Craftsman 6" professional Jointer- I can get one cheap

[Bob Hallowell]

I am going back down to Pittsburgh tommorow to pick up my new Steel city deluxe tablesaw(no fence or wings). And when I picked up my Bandsaw last week they had a whole stack of the craftsman prof. 6" jointer for $200. Orion makes them and Steel City own's Orion. They seem to get pretty good reviews and my old jointer is one of the really old craftsman with a 38" table and under powerd motor. I really wanted an 8" when I build my new shop but I could sell the new one for almost what I paid for it I think in the future.

So is it a decent jointer? should I go for it?

thanks,
Bob

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00921705000P?vName=Tools&cName=Bench+Power+Tools&sName=Jointers%2C+Planers+%26+Shapers

[James Carmichael]

Bob,

I know "bigger is better" when it comes to jointers, but I'd have an awfully hard time passing that one up.

I often wonder, does 8" really buy that much over 6"? I know, it has a longer bed. My thinking is, if I reach a point in space and $$ to upgrade my jointer, I'll save a little longer and go all the way to a 12" (with spiral cutter head).

[Tyler Howell]

I wasn't very happy with the 6" Cman I had. I just read a thread on cheap tools.
Be careful

[Art Mann]

I say buy it. If you decide later to get an 8" jointer, you can probably recover the $200 selling it used. From all I have read, this is a good 6" jointer.

[john bateman]

I have one of those and thought I got a good deal when it was on sale for $325 a few yeas ago.

The jointer itself works about as well any other in it's class, but the sheet metal stand is kind of cheesy. It must take about 50 or 60 screws to assemble. But the fence and tables operate smoothly and were very close to perfect as far as straightness goes. And the knives were aligned near perfect too.

[Dewayne Reding]

I've had mine about a year. Paid $399 and would buy it again for that price. It's a solid machine and seems to do a very nice job. It is a little top heavy with a small footprint though. I've got it on a stand and I'm very careful when I put it up on the wheels to move it around the shop.

[bob cohen]

Sorry, but not much of a craftsman fan. I don't know that particular model, but if it does not have an enclosed stand, I think you be better off finding a used delta/jet 6 inch model with an enclosed stand, which offers superior dust control and more weight/less vibration.

[Bob Feeser]

I owned the Craftsman 6" jointer stand model, the one they had before the model you see in the provided link. It went for 4 something new, and I sold it for $250 when I stepped up to the PM 8".
The good news is that you are avoiding the first year depreciation by buying it used. So like someone else just said, you can't get hurt paying 200 for one.

A couple of thoughts pertaining to the jointer. You want to make final passes slowly. If you run the board by too quickly, you will get little bumps where the blades nipped the wood. Slow gives you great results though. More expensive planers give you more horsepower, and consequently faster spin rates, with possibly 4 instead of 3, or 2 blades.

Due to the light weight of the saw it is a challenge to do larger boards. I did some 90 inch boards that were about 5 inches wide, and 1 1/2" thick. When I was finishing the pass, the weight and length of the board on the outfeed table, made the whole thing want to tip over. I wound up holding the table up with my waist/hip while pressing down the tail end of the board, so it would not lift off of the table. The PM 8" with its long tables and hefty weight does not pose that problem.
I am not saying this to discourage you form buying the jointer, but rather an accurate analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the unit.

There was also a squealing sound coming from the motor, which I never paid much mind to, other than oiling pulley shafts etc. and it did not go away. The guy who bought it said his brother mentioned that the bearings may not be replaceable because of the origin of where the motor was made, and they do not make bearings that will fit in this country.
If you do not have a jointer, you need one. If this unit fits into your budget constraints at the moment, then this will do fine. Check it out before you buy. Plug it in, and joint a bring along 2x4 if necessary. As long as it works, and doesn't squeal, you are pretty well secure. My model didn't have any coplanar or flat table issues, but this is a different model, so Scott's advice is well taken in the next reply.

[scott spencer]

If it's in good shape, has flat coplanar tables, a straight fence, and runs well, you can't lose at $200, especially if it's the Orion made jointer.