Of the planers with two-knife cutterheads, the Makita produced the best surface quality. The knives are very narrow and a bit tricky to change, but Makita provides two magnets for lifting them off the cutterhead, and these make it easier. The machine’s dust port is an odd size, with an outside diameter of approximately 27⁄8 in. I used an adapter to connect it to a 4 in.-dia. hose, but dust collection was only fair. Finally, a full revolution of the height-adjustment wheel moves the cutterhead 3⁄32 in. The other machines move 1⁄16 in. with a complete revolution of the handle, a dimension that’s much easier to work with because the most common thicknesses for furniture are in multiples of 1⁄16 in.The Rikon 25-130H, like the General International 30-060HC, has a segmented cutterhead with 26 cutter  arranged in six straight rows, that enter the wood straight on. Rotating and changing the cutters was easier on the Rikon than on the General International, because it has an automatic cutterhead lock. There is a flat top that is a good staging area for boards between runs through the machine. There are two dust ports on the back of the machine (21⁄2 in. and 4 in. dia.), with one exiting on either side of the planer. Dust collection was good with the planer connected to a 4-in.-dia. hose and dust collector.