Craftsman 6" Jointer Setup Question - Model 21788

[dkerfoot]

I bought a Craftsman 6-1/8" 21788 Jointer/Planer at an auction. It does a nice job of edge jointing, but when I face planed a 6" wide board, it became evident the blades are either mis-adjusted or simply worn down more on the fence side from edge jointing.

I have ordered new blades for it. Does anyone know if they come with directions for installation? Since I don't have the owner's manual I'd love to get a copy of the setup instructions.

Perhaps someone has a copy of the manual and is able to make a PDF of that section? Otherwise, I'd gladly pay for copying costs and postage.

Thanks!

[LCHIEN]

There's some generic descriptions of how to set the height of planer knives in general availbel here and on the web.

You should be able to figure out how to remove and replace and raise and lower the knives simply by inspecting them and playing with them. Just have a lot of respect for how sharp they are!!! you'll have to rotate the head when adjusting the knoves. make sure you know how to turn the head without grabbing the knife area.

[182much]

I sent you a Pm

[just started]

Some of the best info on replacing and setting knives I have found

http://wiki.owwm.com/Jointer%20And%2...%20Videos.ashx

[drumpriest]

One thing to note is that jointer doesn't have an adjustable outfeed table. (I used to own one), so you need to ensure that the knives are the correct height at maximum exposure when you set them. Otherwise you'll get snipe on one of the ends.

[LCHIEN]

One thing to note is that jointer doesn't have an adjustable outfeed table. (I used to own one), so you need to ensure that the knives are the correct height at maximum exposure when you set them. Otherwise you'll get snipe on one of the ends.

Actually, my Delta JT-360 does...
it makes it easy to raise or lower the outfeed table relative to the top of the knives if you've set them a smidge too high or low w/o having to reset them all.

Actually you don't get snipe, you get a concave or convex board.

[Rich P]

Shop made jointer knife setting jig

After watching the setting video at OWWM (actually I couldn't do all of it as my attention span is not that long), you might want to check out this at the FWW web site:

http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworki...e.aspx?id=5294

While it's not as folksy, it seems to be a bit faster.

Magnets are available at Lowes.

[dkerfoot]

182Much sent me a pdf of the setup for an older version of my jointer that looks like it will be perfectly applicable. Thanks!

I have looked at many of the methods for setting the knives, I was mainly just wanting to make sure I understood the specifics of how the knives are held in place and adjusted on my particular jointer.

[gsmittle]

Actually you don't get snipe, you get a concave or convex board.

IIRC, snipe happens when the outfeed table is too low or blades are too high.

g.

[dkerfoot]

Well, that was painful. 6 of the 8 screws holding down the blade clamps came out fairly nicely. A couple were pretty stiff, but they finally sprung loose.

The other two rounded off a couple of Allen wrenches and were themselves stripped when I broke out my hardened set of wrenches. I finally had to grind slots in them and after much sweat, penetrating oil and tapping, was finally able to break them loose with a screwdriver.

Once they were out, I could see on the threads where they had started to fuse with the aluminum cutter head due to galvanic action.

Of course, I have already ordered the blades and paid the 9 shipping charge and will have to again if I want to replace the dern things... Grrr....

[Rich P]

I recently picked up a fairly old Jet 6" machine...my best guess is the 70's era. Found out after searching the Jet web site that the design and guts of it had not changed a lot from their "current" version called now the JJ-6CSX shown below...

http://woodworking.jettools.com/Prod...4&Part=708457K

..although the JJ-6OSX is totally different.

The fence on mine is the old "end mount" style but from the parts diagram for the CSX it appears everything else has not changed a lot. You might consider looking for machines similar to yours and then exploring the diagrams if they are available. We all know Sears never actually made anything so if you can figure out who really did make yours you may be able to find some more info. Sometimes OWWM can help with leads on this.

Good luck.

Hopefully you did not make the same mistake I did and try to remove all the blades at once. Don't know if I've messed up the cutter head but I hope not.

[drumpriest]

Loring, I was referring to the craftsman jointer, which the post is about. That particular craftsman jointer does not have an adjustable outfeed table. I am sure that other jointers have an adjustable outfeed table, just not that one. My Jet has an adjustable outfeed table, last time I checked.

As to the snipe question. If the blades are too low, but only slightly, and you force it over the lip at the start of the cut, you end up cutting slightly more at the front. If the blades are too high, you cut more at the end of the cut, when the board is no longer supported by the infeed table.

[docrowan]

Well, that was painful. 6 of the 8 screws holding down the blade clamps came out fairly nicely. A couple were pretty stiff, but they finally sprung loose.

The other two rounded off a couple of Allen wrenches and were themselves stripped when I broke out my hardened set of wrenches. I finally had to grind slots in them and after much sweat, penetrating oil and tapping, was finally able to break them loose with a screwdriver.

Once they were out, I could see on the threads where they had started to fuse with the aluminum cutter head due to galvanic action.

Of course, I have already ordered the blades and paid the 9 shipping charge and will have to again if I want to replace the dern things... Grrr....

Just this weekend I was reading about this jointer on the Sears website since it appears to be the same as one offered by Sunhill Machinery. At least two of the reviewers mentioned that the blade screws were stuck and they stripped them out to replace them. One poor fellow said he didn't change his until he was out of warranty. Both of them felt it was installed too tight at the factory, but I beat you hit the nail on the head with your observation of the galvanic action. Will grease prevent this? I ask because I'm considering getting one of these. If I do, I'll be sure to remove and install the blades right away since I'll likely not use it enough to need to change them until I'm well out of warranty.

[dkerfoot]

Both of them felt it was installed too tight at the factory, but I beat you hit the nail on the head with your observation of the galvanic action. Will grease prevent this? I ask because I'm considering getting one of these. If I do, I'll be sure to remove and install the blades right away since I'll likely not use it enough to need to change them until I'm well out of warranty.

I saw the reviews also. I am not sure if the Sunhill machine is the same. Looks similar, but it could just be a cheap knock-off.

I bought mine at an auction. It was manufactured in 2002. My guess is that it has the original, never removed blades. A bit of grease and changing them every 2 years or so will probably prevent! I only had trouble with 2 of 8.

[dkerfoot]

Hopefully you did not make the same mistake I did and try to remove all the blades at once. Don't know if I've messed up the cutter head but I hope not.

I have seen dire warnings on the internet about removing more than one knife at a time. I have also seen many people who routinely remove them all, have them sharpened and then replace them.

I for one have decided that this isn't something I am going to stress over.

On another note, my understanding on why some people recommend setting the new blades .002" or so higher than the outfeed table is because they quickly wear down that much the first few boards you feed through. Not an issue if you have an adjustable outfeed table. Mine does not.