Jointer question.

[RmeDad]

Anybody know anything about this unit http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=34434 ?

Is it absolutely necessary to have a large unit on a stand, or will this unit suffice if mounted to some legs?

New to WW and I'm not sure how often this tool would be needed. Seems that if this tool is adequate, the price less a 20% coupon discount would be affordable.

Any help or advise is appreciated.

[maxparot]

THe bigger heavier units have longer tables. Longer tables and more weight gives you more support and stability for longer/larger work pieces.

[Pappy]

Max said it right. The short tables on the bench top jointers limit its useability.

[drumpriest]

I stand against the tidal wave of opinion on this one. I have the pelgrem benchtop, and it's a champ as far as I'm concerned. The guys are correct, it can't really joint much more than about a 5' board. Thing is, I don't have much use for jointing anything over a 5' board. Everything I build is smaller than that. If I do a china hutch, I build it in 2 sections that are then hooked together with screws or bolts. This has the advantage of making them easy to move.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think you are making a mistake if you get a larger jointer, just that I don't blanketly say that you shouldn't consider a bench jointer, it depends upon your needs. If you are going to do floor to ceiling built in units, and want to be able to joint an 8 foot board, a benchtop would be a poor choice at best.

I can't comment on the HF unit though, I like my pelgrem (I have the sears version, got it on close out).

[RmeDad]

Thanks for all the quick responses. I guess I should have clarified my usage. I do not expect to be jointing boards longer than 4 feet. Small furniture and the like. But, if I wanted to joint a 6 footer for a table top for example, would I be out of luck?

[LCHIEN]

Thanks for all the quick responses. I guess I should have clarified my usage. I do not expect to be jointing boards longer than 4 feet. Small furniture and the like. But, if I wanted to joint a 6 footer for a table top for example, would I be out of luck?

I just sold my benchtop because I found it impossible to joint a 5'-6' board. Worked great on 4' boards. Its the length!

[drumpriest]

Yeah, a benchtop does have a limit for length, and it'll vary some from model to model, but if you are wanting to do a 6' table top glue-up, you need a floor model jointer, as none of the bench tops will do that out of the box. Unless you make bed extensions, which you can, but isn't the easiest thing to do.

[wassaw998]

Technically, almost any project you build could use a jointer to ensure you have square stock (on non-plywood type stuff), so it could be one of your most essential tools in your shop. My recommendation is to not skimp on a jointer nor a table saw nor a bandsaw.

I have the Delta BT (benchtop) JT160 Jointer, which I had got @ Lowes on clearance for $125 a long time ago. On a short board it is a very nice unit, very smooth, glass like finish on a board edge, I was starting to think I really saved a ton of money and space and how smart I was indeed...then I tried to joint a longer board (~ 4.5') and what everyone had been saying about these smaller jointers finally came home to roost. What I did (I don't give up easy) was to build out of MDF an infeed and outfeed table, and used paper to shim both to as close as I could to the heights of the actual unit's tables, but still, a real hassle and just not very accurate on a longer board. I recently purchased a larger jointer - the $125 I spent was not a total waste, but, in the end I have bought a tool twice because the initial purchase was not able to meet my needs. Note actual milage may vary, a benchtop may be exactly all you ever need, just not the case for me and I regret the purchase.

[vaking]

I want to extend the original question a little bit. I have a Tradesman benchtop jointer below.
http://www.tradesman-rexon.com/html/...50w_large.html
The jointer works fine on short stock. The jointer came originally with extension roller that can be mounted on either infeed or outfeed side of a bed. Looking at the construction of a jointer I see that infeed section moves when you make depth adjustment. Outfeed section stays steady. Would it be possible to use the supplied roller on the infeed side and make a stationary bed extension on the outfeed part effectively doubling the bed length? The same pricipal as on the CMS supports basically?
I know this model jointer is popular here, did anybody try?

[LCHIEN]

Technically, almost any project you build could use a jointer to ensure you have square stock (on non-plywood type stuff), so it could be one of your most essential tools in your shop. My recommendation is to not skimp on a jointer nor a table saw nor a bandsaw.

I have the Delta BT (benchtop) JT160 Jointer, which I had got @ Lowes on clearance for $125 a long time ago. On a short board it is a very nice unit, very smooth, glass like finish on a board edge, I was starting to think I really saved a ton of money and space and how smart I was indeed...then I tried to joint a longer board (~ 4.5') and what everyone had been saying about these smaller jointers finally came home to roost. What I did (I don't give up easy) was to build out of MDF an infeed and outfeed table, and used paper to shim both to as close as I could to the heights of the actual unit's tables, but still, a real hassle and just not very accurate on a longer board. I recently purchased a larger jointer - the $125 I spent was not a total waste, but, in the end I have bought a tool twice because the initial purchase was not able to meet my needs. Note actual milage may vary, a benchtop may be exactly all you ever need, just not the case for me and I regret the purchase.

Sounds like my story but I skipped the build your own extensions as I could see the handwriting on the wall. Sold the JT160 or 37-070 as it used to be called, last week. The new JT360 is in the box waiting for me to clear the area. Not sure how I'm going to run the DC hose to it, though.