Replies

1. 
   bones | Dec 22, 2007 06:01am | #1

   Get the biggest jointer you can afford.  I just got the G609 12" from Grizzly. I could have got the 8" with byrd head or upgrade to the 12" and 4 blades.  Went with the 12" and don't regret it.  If I determing the 4 blade head won't cut it, I'll upgrade to the byrd head.  For my size jointer it's 699 bucks. That's my 2cw. 

   Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:
   If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it.
   And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
   
1. 
   user-85737 | Dec 22, 2007 07:38pm | #2

   I have the same jointer for a year now and love it.  I put link belts on it and I would say it has improved the jointers performance by 30%.  Now I want to know if the byrd cutter will improve the machine that much more.

   brandon

1. 
   bones | Dec 22, 2007 09:50pm | #3

   What performance did you improve? I ran some figured 12" wide cherry and it cut fine? Were you getting vibration at all? Why the link belts?Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

1. 
   user-85737 | Dec 23, 2007 01:15am | #4

   After 6 months the machine started to make more noise when it started and when I turned it off.  So I tightened the belts.  that helped for about a month.  I started to think that my blades were getting dull or that the alignment on my jointer was off.  so I retightened the belts and realigned the table and the blades.  Again the machine sounded better for a little while but I still felt like something was off.  The belts are now maxed out in length.  the belts themselves are in great shape.  there are know cracks or any other problems with the belt.  The link belts aren't that expensive and a lot of people on fine woodworking said that they would change all of there tools to link belts.  So I did.  The machine runs even better now then it ever did before.  The machine still has the original blades and I did not realign the jointer and it works better.  I feel like the wood moves across the jointer more smoothly then it ever did before.  I feel that this is do to better power transfer.  Maybe it is all in my head but I needed new belts anyway.

   Brandon

2. 
   8675309 | Dec 23, 2007 03:29pm | #5

   In my opinion, spiral heads do not offer enough of a performance advantage to justify their cost.

   Visit me at The Wood Mechanic site!

1. 
   bones | Dec 23, 2007 07:18pm | #6

   I really struggled with this when I bought a few weeks ago.  I don't know about performance, but when you have to mess with them, the advantage would be clear i.e. not messing with jigs and such, just change inserts and go on.  I'm sure the first time I have to send those four blades off and have to reset them, I'll have wished for the inserts. I can always upgrade later.  I decided the 4" wider jointer was where I should put my money.Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

1. 
   8675309 | Dec 23, 2007 11:15pm | #7

   That's a great point about ease of setup! I guess I'm really, really odd, but I actually enjoy setting jointer knives. It's such a quiet, intense activity. Plus mine is so old that the cutterhead only has two knives.

   Visit me at The Wood Mechanic site!

2. 
   Glaucon | Dec 23, 2007 11:39pm | #8

   I favor the carbide spiral cutters for a number of reasons:1. They last MUCH longer.
   2. Less tear-out- it's been my experience and reviews tend to support it.
   3. Much easier to change out.There are few things more frustrating than hitting a knot with a set of newly honed and newly changed jointer knives. Not only are you very unlikely to nick carbide (as opposed to HSS), but if you do, changing out is much easier.I would say that of all the tools in the shop that can benefit from carbide, the jointer and the planer are at the top of the list.Glaucon

   If you don't think too good, then don't think too much...

1. 
   bones | Dec 24, 2007 06:34pm | #9

   I would agree with you on those points for sure. To compensate a little I move the stock across the knives at an angle when possible.  I found out something interesting.  I did some figured cherry the 4 HSS knives made it smooth as a baby's bottom. I then sent it through the Makita planer (2 knives), and had some chip out on the ends on the opposite face. I made the parts longer than necessary to deal with that issue and after running it through the 16/32 sander they were perfect.  I hope to upgrade to the byrd head after bonus next year in the spring.  I'm hoping that the knives last long enough that at the need for the change out, I can have the jingle to make it happen.  I was surprised that the cost of upgrading later made it no more expensive than buying the jointer with the head installed. I figured they would have made it a little cheaper to entice you to jump. Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.

3. 
   terrylee86 | Dec 25, 2007 07:21am | #10

   Glaucon is right. I took my retirement package and treated myself to some new tools. I replaced my DJ-20 (Brazilian made) with a 12" spiral cutterhead and my 12" Powermatic 100 with a 20" spiral cutterhead planer and the difference is staggering. I have put almost as much wood through those new machines in retirement (5 yrs.) as I did through my old machines in the last 30 years. I have yet to change the carbide cutters for the first time and I still have three more cutting surfaces left. A buddy of mine has that old DJ-20 and he put a Byrd shelix head in it and I used it the other day for the first time and I can't believe it is the same machine. It cuts better then it ever has and a little better then my spiral heads, but not much. We face jointed cherry crotch boards to test it. Buy the 8" spiral if that is what you can afford but buy a spiral and don't think you will change it later. Save your money for a while and buy the 12, you will never regret it. I face joint every board I work now, I didn't always do that before because it was a 8".

   Terry

1. 
   user-85737 | Dec 25, 2007 11:07pm | #11

   Thanks for sharing.  Is it hard to replace the cutter head?

   Brandon

1. 
   BillBrennen | Dec 26, 2007 10:49am | #12

   Brandon,Replacing the cutter head with a Shelix head is pretty easy. You need access to a bearing puller/pusher. Wear crepe rubber gloves when handling the heads. With an indexed head, the bearing supports need to be centered parallel to the table plane. This required a shim on my PM60. (The conventional heads allow the misalignment to be tuned out when setting the knives.)One advantage of the helical head is that it cuts much more quietly than the straight knives. The students at the college I teach at are not intimidated like they used to be, because the helical heads on our 8" machines behave in such a civilized manner when face jointing.Bill

1. 
   user-85737 | Dec 26, 2007 09:52pm | #15

   Bill and Terry thanks for the info.

2. 
   terrylee86 | Dec 26, 2007 06:08pm | #13

   No it not much of a job on a jointer. It is a lot more involved on a planer but on the DJ-20 it was pretty straight forward. We were going to replace the bearings anyway(20 years old) and Byrd shipped it with the bearings installed. Press in the bearing holders, tighten the bolts from underneath, adjust the outfeed table and that is about it. I think Grizzly has a special on the spiral cutterheads now.

4. 
   philip_r | Dec 26, 2007 09:41pm | #14

   IMHO, buy the widest jointer you can afford.  If you can swing the SC, go for it!  I have the Griz 10" with the SC... and I love it.  I just wish the new 12" with the SC was available when I purchased:0(    I haven't needed the 12" capacity... but I would have liked it!

   The SC is awesome - in fact, I'm now looking to upgrade to a Griz 15" planer with the SC.