Byrd spiral head - these are tough!

[jim gossage]

everyone says that carbide cutters stay sharp longer, but how long? i bought an 8" jointer with a Byrd spiral cutter head on it about 18 mo ago. i have sent 600-1000 BF of ash, cherry, walnut, and maple through the jointer in that period, and the cut appears to me to be of the same quality as day one. i have never rotated the cutter inserts. today, i accidentally took 1/32" off the end of a 1/2" copper pipe as i milled some wood (don't ask how....and i know...LOSER). i decided to put some magnifying lenses on and inspect the cutter inserts. i couldn't find any damage and the head still cuts fine! now that's tough in my book!

[Joe Chritz]

Good report. I have a fairly new Byrd head and have a decent amount of work on them. I don't expect to have to rotate them for some time.

It is made for cutting steel after all. I wonder if anyone has ever done a formal test on blade life?

Joe

[Fred Voorhees]

Man, if that isn't a testiment to buying the aftermarket heads, I don't think anything is. I will be considering next year when I will probably be in the market for a new and much bigger jointer or jointer/planer combo. I may already have a buyer for the current jointer.

[Jack Vines]

Not to debate the toughness of a Byrd head, but it is possible to cut 1/2" copper pipe with a carbon steel hand saw without dulling the teeth. One small hardened screw or nail is much more deleterious to a cutter head than a cross-section of copper pipe.

thnx, jack vines

[Butch Edwards]

...if I did WW'ing for aliving, I'd invest in a Byrd,no doubt about it. the very concept of design is what impresses me... that being said, one for my 6" jointer costs more than what I paid fOR the jointer...seein's how I use it maybe 3-4 times a month(maybe), I can't justify the cost...but thats' just me. :o

[Gary Herrmann]

Not to debate the toughness of a Byrd head, but it is possible to cut 1/2" copper pipe with a carbon steel hand saw without dulling the teeth. One small hardened screw or nail is much more deleterious to a cutter head than a cross-section of copper pipe.

thnx, jack vines

I've got a Byrd head on my jointer and found a nail in a board the hard way. Didn't even make a mark on the knife.

[Joe Chritz]

Carbide will cut hardened steel. I have used carbide end mills to drill pre hardened knife blanks many times.

It will dull it faster than maple for sure.

Joe

[J. Z. Guest]

It's good to get one's money's worth from time to time, isn't it? ;)

[Michael McCoy]

Since nobody else has asked, I guess I have to. :) How did you get the copper pipe in to the head while jointing wood?

[glenn bradley]

Butch, that makes perfect sense. I have some things I use a few times a year; they are not the best. I have some rather simple things I use every time I go in the shop; I tend to get a better quality version of these items.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Thin Copper won't hurt it.
I ran my carbide insert Hammer Dado across a chunk of 3/8" Dia' Steel screw that was buried in some recycled maple and patched in so it was invisible. No harm to the cutter. None.

[Loren Hedahl]

Are these available for any of the lunchbox type planers?

[Brian Gumpper]

Are these available for any of the lunchbox type planers?

No, just the larger machines. Tom Byrd told me once that he had reports of 14X the life of one cutter side vs. steel knives and you have 4 sides to work with.