Chet Parks

[Danny Buie]

I have a 12" Parks and a 18" Powermatic planer. 95% of the time for my hobby use the 12" is adequate. There are times when 18" (or 24", 30") is not enough and i can wor arround it. There were thousands of these machines made, they are still popular and parts are still available. This exact machine was sold by Sears with a Craftsman label. There is a wide user base and lots of help when you need it. I also have a Rockwell 6x48 belt & 12 disk sander that is the predicessor to the Sanding Center. In my opinion the Rockwell is a better machine than the Sanding Center. Given the same choice knowing what I know today I would go for the Parks. The trinity allows you to start with rough lumber and carry it through to the finished product. The bearings on my 1954 model are ball bearing.

[Dev Emch]

Thanks for all the quick replies, however the good reviews of the Parks planer has put me into a quandry.

Being on a limited tool budget, I am at a point where I have to make a descion of which of the two machines that I should purchase.

The other machine I looked at was a Delta sander center (31-735A) She is asking $250 for that machine as well. Both machines come with manuals for operation and both seem to be a good deal in terms of price, I have not seen either run as of yet.

Currently, nothing more than a hobbiest, working in the shop when I have time and need for something, just completed a desk for my girls computer.

Should I complete the woodworkers trinity (tablesaw, jointer and planer) for wood dimenisioning? Or should I step out there and get the finishing machine. I am in a dilema and would like some opinions

Make sure this model is new enough to have balls! Babbit is not something you want to tackle unless your hard core OWWM.

If this machine has ball bearings, i would be all over that parks like a chicken on a june bug!

[Mike Wilkins]

I had a Parks 12" planer for many years; if you can get one for that price you need to move quick before someone else finds out about it. Even at 12", this is not a lunch box type planer. The only thing that is not cast iron is the power cord. Heavy beast, easy to adjust and parts are still available. Just go to the OWWM site for info

[Dan McGuire]

I went back to the lady selling the machine early Saturday morning with rough sawn lumber in hand. I took the time to give it a closer inspection. She also had all of the manuals for the machine from Parks. This particular model is the Parks Model 96. It is a direct drive machine with a 2 horse motor (Dayton).

On closer inspection I noticed I would have to immediately rewire the machine. The current wiring is o.k. but aged. furthermore it is set up to run on 220 50 amp service. I have my garage wired for 220 30 amp service.

Once I ran the lumber through, I noticed that two of the knives had knicks, not a big deal she was throwing two extra new sets of knives and one other set of used knives. I also noticed that the feed rollers may need some slight adjustments as well, but the process for doing that is listed plainly in the manual.

I checked the gear box and all the fitting, all apeared to be well lubricated. She also said that I could have the grease gun that her husband used for that machine.

Needless to say I jumped at the deal and took it home for $200.00.

I took my Father in Law with me to pick it up, man is it heavy. We had to remove the motor to lessen the wieght enough so we could load it in the back of my truck. It literally took two men and a boy to get it back out, I asked my nieghbor and his son to help me get it unloaded. I spent saturday afternoon in my driveway re-assembling the machine and alinging the motor and drive shafts. I did not get a chance to re-wire but will work on that this week.

I also looked through the manuals and price lists supplied by Parks and found that this machine was $1400.00 brand new in 1980. All in all I think I stumbled across a pretty good deal. Hopefully I can get some pics posted this week as well

[tod evans]

ya` done good dan!

[Dev Emch]

Nice!

By the way, if you can find Bob Vaughn's video CD on setting jointer and planer knives, you can watch him tunning up his restored 1940s (late) parks 12 inch planer. Caution, this material is OWWM centric. As such, there are comments regarding modern import machines that may be offensive to some.

[tod evans]

Nice!

Caution, this material is OWWM centric. As such, there are comments regarding modern import machines that may be offensive to some.

chuckling:D :D

[John Bush]

Congrats Dan,
Nice score. As Dev mentioned, the video is a nice tutorial. Letme know if you would like a copy, as Tauton Press no longer publishes this video. Good luck, John.

[John Bailey]

Good choice Dan,

I've got a Parks completely disassembled in my my shop waiting for the paint to dry. Before I took it apart for the rebuild, I ran some boards through it. It did a great job, even in pretty shabby condition. I think it'll pay for itself in no time, unlike the sanding center.

John