planer thicknesser vs jointer + separate thickness

[Head clansman]

Hi all

apart from the floor space required , what is your preference between the two setups .

I'm looking to buy axminster ct1502 150mm jointer + axminster ct330 330 thicknesser or a planer thicknesser make ? . hc

[jasonb]

To me the biggest problem with two machines is that you can only surface a 150mm board and get it flat so not much point in having a thicknesser at twice the width as wide boards will come out as bent as they went in.

Jason

[mrgrimsdale]

Planer thicknesser for sure. 12" good compromise. Bigger gets disproportionately expensive, or slower

[jonnyd]

Planer thicknesser for me too unlesss you can stretch to a surfacer the same width as the thicknesser. There can be the odd bargain about i got a 9inch multico cast iron surfacer of ebay for £50.

[woodworker]

I'm with JasonB & Mr Grimsdale.

A bit pointless buying two machine with different cutting widths.

P/T everytime.

[cnc paul]

Dec 3, 2008 20:42:18 GMT woodworker said:

I'm with JasonB & Mr Grimsdale.

A bit pointless buying two machine with different cutting widths.

P/T everytime.

Me too P/T less space needed


Paul

[dom]

If you have the space and you can get them the same width, then two, saves on setting up time.

[engineerone]

i have a small pt, and the value is you know you are not wasting your time on one or the other because the wood is oversize.

however thought for the day why not look for a combi
which includes a circular saw to give you even more value??

paul

[Head clansman]

Hi all

seem like you all like the p/t , the only one that i ever used was a beast a domino with 24" wide planer planes . in those day we called them over/unders planer ie surface and edge plane over the top and striaght under without having to open up the bed to use the thicknesser, then to the saw to rip the boards to required widths then back to surface planer to edge plane to get required finished size.

Now correct me if i'm wrong here but judging from these much smaller p/t machine do all of them have to be opened up by lifting the upper beds to be able to use the thicknesser? and then switch back again to use the planer jointer surface? .

We also use a wadkins combi which is not my personel choice wasted loads of time switching between different setups all day long seeing there were 12 joiners in the shop. hc

[mrgrimsdale]

The much derided but perfectly OK IMHO Maxi 26, allows going from top to thicknesser with nothing to adjust at all, except, if you wanted to, clipping in a different dust extractor cowling; the work of seconds.
There must be other low end machines which are similar.

[Head clansman]

Hi jacaob

thank you, just what i wanted to know , by the way what does imho maxi 26 stand for ? hc

[mrgrimsdale]

imho = in my humble opinion
maxi 26 = cheapo combi machine sold under various labels, AEG, Lurem, Record etc. Gets a bad press, but I used one for years and it was reliable and good value for money
Not to be confused with the minimax c26, which also appears under different tags, and is a much better but more expensive machine

[Head clansman]

Hi Jacob

thanks, expensive is not always the best . hc

[tusses]

I have seperates

6" Jointer -Axminster
12" portable Thicknesser -Delta


I can stick wide sawn boards through the thicknesser so I can see the grain before I decide where to cut.

I also put 2 or 3 jointed boards through at a time which speeds things up.

I have put glued up boards trough too.

I have never considered it a disadvantage to have them separate and different widths !

[Head clansman]

Hi tusses

I was being to think it was just me , how many of us can get 12 " boards nowadays let a lone quality 12 " boards , not many, and how many of us would actualy use them at that width with today heating system it would cup and warp all shapes. I would rip the sawn timber to suite the job it was intended for then suface plane it first then edge plane it then under the thicknesser it's then back to ripsaw for the required width and finally finish off over the top to the finished size, this way given me straight timber .

then if i required wider boards would biscuit join then first possible several times to minimise any warping and cuping and possible depending on width another pass under the thicknesser if needed . hc

[tusses]

I buy my hardwoods full width sliced from the tree - so plenty over 12" LOL

I usually rough cut and take a bit off with the thicknesser before I decide which bit will be used for what.

[gazza]

Separates all day long

most of the newer P/T don't have very long beds for surfacing
Surfacing one face and edging is the most important part of machining as you need a flat face and straight edge to reference from. therefore the bigger the surface capacity the better

One of the portable bench top thicknessers will be able to cope with the thicknessing

[Keith]

Seeing as how we are coming out of the tool closet, I'm a separates man too.

200mm Jet 60A planer and a Jet thicknesser. I've had a planer thicknesser (Scheppach) but couldn't cope with having to swap it over all the time. I kept the Sheppach for a while after getting the Jet but didn't find the 8" width a problem and so sold the p/t. Having a 1.9m long bed far outweighs the advantage of the wider cutter on a combi IMHO.

[sainty]

What do you think of the Jet 60A Keith? I've been waiting for a bargain planer thicknesser to come up on ebay with decent length beds, but there's not been much around. 1800mm beds, for just over a grand seems like a good deal.

rgds

Stu

[Keith]

Stu I previously had a Scheppach HMS260, a nice little machine that gave a very good finish when thicknessing but the beds are too short for planing accurately anything other than short lengths. Getting the Jet has been a revelation and I should kick myself for not getting one years ago ;D

The finish is excellent, with care, as good as the thicknesser. It is robustly made and will hopefully last me out.

I bought mine as an Axminster return, when I got it I found one of the blade fixing bolts had had its threads sheared, I sorted that but I kept getting snipe. I am assuming the original owner had the same trouble hence them overtightening the blade fixing bolt. I tried everything, it all looked perfect and I couldn't find a fault. In the end I ordered a new block and bearing assembly. It cost about £100 which, especially considering it came with a new set of blades fitted, I thought very reasonable. Replacing it was pretty simple, everything is well made and the part fitted easily.

When I fire it up it sounded different and no snipe, which was a relief.

The long beds make single handed planing long lengths relatively easy and the machine is well powered with a long cast iron fence. Can't praise it highly enough.

Keith

[tusses]

just in my shop , and thought of another one when making panel infills or resawing bookmatch panels the wider thicknesser comes in handy without needing the jointer !

in fact , there are lots of times when I use my thicknesser and dont use the jointer...