Synopsis: We test 11 benchtop planers that handle stock up to 13 in. wide and 5 to 6 in. thick, run on a 12-volt circuit, and have dust collection and indexed knives. The most important evaluations when it comes to a planer are whether it makes smooth cuts with both faces of the board parallel to one another. After that, it’s all about features: superior finish quality, easy knife changes, and convenient depth-of-cut adjustments. Models tested included the DeWalt 735X (Best Overall), Ridgid R4331 (Best Value), Craftsman 21758, Delta 22-555, DeWalt 734, General International 30-060HC, Grizzly G0790, Makita 2021NB, Rikon 25-130H, Rikon 25-131, and Triton TPT125.

I’ve had a benchtop planer in my shop for many years and it’s starting to show its age. So when the editors at Fine Woodworking asked me to test the current crop of benchtop planers, I saw it as an opportunity to do some comparison shopping. These models handle stock 121⁄2 in. to 13 in. wide (plenty for most furniture making) and 5 in. to 6 in. thick, so you can square up blanks for even the beefiest parts. The planers also run on a 120-volt circuit, so they can be used in any home shop.

There are a lot of benchtop planers on the market, but we limited our selection to the 11 models that have what we consider to be essential features: dust collection and indexed knives. Planers without a dust port will create a huge mess and flood the air with dust. Indexed knives have pins that guarantee that all of the knives project the same amount and are parallel to the planer’s bed. This feature takes the hassle out of knife changes, greatly speeding up the switch from old to new knives.

To test the planers, I looked at what matters most to woodworkers. I ran a wide board through each one to determine if it planed the surface parallel to the one that ran on the bed. I measured for snipe, a planer’s tendency to cut a bit deeper at the leading and trailing ends of board than in the middle. I also evaluated the quality of the surface each machine produced.

What matters most When it comes to a planer, the most important evaluations are whether it makes smooth cuts with both faces of the board parallel to one another. After that, it’s all about features, including dust collection. Knife changes Depth-of-cut adjustments

My tests showed that all of the machines were suitable for woodworking, but the machines with three knives produced the best surfaces. Also, the two machines with segmented cutterheads performed about as well as those with two knives. I think this is because the cutters entered the wood straight on, just like straight knives. All the machines are loud. You’ll need hearing protection when using any of them.

However, the planers were not all equal, and three were better machines than the rest. The DeWalt 735X clearly was the Best Overall. With a three-knife cutterhead and two planing speeds, it produced nearly glass-smooth surfaces, even on curly maple. It left very little snipe and had outstanding dust collection, and the knives were dead-on parallel to the bed. Two other machines did very well, the DeWalt 734 and the Ridgid R4331. Both have threeknife cutterheads and produced very good surfaces, but with some tearout on figured woods. The Ridgid costs $30 less than the DeWalt 734, so it’s my pick for Best Value.

DeWalt 735X

Best Overall Benchtop Planer

DeWalt 735X Planer

At high speed, the planer works fast and leaves a smooth surface. But the slower, finish speed produces an almost glass-smooth surface. Knife changes are easy.

Price: $749.00 at the time of writing

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Ridgid R4331

Best Value Benchtop Planer

Ridgid R4331 Planer

Priced nearly $300 less than the DeWalt 735X, the Ridgid R4331 is an excellent value. Its three-knife cutterhead left wonderfully clean surfaces on plainsawn white oak and white pine. It did not perform nearly as well on curly maple as the 735X.

Price: $469.95 at the time of writing

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Delta 22-555

Delta 22-555 Planer

Knife changes on this planer were easy enough, except that you need an Allen wrench to open the dust cover and gain access to the knives, and it’s not the same size as the wrench used to loosen the screws that secure the knives. The 2-1/2-in.-dia. dust port can be reversed for use on either side of the machine. Two material rollers on top of the machine aid with transferring stock from the outfeed side back to the infeed side. Finally, there is no gauge that indicates how much material you’re about to remove, a convenience that three other planers also lack.

Price: $519.99 at the time of writing

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Dewalt 734

DeWalt 734 Planer

One of only two machines with a cutterhead perfectly parallel to its beds, the DeWalt 734 is a very good planer. Knife changes overall were straightforward, but access is difficult because you must remove a Phillips-head screw from under the dust shroud—not an easy task. The dust port on the back of the machine has a 2-1/2-in.-dia. opening but can be hooked up to a 4-in.-dia. hose. Connected to a dust collector, it did an excellent job gathering chips. And because the port exits to the left of the machine, the hose is never in the way of exiting boards. The top of the machine is flat, making it a good place to stack boards between passes.

Price: $449.00 at the time of writing

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Makita 2012NB

Makita 2012NB Planer

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 2-7/8 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.

Price: $698.68 at the time of writing

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Triton TPT125

Triton TPT125 Planer

Accessing the knives on the Triton for changes was not difficult, but getting the knives out was tricky, because no magnetized handles were provided to lift the knives off the cutterhead. There is a 2-1/2-in.-dia. dust port, and chip collection was good when hooked up to a shop vacuum. The housing has an open top and just one return roller on top, making it impossible to stack boards there in between passes through the machine. Also, there is no gauge that indicates how much material you are removing in a pass, making it one of four planers that don’t offer this feature.

Price: $358.32 at the time of writing

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Kelly J. Dunton of Terryville, Conn., has a meticulous eye for all things mechanical.

Photos: Matt Kenney

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