Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 30

Thread: Spiral Cutterhead for Jointer or Planer, pick one

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2017
    Location
    Fort Worth, Texas
    Posts
    28

    Spiral Cutterhead for Jointer or Planer, pick one

    I recently picked up a new in box Grizzly G0586 8" jointer as well as a new Dewalt 735 planer for $600 for both tools. I have enough money to buy one spiral cutterhead, and i need to choose between the jointer and planer. It will likely be another year before I buy one for the tool i dont buy one for. Both cutterheads are about the same price.

    My thoughts are that if i buy the spiral head for just one tool, I can simply do a final pass on the machine with the spiral head to make a smooth, tear-out free board. The biggest difference in my mind is the width, 13" vs 8". The most tear-out prone wood i use in QS African Mahogany, curly maple, and occasionally some walnut boards with a little figure in them. I actually haven't even tried any of these on either machine yet, so i dont know at this point how bad the tear-out would be.

    What are y'alls thoughts?

  2. #2
    I'd go with the planer. You can always make sleds etc for it to joint larger pieces. Jointer is typically for only to sides of a board where the planer can be used for all 4.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Location
    Central Missouri, U.S.
    Posts
    1,263
    Do you have a drum sander? If not, I'd consider putting the spiral head money toward that tool.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
    Location
    Fairfax, VA
    Posts
    103
    Quote Originally Posted by Nick Decker View Post
    Do you have a drum sander? If not, I'd consider putting the spiral head money toward that tool.
    It took me waaaaay too long to realize that there's no such thing as a spiral-head drum sander lol

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    NE OH
    Posts
    2,615
    I'd be inclined to do the planer. For one thing, I tend to change the planer knives about 3 times more often than jointer knives. Carbide would stay sharper longer. And if it is the insert type head, you can just rotate them extending life even more.
    Also, my planer is way noisier when cutting than my jointer, at least when taking heavier cuts, so the quieter cutting that comes with the spiral head would be welcome there too.

    And congrats on the drive by gloat...$600 for both of those new is a really nice deal!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Princeton, NJ
    Posts
    7,254
    Blog Entries
    7
    Sharp knives and ability to read grain direction work magic. Save your money.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Toronto Ontario
    Posts
    11,248
    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Nguyen View Post
    It took me waaaaay too long to realize that there's no such thing as a spiral-head drum sander lol
    Not true Brian, last month I was out on a service call for a 53" double belt sander with a helical carbide planer head on the infeed side.........Rod.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Griswold Connecticut
    Posts
    6,926
    Given those options, I would put it on the planer.
    You can always do both sides on planer and have the sides parallel. Not so much on the jointer.
    "The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    NE Iowa
    Posts
    1,217
    I would definitely go with the planer. Love the helical head on my planer, and at least the way I work, I make a lot more planing cuts than jointing cuts, so the efficiency, tear-out resistance and long-lived blades are really going to pay off more there.
    Last edited by Steve Demuth; 05-15-2018 at 8:24 PM.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jun 2014
    Location
    Western PA
    Posts
    1,242
    I dont know how recently you picked up these machines, but have you used them much? Experiencing significant tearout currently? I have a problem with putting a byrd in the dewalt. Believe me, the 735 is a great planer for the money. I had one for a few years and ran a ton of wood through it, but I dont think its worthy of a $400+ cutterblock upgrade. Ill also add i THINK my old 735 produced a better finish than my PM209-hh does. The byrd on my powermatic will rough up reversing grain like walnut crotch no matter which way you feed it. Ironically, i get less tearout on crotch figure if i feed it against the grain with the byrd. In my opinion/experience, sharp straight knives and a little knowledge will provide the best surface. The carbide insert heads are convenient because you can run them forever(sharpening long steel knives does add up over time), the chip compaction is better for your DC, and they minimize horrific tearout. Horrific meaning the tearout thats 1/16-1/8" deep. With freshly rotated inserts(i just did this for the first time a month or two ago), i still get minor tearout on really squirrely grain. I dont think byrd heads are worth all the hype they sometimes receive. They have a lot of benefits, but i dont know if surface finish is actually one of them. The thing with your dewalt is you can take a much lighter cut than i can with serrated steel rollers, and do so at a slower feed rate too. Sharp knives, slow feed rate, and a shallow depth of cut with rubber rollers should minimize most tearout.

    I do concur that the absolute best anti-tearout machine is a sander.

  11. #11
    I would go with neither as well and put the money towards a drum sander.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Feb 2011
    Location
    Central WI
    Posts
    5,666
    A Byrd head needs more power so be sure your planer has enough to handle the cuts you plan to take. Dave

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    22,492
    Blog Entries
    1
    As Brian H said, if you are running basic stock, reading the grain and keeping sharp knives in the machine will serve you well. The math on insert heads being less expensive over time is well documented but, we don't all have the money to lay down initially to get that savings.

    If you are running a lot of figured stock, feed direction becomes a challenge and the spiral heads are your solution. The idea of using the spiral head on one machine to fix the tear out from another will meet with variable success. If the tear out is 3/32" deep and you can only spare another 1/16" of material, you have to set that board aside for some thinner requirement.

    I faced the same decision years ago. I had turned usable figured boards into thin stock due to tear out enough to have a spiral head on my "gotta-have" list of requirements. I opted for a planer with a spiral head and a planer sled to tide me over till I saved my pennies for a spiral headed jointer. This allowed me to get the immediate benefit of the insert head for face jointing and planing.

    It is a little extra effort but, at the time I had work to do. I didn't want to repeat a previous poor judgement call. I had been impatient which ended up costing me more money to replace a tool that was not really appropriate for me. Figure out how long it will take you to save for a spiral head jointer and decide if you can stand a planer sled for that long. Your investment in patience will pay dividends for decades.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  14. #14
    I agree with Brian H. I owned a 735 for 7 years and tear out was not a problem. I had to change knives once. It's not that big a deal.

    If you HAD to buy one, then I'd do the planer because it's wider and in my method of work, I usually start with the jointer and finish with the planer.

  15. #15
    General agreement with what Brian but I think there is another rationale for a spiral head.

    Other than a much nicer surface, the machine is also MUCH quieter, if that matters for you.

    After using it for >3 yrs I realized money saved on sharpening is the main advantage. In this time I would have had at least 6 sharpenings and/or new blades vs. 1 rotation on the cutters with the spiral head. IOW I am getting >2 yrs use from the cutters (X 4 so 8 years worth of sharpening. Admittedly I get the "goodies" before rotating :-)

    Then there is the convenience of not having a spare set of blades on hand + set up in the middle of a project + forgetting to get the first one sharpened and then having NO blades ready & wait 1 week means buying a new set of blades.......you get the picture.

    I would have done the same thing for my planer but the cost return vs. sharpening for 20" head is not justifiable.

    Now to answer your question: Long ago I discarded the idea that a jointer or planer should be a surfacing machine, ie. the board is basically finished coming out of the machine. However, that doesn't mean I don't set blades to .002" tolerance.

    IMO a jointer and planer should be viewed as milling machines, not surfacing machines. Leave room (1/64") for surface prep (hand planing/scraping/sanding).

    In summary, I think cost benefit rather than surface quality should be the basis of your decision to buy a spiral head.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •