limitations of a 6" jointer?

[Bill Bryant]

I'm looking at either a 6" or an 8" jointer for my new woodworking shop. I'm thinking that this tool, along with my table saw and 13" planer will form the heart of my shop. I know the obvious: I can only lay a 6" board down on the 6" jointer instead of an 8" board, but I don't know in practical terms where this will be a limitation.

Do experienced woodworkers use 7-1/2" boards in glued-up panels? Can't you use a planer in some way to smooth a wider piece of lumber?

Y'all jump in here and tell me why I should spend the extra cash for those two extra inches on a jointer. (I'm comparing the Powermatic 54A and 60B in case it matters.)

[Jameel Abraham]

I've been using a 6" for upwards of 10 years. And I'm thoroughly sick of it. Being restricted to 6" is a real pain and time waster. Get the 8 and even a 12 if you can afford it.

Personally, I'm waiting for a great deal on a 12" to come my way. At this point (I'm not a hobbyist, but not rich either) I'm willing to wait for greater capacity instead of settling for less.

If I were in your situation, ditch the 6.

Experienced woodworkers generally use the widest boards they can, and they definitely don't like to rip them down just to joint them. There are fixtures you can make to mount a twisted board to that run through the planer, and for a hobbyist who has time, they work. But if you can afford a wide jointer it's the machine for the job.

[Randal Stevenson]

I'm looking at either a 6" or an 8" jointer for my new woodworking shop. I'm thinking that this tool, along with my table saw and 13" planer will form the heart of my shop. I know the obvious: I can only lay a 6" board down on the 6" jointer instead of an 8" board, but I don't know in practical terms where this will be a limitation.

Do experienced woodworkers use 7-1/2" boards in glued-up panels? Can't you use a planer in some way to smooth a wider piece of lumber?

Y'all jump in here and tell me why I should spend the extra cash for those two extra inches on a jointer. (I'm comparing the Powermatic 54A and 60B in case it matters.)

My shop is small and in my basement. That and a bargain price made my decision when shopping. However, one other thing you aren't thinking of (at least by what you have written), is the LENGTH of the beds and the boards you can use. An 8" bed is longer, and will also allow you to use longer lumber (though in this case from the specs I saw 6"-66" long and 8"-72" long bed length).
It is easier to come up with the reasons not to do it:
Shop size
Budget concerns (Jointer or food)
You only build small projects
etc....

You rarely find anyone complaining about buying a larger one.

[Todd Burch]

Continuing Randal's line of thought - long boards also mean more chances of tipping the machine, unless it is indeed bolted down. Been there, done that, several times. Kinda freaky with an 8" joiner too, when pushing the last foot of a piece of 8" wide, 8/4 Mahogany that's 10' long.

Of course, (gloat gloat), it hasn't happened yet with the 20" Felder jointer/planer that weighs 1200+ pounds. :D

I started with a 4" Sears tabletop. Quickly went to a 6" bench top. Then the 8" Powermatic. Now the 20" Felder. I think I'm set now.

Todd

[Gary Keedwell]

You rarely find anyone complaining about buying a larger one.



Now that you mention it, I have never heard of anybody complain about a too large jointer. I have struggled with a 6" for 15 years but when I get my dream retirement shop, it will be substantially bigger.:)
Gary

[Dave Watkins]

With the 8" you will likely have a longer bed to work with too, plus a lot more weight which is good unless you want to move it.

I'd say if you can reasonably afford the 8" in terms of both $ and shop space then absolutely go for it. I've seen tons of threads where folks are delitefully upgrading from 6 to 8" (and larger). If you can swing it do it now - easy for me to say, huh?

As a hobbiest I haven't had any showstoppers with my 6 inch but it is one more thing I need to plan around when milling. In my current setup I'll can fit anything larger anyway.......

Have fun,

Dave

[Jim Becker]

Wider is better, IMHO. And not just for wide boards. There are often times when skewing a board as it passes over the cutter head can greatly reduce tear-out and provide smoother results when face jointing a board flat. Additionally, sometimes you want to edge joint something that isn't straight...such as a bent lamination. Wider is better.


Yes, you can use a planer to flatten a wide board using a sled, etc. Not a problem for occasional use, but if you enjoy working with wide lumber as many of us do, it would likely get tedious real fast to have to do that on a regular basis.

I used a 6" jointer for a number of years before moving up to my current 350mm (~14") J/P combo. Night and day, but that 6" Jet jointer did a good job within it's physical limitations. So invest in as wide a machine as you can afford.

[Seth Poorman]

I'm looking at either a 6" or an 8" jointer for my new woodworking shop. I'm thinking that this tool, along with my table saw and 13" planer will form the heart of my shop. I know the obvious: I can only lay a 6" board down on the 6" jointer instead of an 8" board, but I don't know in practical terms where this will be a limitation.

Do experienced woodworkers use 7-1/2" boards in glued-up panels? Can't you use a planer in some way to smooth a wider piece of lumber?

Y'all jump in here and tell me why I should spend the extra cash for those two extra inches on a jointer. (I'm comparing the Powermatic 54A and 60B in case it matters.)

8" boards for table tops..;) And yes 12" is better...:D

[Doug Shepard]

I've got the older PM54 (not 54A) and for most things I get by pretty well with it and just dont have any more room to move up to an 8". Edge jointing is never an issue, as I dont usually work with stuff 6" thick but face jointing is where a bigger one would be nice. There's always going to be a board that's wider than your jointer though, no matter what you get. The place I get the majority of my hardwood will flatten 1 face for a pretty minimal cost so if it's wider than 6" I just go that route, then do the edges on the PM54 and the other face on my benchtop planer. When all else fails, I break out the handplanes and flatten one face the hard way (or at least flat enough to run through the planer, then flip it to clean up).

[James Phillips]

You can flatten a 9"-10" board on a 6" jointer if you have a planer to go with it. You joint 6" flat (this will leave a rabbet on the edge), place flat section on a flat board and run throught the planer till the other edge is flat then flip.

[Quesne Ouaques]

I have a 6" Ridgid jointer and a 13" Delta planer. I joint boards wider than 6" quite often with a planer sled. It's a little more time consuming than a simple jointer run but it works fine on the few occasions that I need it.

It would be nice to have the 8" or 12" jointer, but I'm a hobbyist. For me, it's not that often that I need to joint large boards.

If you will be doing production work and/or you can afford the shop space and cost, I would recommend going for a wider machine. You won't be disappointed.

[Jason Beam]

Continuing Randal's line of thought - long boards also mean more chances of tipping the machine, unless it is indeed bolted down. Been there, done that, several times. Kinda freaky with an 8" joiner too, when pushing the last foot of a piece of 8" wide, 8/4 Mahogany that's 10' long.

why on earth wouldn't you have outfeed support on something that size?

Not meant to be inflamatory, it just seems like something my old mentor would jump me for. There's no reason to have 10' of mahogany dangling out there all on it's own. A roller 1/4" below would save you a ton of trouble and risk.

[Todd Burch]

why on earth wouldn't you have outfeed support on something that size?

Not meant to be inflamatory, it just seems like something my old mentor would jump me for. There's no reason to have 10' of mahogany dangling out there all on it's own. A roller 1/4" below would save you a ton of trouble and risk.

In a hurry. Takes too long. Baby needs shoes... yada yada yada.

I have rollers stands and they suck. (Anybody wanna buy them? Record brand - blue stand - fold out legs - 3 of them.) If they (the cylinder style) aren't aligned perfectly and bolted to the floor, one little twist and there goes your board off to the side. For a roller stand to work RIGHT, as you say, when setting it 1/4" lower than the outfeed, the board itself has to sag in order to be supported. I don't know how many feet it takes for an 8" wide, 8/4 piece of mahogany to sag 1/4", but it ain't less than 10'.

Nothing inflammatory taken. If I saw someone doing it, I'd want to smack their head too. I don't think I presented this aspect of a tipping jointer as an acceptable situation. It scared the crap out of me the first time it happened.

Todd

[Randal Stevenson]

Now that you mention it, I have never heard of anybody complain about a too large jointer. I have struggled with a 6" for 15 years but when I get my dream retirement shop, it will be substantially bigger.:)
Gary

Those antique beheemoths that you find on OWWM, is why I have seen a couple of people complain and sell them. Too big for their shops, no way of doing the babbit bearings (guy didn't have the time or tools), and one had no way of dealing with the motor issues (wanted to replace the three phase motor, but couldn't get the ok to do some rewiring in the rental). These three were all 12" or better, and while I would have liked any of them, I don't have the capability of crosscountry travel, then getting them in my basement without killing myself (though I am sure a few people would like to watch me try).

I can only dream of having a jointer that is long/wide enough to toss a matress on at night, and use during the daytime.:D

[Jerry Olexa]

wider is better. I now do 90% of my needs with my current Jet 6" and handle the rest in planer w sled or MDF temp glued to the 6" finished area, If you can afford it, go 8" or better

[Al Willits]

Couple of things to consider, rooom...ya got enough room to fill your shop with mammoth machines, you going to be able to mount this with out having to move them, planning on moving soon?

Money, here's the big one, the money I spent on a 8" instead of the expensive 12" or larger let me also buy a 15" planer, as a hobbyist, I needed to decide what was the average size of board I was going to have to deal with, and go from there.
Boards at the lumber yard are not getting bigger, just the opposite in fact, the 8" jointer and 15" planer will take care of 90% of what I'm doing...least it has so far.

I did decide on the 8" over the 6" and am glad I did, wasn't all that more cost and its way more machine, and the longer beds make life a lot easier.

You can work around the few times a wider jointer is needed, that probably works for the 6" also, but usually the 8" is a better buy..imho

Al

[Chris Foley]

Gents,

I hate to sound stupid but I have never seen a planer sled for flattening a board. Anybody got a picture of one?

[Jim Becker]

You can flatten a 9"-10" board on a 6" jointer if you have a planer to go with it. You joint 6" flat (this will leave a rabbet on the edge), place flat section on a flat board and run throught the planer till the other edge is flat then flip.

Yes, you can, but it's also important to note that the procedure requires removal of the guard on the jointer and also shimming on the rabbiting edge. I did use this technique a couple of times when I had my 6" jointer, but would not recommend it for regular use for safety reasons.

[Bart Leetch]

In a hurry. Takes too long. Baby needs shoes... yada yada yada.

Todd

I hope you'll take this in the friendly spirit that is meant.:)


I have the Sears roller stands that flip from a flat surface to roller to ball bearing surface. I have found that by using my long straight edge & setting them up level with the jointer they work just fine I can joint 10' material real easy on my 6" jointer (no tipping). The jointer base cabinet helps a great deal to. They are a lot easier & quicker & cheaper to set up than making a trip to the emergency room. Beside that how do you buy the things a baby needs if your injured & can't work?

[Todd Burch]

Hey Bart.

It's OK - I knew it was a problem, and I fixed the problem!! My 1200 lb jointer doesn't tip. No how, no way, will it tip.

Ya'll are reading this thread like it was a regular occurrence. It twern't.

It happened one afternoon when I had some mongo boards to dress. Yes, I could have stopped what I was doing after the first board did this, but I had two more to go. The second and third times, I was ready for it. Matter of fact, it was almost easier to surface - since the boards were going downhill. :eek: Think about it.

Todd

[Larry Fox]

I started out with a 6" and it always seemd that I had a board that was just a bit too wide or long for it and very quickly outgrew it. I bought an 8" and that was better, much better but now an finding that I frequently have a board that is just a bit too wide or long for it and dream of a 12" or 16" jointer. Point being I suppose is to pick up the widest and longest that you can reasonably fit and afford.

[glenn bradley]

I knew my 6" was too small about a month after I bought it. I am getting by with a planer sled until my piggy bank fills up.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=58735

[Don Bullock]

This topic has been discussed many times here and elsewhere. Doing a search will give you additional input.

After researching the topic, I decided on an 8" jointer and am glad that I did. I only had to answer questions from SWMBO once about what I was buying instead of doing it once with a 6" jointer and then having to do it later when I decided to upgrade to an 8".;) :D Besides, once I explained to SWMBO that the people on the forums suggested that starting with an 8" jointer would be the best thing to do, she responded, Well, then that's what you should get.":D