Jointer vs. Thickness Planer: Both needed? Or which one comes first?

[Tim Allaire]

I know that I need both of these a jointer and thickness planer, or do I. Which one first? Is it necessary to have a thickness planer at all? Can you continue to use your jointer to get to the thickness required? That being said(i.e. answer being "yes")-should I invest all my money in one good jointer and forget the thickness planer? Suggestions welcome...

Tim

[Mike Conley]

Check this thread -

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=10633

[Stan Welborn]

I'd get the planer first. There are workarounds for jointing boards, IE using a sled with the planer, but get a uniform thickness is hard without a planer.

[Peter Quadarella]

There is no way to replicate what a planer does with a jointer. A planer will make the sides of your board parallel, and will make all your boards exactly the same width. A jointer cannot do this. However, you can use a jig called a sled to joint your boards in your planer.

[Anthony Whitesell]

My opinion is that you need a decent planer over a great jointer. I don't have a jointer and I'm able to get my rough stock flat with the planer alone by taking light passes and alternating sides on each pass. A jointer will make both sides of the board flat, but not necessary parallel. Edge jointing is difficult to do on a planer, so I use a router with a straight bit and a straight edge to true one edge after planing, then rip the other side on the table saw.

[Mark Roderick]

I totally concur with all the posts above. The planer is much more important. I don't own a jointer, although I certainly don't object to them on principle. Space considerations more than anything.

The only thing I'll add is that you can flatten boards very easily and quickly with handplanes. Not as quickly or easily as with a humongous jointer, but still. And there's no maximum width.

I flatten one side of the board with handplanes - you don't have to make the board perfectly smooth, just flat - then put that flat side down and use the planer. Great results.

[Bill Wyko]

Have you looked at the JET combo unit? It'll do both.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi, the jointer and planer are a team.

The jointer is used to produce a flat surface on one face, and by using the fence you can obtain a second flat edge which is at right angles to the jointed face. (Or another angle if you wish).

You then can plane the second surface in the planer, and rip the other raw edge off on the tablesaw, and plane the piece to width in the planer.

The planer makes surfaces parallel by using one surface as a reference. It does not make surfaces flat or straight, simply parallel.

You can try to work around the issue by using a planer sled to flatten a surface, however it is time consuming, and difficult to achieve the accuracy you will with a jointer.

If you have a small shop, combination jointer/planers are available, and are the most economical method of obtaining a large jointer and a matching planer.

You will find that jointers are more expensive than planers for a given size because of the accuracy and table size required for jointing. The jointer has the difficult task, it has to produce reference surfaces, the planer only has to copy the references.

Regards, Rod.

[Eddie Darby]

Have you looked at the JET combo unit? It'll do both.
Also there is a combo out by Grizzly.

They both ( Jet and Grizzly ) are a good buy, since for the cost of a bench top planer and a regular 8" jointer, you get a 12" jointer as well as a 12" planer.
Less floor space, and one cutter head for both jobs is a nice addition to a small shop.

[scott spencer]

You don't need both but they sure do work well together for solid wood. Each does a separate job, but with the help of a sled, the planer can be coaxed into flattening a face, which is really a jointer's job. Then you can edge joint with a router or TS. So if I'm restricted to one, it'd be the planer for that reason.

[Jason Scott]

You don't need both but they sure do work well together for solid wood. Each does a separate job, but with the help of a sled, the planer can be coaxed into flattening a face, which is really a jointer's job. Then you can edge joint with a router or TS. So if I'm restricted to one, it'd be the planer for that reason.

Agreed, both nice to have...I have built a sled for a board too wide for my delta 6" jointer, it is a trick Marc Spag. over at thewoodwhisperer.com showed me...You hot glue a board in place and then run it through your planer and it acts as a jointer, but it is a pain in the but. Takes a while to glue a board up, then you got to get it all off, plus lugging around the weight of 3/4 mdf sled with a good long/wide hunk of walnut on it gets fatiguing. However I feel like I am coming up against this more and more...Every last piece of lumber I got from a guy in this last buy are all more than 8" wide, and I only havea 6" jointer:eek: So I better get used to doing it that way, or start ripping the stuff in half which seems "stupid" to me to do...

[Eric Gustafson]

http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/subscription/ToolGuide/ToolGuideArticle.aspx?id=5245

This planer sled takes longer to build than Mark's hot glue method, but it is less of a PIA to use after that.

[glenn bradley]

http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/subscription/ToolGuide/ToolGuideArticle.aspx?id=5245

This planer sled takes longer to build than Mark's hot glue method, but it is less of a PIA to use after that.

I think mine took about 4 hours (not counting waiting for the glue to dry):

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