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Thread: Considering Grizzly 12 inch jointer/planer G0634z

  1. #1

    Considering Grizzly 12 inch jointer/planer G0634z

    Sorry for re-posting - I did not get any responses with the original post because I was not clear with the title - this is a particular jointer/planer I am seeking information about and besides a couple of Amazon reviews that are years old I am not finding any current information. This is the cheapest 12 inch combo jointer/planer with helical cutterhead out there. I see there could be an issue with having to remove the fence each time I want to change functions but besides that are there quality issues with this so that I should look at the next step up, the Jet 12 inch - which is about 1800 dollars more.

    As an aside - the jet 12 inch with helical cutterhead is about a $1000 more than the three straight blade version - does not seem it should cost that much for just a different cutterhead.

    Does anyone have an opinion on the G0634Z?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Coastal Southern Maine
    Posts
    350
    I can't get to the shop to check but it sounds like my J/P. It took a bit to get it dialed in because it came way out of alignment. I was moving from a Minimax combo machine so I had previous experience to judge against.

    If mine was stolen I would definitely purchase again. I'm a hobby guy but use it daily.

    The biggest issue with switching between J/P is having a place to put the fence when you remove it. If you have a dedicated space it isn't a big issue.

    When I purchased, grizzly said that they didn't sell a mobile base that could be made to fit. I ordered one of the of the Shop Fox heavy duty bases and it fit fine.

    I liked the tersa head in the Minimax better than the segmented head in the grizzly. I always have to do a little sanding after using the planer which wasn't the case with the Minimax.

  3. #3

    thanks.

    Thank you - that is good to know. I have not seen many youtuber's post reviews of Grizzly machines. Not many reviews online so your comments help. Thanks.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2014
    Location
    Alberta
    Posts
    2,162
    Tom have you tried contacting Grizzly to see if they will put you in contact with owners of that machine ?

  5. #5
    I have had the G0634 for about 10 years. I only have the straight blades. I do not feel that changing from jointer to planner modes is difficult at all. It takes less than a minute. The hard part is lifting the fence and placing out of the way.
    I did purchase an aftermarket mobile from shop fox that works fine.
    If I had to do it again I would get the new fence system that is on the polar bear series. It has a smaller footprint out the back.
    I did have a start capacitor go bad shortly after getting it, but that was an easy fix.
    I have also changed the belts once and sharpened the blades a couple of times.

    As a hobbyist wood worker it works good for me. It is nice having a 12" jointer.

  6. #6
    I considered a J/P once, but beside the (admittedly minor) inconvenience of swapping modes and adjust the new height, the main reason I passed was table length: The new Grizzly is 60", but even 8" jointers today tend to be 72" or more. I work with large boards a lot, so for me that's a big deal. For smaller stuff, I typically use hand planes.

    Even the planer on most J/P machines has a very short in-feed platform. (Why, I'll never understand.)

    I'm sure that this works for some folks, just not me.
    ----------------

    Also, re Grizzly's spiral heads: I would rather get the straight head version, then retrofit a Shelix or Helihex head. Those heads theoretically give a better finish on tough woods, vs the Grizzly "straight aligned" spiral design.


    Still, the price is very tempting, and that new fence really does look great.
    Last edited by Allan Speers; 06-04-2019 at 6:54 PM.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Coastal Southern Maine
    Posts
    350
    Just checked. My model is the GO634XP. Purchased in Jan of 2015.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    Winterville, NC (eastern NC)
    Posts
    2,360
    Check out the Hammer 12" J/P machine. With the big woodworking show coming up in Vegas next month, they usually offer discounts on their machinery. I got my Hammer A3-41 16" jointer/planer machine last year just before the big show in Atlanta when they were offering the show specials. With their Silent Power segmented cutter head, it leaves a very smooth surface; enough for me to consider selling my dual-drum sander, which I got just for the purpose of sanding boards after running them my old straight knife machine. It is built by the Felder company, and they don't make toys.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    Lake George NY
    Posts
    157
    I have had a GO634 for around 12 years now. Works great for me. Easy change over. I have the
    helical head which works great on figured Woods. Sometimes I wish it was 16”. But a great machine
    for a reasonable price.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Deep South
    Posts
    3,970
    I have owned the Jet JJP-12HH for several years and use it regularly. It has a relatively short bed but I have never wished it were longer. In fact, I am pleased with the compact size. Most people I know believe the best practice for machining material flat, uniformly thick and square is to cut the rough lumber just slightly over the necessary length before doing any machining. That reduces the need for a longer bed and preserves the greatest possible thickness of the material. I just don't ever need to flatten a board that is 8 feet long and if I did, I would select a board that was nearly flat to start with.

    Whether you buy a J/P with a spiral segmented cutter head or retrofit an after market one, I think it is well worth the money, especially if you work with figured wood or wood that has an inconsistent grain direction. The spiral cutter head eliminates about 90% of the chip out problem.

  11. #11
    I, too, have purchased a Hammer A3 jointer-planer, the 16" version. It is currently sitting in a warehouse at a local rigging company, who will do the final delivery to my garage shop next Thursday. I previously had a 6" grizzly jointer with parallelogram tables and spiral cutterhead. It served me well for many years. I started looking at 12" stand-alone jointers and those get pretty long; a problem for the limited space I have. The compactness of the combo units was very attractive and I looked at many, including Jet and Grizzly. I liked the Hammer unit because of it's 16" capacity and the ability to add the extension tables. This gives you the capability of extremely long tables while still taking up relatively little space (the extensions are easily removed). It is very, very expensive but compared to the expense and amount of space needed for standalone 16" jointer and planer, it is well worth it.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Doylestown, PA
    Posts
    7,551
    I have the straight blade Jet JJP-12. The jointer beds are 55" and I haven't found that limiting. I learned early on about the benefit of cutting rough stock to length before flattening it, wastes less material and easier to handle. I guess if I made doors or bed frames I'd joint long stock but I haven't done much that required jointing 6' plus stock. A rule of thumb I've seen is that the max length of material that can reasonably be jointed is 1.5X to 2X the bed length.
    Last edited by Curt Harms; 06-07-2019 at 7:07 AM.

  13. #13
    Well let's see... The standard Hammer A3-41 tables are about 71 inches long total. If I use the longest extensions I can add another 62 inches of table length...for a grand total of 11ft. I'll be all set for 22' long boards!
    SB

  14. I have the version of that machine with the end-mounted fence and I am mostly happy with it. The biggest issue I have is that it is difficult to replace the guard. The tension spring is tricky to place and the guard itself sags a lot.

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