Jointers and Power Feeders

[Julie Moriarty]

While jointing some white oak I was thinking how nice it would be to have a power feeder, especially one that I could use on other tools.

But then I thought, "Wouldn't a power feeder flatten the bow of a board and thereby act more like a planer?"

[J.R. Rutter]

Run all the wheels on the outfeed and take enough of a cut to give a flat surface to run under the feeder.

[Rod Sheridan]

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Hi Julie, J.R. has the correct approach, here's a photo of my J/P using the feeder from the saw/shaper.

I was making flooring so it saved a lot of pushing...........You can also purchase specialized feeders for the jointer, they have wheels that don't push down very much, they use spikes to grip the wood.......Rod.

[Martin Wasner]

You can use a wheel before the cutter, you just don't put much pressure on it. Post cutter, slam the pressure to it.

You can't really do it with it arched up either. Once the reference surface is established, it needs to remain tight to the outfeed.

[Brian Holcombe]

That would be nice to have, there are certainly times when I think a power feeder would be really awesome. I made bookcases last year and was flatting 16” wide, 86” x 6/4 ash panels and it was very much a workout as they became flat.

[Mark Hennebury]

They are a standard feature on a lot of Japanese squaring jointers, with both a horizontal and vertical cutterhead. I owned the Shimohira a long time ago.

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[Kevin Jenness]

Many jointers lack the space to mount a powerfeed. A simple stanchion made of steel tube with end flanges bolted to the floor can solve the problem.

[johnny means]

We have two sided planer where I work. The jointer end uses a belt/chain of spring loaded "teeth" to feed boards.

[Joe Calhoon]

I like the power feed on a jointer. For just a few pieces it’s not worth settling up but labor and back saving when you have a pile. Keep light pressure, just enough to feed. Works better on thicker material. With 4/4 it’s hard to take bow out. If your jointer is wide enough you can have room to hand feed on the left side if a bad or twisted board. Really good for glued up panels.

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[mreza Salav]

When building a bunch of passage doors out of 8/4 Maple, I built a stand for my J/P combo and used the feeder to feed the 8' 8/4 boards. Saved my back and hands and worked great.

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[Julie Moriarty]

Run all the wheels on the outfeed and take enough of a cut to give a flat surface to run under the feeder.

I thought of that but if the board has enough of a bow the power feeder would flatten it. When I was demoing my bathroom there was a pine shelf that had some serious twistin and cupping. When I was jointing it I thought about what a power feeder would do to it. After I finally flattened one side, I just couldn't see how a power feeder could have accomplished what I did hand feeding it.

[Mark Hennebury]

Julie, You will not beat jointing by hand for subtle adjustments, and getting the best out of a board, or for the simple fun of doing it.

A power feeder cannot trim a corner off of a twisted board; by hand you can take a little of of opposing corners. flip the board around and take a bit here and there, and get the maximum out of each board. A power feeder will simply push the board flat to the table at the front, and may twist the board flat as it goes through, only for it to pop back twisted when done. you can take cup out with a feeder, you can adjust the pressure, plus take a large enough cut to remove the cup. It depends on the job which is the most useful method. I like jointing by hand, but if i had a large amount of fairly flat stuff the feeder is easier. You may need to cull out the bad boards and do them hand first.

Otherwise, crank the music up and do it by hand.

I thought of that but if the board has enough of a bow the power feeder would flatten it. When I was demoing my bathroom there was a pine shelf that had some serious twistin and cupping. When I was jointing it I thought about what a power feeder would do to it. After I finally flattened one side, I just couldn't see how a power feeder could have accomplished what I did hand feeding it.

[Joe Calhoon]

Power feeds and our straightening S4S machine which works on the same principal do not work miracles for straightening and removing twist. As Mark says for critical work you still need to hand feed with a feel for the work. As I said before we only swing it in for large jobs. If I were building a piece of furniture or a single door I would not bother and just do it all by hand.