16" jointer

[Steven Hsieh]

I
Which of these 16" would you choose? I'm just wondering. It will be at least another year I can purchase one.

Laguna Industrial Series 16" jointer
http://www.lagunatools.com/jointers/jointer-industrial16#

$8,000

Grizzly G9953 Ultimate 16" jointer
http://www.grizzly.com/products/The-...-Jointer/G9953

$4,750

SCMI F 410 NOVA jointer
http://www.scmgroupna.com/p-509-f410-nova-jointer.aspx

Mini Max Formula F-1 16" jointer
http://www.minimax-usa.com/index.php...mart&Itemid=35

[David Kumm]

The MM and SCMI are basically the same jointer and the top of that list. In the 3000-5000 range don't forget used. The old Northfield, Oliver 166, Newman 60, Porter 300 in good condition are all every bit as good as the SCMI. A used Martin T54 is pretty sweet too. A jointer is one machine where good used beats good new. Dave

[Jamie Buxton]

In the last couple of weeks, in the SF craigslist, there have been two old-iron 12" jointers. One was a Yates-American, and the other a Crescent. They both looked to be in very good shape. They're both in the $1200 area. You sure you want to spend $8000 to get another four inches?

[David Kumm]

Used SCMI pop up pretty regularly and the American, later the Yates American, and the Crescent were good too. You probably want to avoid babbit. Watch the machinery exchange at Woodweb and you will see choices that will get you educated by the time you buy. Dave

[Steven Hsieh]

Is it hard to find replacement parts for these used machines?

[David Kumm]

Is it hard to find replacement parts for these used machines?

Yes but they are built so well if it isn't broken when you buy it you won't likely be able to break it. Bearings, electrics, motor are all fairly easy to deal with. If the tables are flat and not hollowed out in the center and the cast iron parts are not cracked you are golden. At 3000-5000 you are dealing with plug and play good shape stuff. When you spend less you may have some work. Machines are not like cars. they generally clean up and run just like new. They were built before value engineering took over. Cast iron was fine grained Mehanite stuff. Dave

[Rick Fisher]

Jointer's are pretty simple, I agree with David, the parts are such that unless you hit the jointer with your car, it should never need parts..

Of your selection, I would go with a used SCM or Mini Max..

Other than size, what would be important to me is how the fence operates.. Will it stay square .. What size is the fence ?

I have a 12" Griggio .. it has a cast iron fence that is larger than the beds on most 6" Jointer's.. The upside is that its great for edge jointing big boards, downside is that its got a slight twist .. The mechanism which holds it is so heavily built that the fence stays 90 degrees... no matter what I do to it ..

[Rod Sheridan]

I also would go with a Euro jointer, they often have insert knives which require no adjustment..................Rod.

[Jeff Duncan]

The only one on your list I would consider is the SCM, but I wouldn't spend that for a new jointer unless I had just won the lottery and needed a way to spend the money. Of course in that case I'd probably buy a Martin anyway

Just as a base of reference, for the $8k your Laguna lists at, I bought a 16" EMA (Italian) jointer, a 20" SCM planer, a 7-1/2 hp Martin shaper, a 12" Wadkin table saw, a 43" Timesaver wide belt sander, and a HolzHer edgebander over the last 2 years. So a 16" jointer vs a shop full of equipment! Now granted I spent a lot of time 'hunting' the deals, and had expenses for moving the equipment so YMMV

good luck,
JeffD

[Peter Quinn]

The SCM and MINImax are basically the same machine, both have a tersa head, and thats a plus. The SCM's are built like tanks, the fence is decent, that would be high on my list. The Laguna used to be a Griggio machine, a call to them could verify the manufacturer. If its still Griggio, thats a serious consideration when paired with the spiral carbide head. If its Asian, who knows what you can expect. The fence looks decent. If its for personal use, parts and service may not be much of an issue. These things are all pretty hard to kill. If its a commercial purchase, SCM has pretty good support, so does Minimax. The rest of them. well, the jury is still out. I use a 25 year old SCM jointer daily at work that has had its but kicked and still does a great job, so that wins points in my book.

[Rick Fisher]

The Laguna " industrial " jointer is Asian.. The Griggio are the " J " series.. The 16" machine is $12,800.00

For that money ... I would get a Mini Max ..

My 12" Griggio is a Laguna.. about 3-4 years ago they had a 50% off show models discount.. it had some dings and scratches.. I think I paid about $4500 for it ..

The Tersa head on a jointer is actually awesome.. I mill lots of rough lumber and sadly hit the odd staple .. When I get a nick all the way around, I simply knock out one knife, move it 1mm and go back to work..

Not sure how much a new Mini Max 16" jointer costs .. I wish SCM put prices on their website.. I have however seen loads of used ones in the $4000 neighborhood.. I think JR got one recently ..

[Frank Drew]

Steven,

16" is nice, and the tables are usually nice and long (a big plus), but you can face joint boards up to around 23+ inches on a 12" machine by flipping end for end after every pass, so unless there's a compelling reason to get the larger one you might find a 12" is all you need.

I'd also strongly agree with David's suggestion to at least look for good quality used. I had a Northfield, Oliver is, IMO, the class of the field, but I'd also look at Crescent, Moak, Yates, etc., and I've never heard anything but praise for any machine from Martin (but they do tend to be pricey).

[Brian Brightwell]

I bought a Unitronex 16inch jointer last year for $1700. Some small repairs and it works perfect. You can see a picture on the "workshop" threads under my Shop Tour. It is an old jointer and made in Poland. Don't laugh.

[johnny means]

Steven,

you can face joint boards up to around 23+ inches on a 12" machine by flipping end for end after every pass,

I wish someone would put this idea to rest. You cannot flatten a cupped or twisted board in this manner.

Anyway, I've worked with the SCMI and it is a real beast. Took up to a 3/4" cut, which was real handy for rounding off turning blanks and certain types of corner details in trim pieces.

[Erik Loza]

The MM and SCMI are basically the same jointer..

Yes, correct. Just to elaborate, FORMULA was essentially a re-badged SCMi Nova line. It was discontinued by SCMI in 2009-ish due to redundancy: There was no point in having two of the same machine. For reasons beyond me, FORMULA still appears on the North American Minimax homepage. When I ask about it, the answer is, "We'd rather have them call and then route them to an SCM dealer than to not have them call at all". Which makes no sense to me, since that is basically advertising something that no longer exists, but as they say, mine is not to ask...

...Not sure how much a new Mini Max 16" jointer costs... I wish SCM put prices on their website...

Honestly, Rick, so do I. It would make life a lot easier from a sales perspective. Just to help clarify, the reason why pricing does not appear on the SCM Group or Minimax websites is because in many parts of North America, both brands are handled by the dealer network as opposed to directly to the owner by a rep like Sam or like me. While pricing for Minimax product is fixed in the US Domestic Market, it varies in other markets and dealers do not want pricing listed on their websites (which is par for the industry).

I just tell folks to call me if they have any questions. Minimax US pricing is no great secret, it just can't be posted on the Web.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA