Grizzly Planer Question

[Tony Bilello]

I am thinking of buying a Grizzly 20" planer.
Many years ago, Grizzly put out what i call junk. I owned their 4 bag dust collector and their table sander which worked great for the money but I know from friends that their table saws and planers were for lack of a better term "fer cockta". Now people say their stuff is way better than in the past.
1). Does anyone here own the Grizzly G0454 planer or the Shop Fox 0515? How well do they perform and what type of work do you do?
I build furniture and will use the planer mainly for final thickness planing and 'flattening' table tops. I will continue to buy my hardwood S2S with straight line rip.
2). I do not have 220V available in my shop and I normally use a portable generator. Will my 10HP generator start and run a 5HP planer under load? This is a load question not a rated amps output question.
An electrician would understand.
3) Does anyone here have the spiral cutters on their planer and are they worth the extra 600 - $800?
Thanks in advance

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Tony, you state that you have a 10HP generator and want to run a 5HP planer from it.

I looked at the Grizzly catalogue and picked a 5HP planer, the catalogue states 28A at 220 V which is 6160 VA.

Your generator will be somewhere around 6,000 watts or 7,500VA.

It's very improbable that a 7,500Va generator will start a 6,160VA motor. You would need a generator several times larger than the motor.

As to the question about starting the planer loaded, the planer motor isn't capable of that, you would have to remove the wood from the planer before starting it.

Regards, Rod.

[Tony Bilello]

When I said...." Will my 10HP generator start and run a 5HP planer under load?"......I didnt mean start it under load. What I meant is, will it start the planer? Then when started and up to speed, will it be able to handle the load of planing?
Thanks for the input. I was not aware that the starting amps was as high as 28. Today I will call Grizzly and see if they still have a 20" 3 HP model. Then also call the Gen. manufacturer to say what they say.

Thanks again

Tony B

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Tony, the starting current will be much higher than 28 amperes.

It may be in the 150 to 240 ampere range.

Your generator manufacturer will be the best source of information.......Regards, Rod.

[Mike Spanbauer]

As to the spiral head, the answer is a definite YES if you use it final thickness and finishing. Be aware that the surface still requires sanding from 120 up (I start at 150 with quality paper) to eliminate faint ridges that occur due to the segmented cutters. You can't really feel these ridges, but you CAN see them if you don't sand.

g'luck!

mike

[Lee Hingle]

Tony,
I have the 0454 with the straight knives. I have a byrd head on my jet jointer. Yes, the spiral head is worth every bit of the $600-$800 more.

I can save you saome time - Grizzly does not make a 20" planer with a 3 hp motor. You will have to go down to the 15" model for a 3hp motor.

Lee

[Tony Bilello]

Thanks for your input guys. I appreciate it.
Yesterday afternoon I spoke to Grizzly and to my Generator manufacturer and they both said that it would be marginal at best and that is a risky gamble. I will need to go down to a 3 HP unit or up to a 10KW 15HP Generator to be safe.
I know I want a 20" planer. Grizzly discontinued their 3 HP model and have none left in stock. The only other one I know of is Jet at well over $2000. So now I will only be thinking about it and not sure if I will buy a planer or not. Too bad there is no reasonable way of paralleling 2 generators.
Tony B

[Rod Sheridan]

Tony, if you use the planer outside or in a carport, you may be able to bolt an engine to it.

Just a thought as you would need a dry location for your generator, I thought perhaps you would have a sheltered outdoor location.

Regards, Rod.