Old Craftsman Jointer Questions

[Gabriel Regalbuto]

I recently acquired a vintage Craftsman 6" jointer. Lots of cast iron, I'm hoping it will work out well. I have a couple of questions for those in the know...

What RPM should the cutter be spinning at? I have a 2" pulley on the Cutter, and the motor (1hp 3450rpm) has a very stubborn 4.5" pulley on it. I'm thinking that this is too fast.

Also, the fence adjustment leaves something to be desired. There is an eccentric pin that is used as a stop. It is very coarse, and as far as I can tell, I have to keep my hand on it, while I check the square and lock the adjustment with the other hand. I know older tools often lack finesse, but every time you move the fence? I'm hoping someone out there can tell me there's a better way.

[Terry Browne]

I used a six inch Craftsman for twenty-five years and it served me well. You don't have to worry about the speed - it will leave a clean, smooth cut as long and the knives are sharp and properly set. The fence is good, but it does need to be carefully set for square every time it's moved. I don't know of any way to improve on it. I did remove the belt guard from the jointer because mine vibrated badly and made a lot of noise. Without the guard the tool ran fairly quiet and vibration free. I upgraded to a Rigid jointer two years ago and it's a much better jointer. The fence is always square with the table after the fence is moved.

[ken gibbs]

My old 6" Craftsman jointer has a "rack" in it between the front fence and the discharge fence. It will set square at the feed end but be slightly out of square at the discharge end. The amound of error is aggrevating but managable.

[Chris Barnett]

If you would like another Craftsman jointer for comparison purposes, I can help you out :D. Would just help defray the cost of a new jointer.