Guard style for minimax FS 30c

[John TenEyck]

yeah agree no perfect guard.

jointing really long boards the gaurd was useless and more so was in the way, I could not drop on. You have the option to pull the fence towards you so at that point the porkchop does zero compared to not having it, at the end of the board your knives are exposed either way. Only thing pulling the fence close is you would wear your knives more always using that area. It also depends how you joint.

I respect the damage it can do, what does annoy me is the wood not gliding nice. When its right the wood is like a hovercraft and no friction over the tables. I ran out of auto paste wax then used some synthetic that worked horrible then liquid carnuba that was pretty good, then PFTE WD stuff and it leaves a residue then went back to parrafin and some swipes of that. Still not having the hovercraft experience and for me its most dangerous when stuff glides then sort of loads up like its got suction to the table right as you are going. Im next going to try one of my auto buffers on it. The car paste wax I had worked well and never caused finishing issues at least that brand.

I've always had good luck with common paste wax, and Lundmark carnauba paste wax is my favorite for this and many other things.

John

[Jeff Ranck]

Jeff, have you tried adjusting the spring pressure on your guard? It should be simple to do if yours has a housed coil spring at the pivot, just loosen the holding screw and adjust the preload.

...

This is something I need to do.

[Erik Loza]

I personally prefer the American-style guard to the Euro-guard but the biggest complaint I got about the porkchop that the Italians sourced out was not so much design but that it was such a flimsy piece of plastic and fussy to keep a consistent springback tension on. The porkchop for the F410 Nova jointers is actually really nice. Rigid, glass-reinforced, with a metal bushing for the mouting bolt. Not sure if there’s a similar option for 310mm machines but could be worth a look.

Erik

[Jeff Ranck]

thanks for the lead. I do think the current US style guard I have is exceedingly flimsy.

[Warren Lake]

me as well John. I learned to detail in LA many years ago and came home with two cans of some brand of auto paste wax. It went on, dried, hand wiped micro fiber and stuff slid well. Also parafin from the grocery storey, comes in blocks not sure what they use it for but I use that on hand planes, the difference is dramatic. I get that shop temp and humidity will have a bit of affect on it as well.

I found a can of some stuff called Sprayway last night, must have been from the old guy and not much left. Seems the same type of label as the WD stuff showing it sprayed on blades and for woodwork stuff. Still prefer a wipe on to a spray. My liquid carnuba was good but still think the wipe on paste will leave the thickest layer. I had the old stuff so long it had gone mouldy, I was still using it on cars, it was so thick it was hard to put on, then harder to remove. The gliding well while not guarding this post is about its still part of safety on a jointer. Im not sure which type of guarding I would prefer.

[Matthew Hills]

Just saw a video for an A3-41 where they switch to a short euro guard for edge jointing: https://youtu.be/FqdV5kvRSBM?t=267

Matt

[Erik Loza]

Just saw a video for an A3-41 where they switch to a short euro guard for edge jointing: https://youtu.be/FqdV5kvRSBM?t=267

Matt

That is really clever. Had not seen it before. Thanks for posting.

Erik

[Jim Becker]

That is really clever. Had not seen it before. Thanks for posting.

Erik

Erik, I actually considered taking a section off my guard to use for edge jointing since it's "universal" and can cover a 410mm machine and mine is only 350mm. But I never executed on it since I rarely edge joint. It's nice to have a slider...

[Erik Loza]

Erik, I actually considered taking a section off my guard to use for edge jointing since it's "universal" and can cover a 410mm machine and mine is only 350mm. But I never executed on it since I rarely edge joint. It's nice to have a slider...

Jim, I brainstormed that too. Maybe DIY a "comfort-style" Euro guard, where the sections fall away, but never made it past the daydreaming stage. I think that wooden guard is a great idea. Or, buy a second extrusion and just cut it down. I believe Sam did that for the rip fence on his combo machine.

Erik

[Mike Wilkins]

Started with the pork chop and now into the Euro set-up. The Euro guard does hit you near the nether regions when edge jointing, but using it over time you get used to it.
I have seen a person using the Euro set up procure a second guard, cut it down into shorter sections and use the one that best works with the width of board being jointed. Thinking of doing the same for my Hammer A3-41.

[Rod Wolfy]

Yea, that was a good video.

I actually ordered my Hammer A3-41 with an extra factory blade guard, which added like $30 to my order. The plan is to cut it in half, so that when I'm using the fence at a (closer to the user side) location, I can not have to step around a 12"+ wide guard. On a slow boat from Europe. Arriving next month...

I wish they offered the folding comfort guard for the Hammer, though.

[johnny means]

I'd like to see some data on accidents with the porkchop guards vs bridge type guards. It's always struck me as odd that a guard be designed in such a way as to politely step out the way should I thrust my fingers towards the blade.

[John TenEyck]

I'd like to see some data on accidents with the porkchop guards vs bridge type guards. It's always struck me as odd that a guard be designed in such a way as to politely step out the way should I thrust my fingers towards the blade.

Your comment is absolutely true, and no different than what might happen with the Euro guard if it's set for face jointing 8/4 stock, or edge jointing something a few inches wide. All guards have weak points and all require some operator awareness.

John

[Brian Holcombe]

The suv-a-matic resolves that, since it retracts downward toward the table. Downside is that it sticks out 9”
from the side of the machine.

[John TenEyck]

The suv-a-matic resolves that, since it retracts downward toward the table. Downside is that it sticks out 9”
from the side of the machine.

Yes, that's a very nice system.

John