Replies

1. 
   JMartinsky | May 19, 2006 05:19pm | #1

   Dear Mi,
   Yup, I put one on my PM 54A (6") jointer. Probably identical guts to your Jet. Whether you have a 6" or 8", I would say that it is a great investment. I use my equipment commercially, and wanted to eliminate fooling around with the knives. Not only did I accomplish that, but the darn thing never seems to go dull! All good stuff. Byrd is a very service oriented company and will stand behind its product. I had a few questions about installation and they were very helpful. I had a local Auto parts store do the press work as you will need to have the old bearings pressed off and the new ones pressed on. Four things to consider:

   1) Carefully mark the new cutter head as to where you need the bearings to wind up. Upon disassembly, you will see what I mean. If you get this part right, the rest will be a breeze. if you miss it, reassembly will be a nightmare. If you have a press, all the better.

   2) My old cutterhead had a really nice "whirr" sound to it, where as the Shelix has more of a whine. Not bad, just different.

   3) The Shelix may leave small "lines" along the length of the piece when it is jointed. It doesn't always, but it depends on the species. These "lines" are normal, and can't really even be felt. A quick sand or a final pass though the planer eliminates them.

   4) My Shelix is a tad bigger around than the old cutter head and tends to shed chips out of the area behind the fence. Not terrible, by any means, just different.

   In closing, I think I have had mine four years, and it is bulletproof. They had sent me two boxes of extra inserts and I haven't used any. I have had to rotate some of the original inserts due to me damaging them when I installed the new cutter head because I didn't have the bearings lined up properly. No big deal, but they are SHARP!!!

   Good Luck!

   John

1. 
   MiKro | May 19, 2006 05:33pm | #2

   Thanks John,

   I appreciate the great info and insight on this. I have access to a press, so that is not a problem.  Now I have to decide if to upgrade my 6" Jet or sell it and upgrade to an 8" with spiral. LOL:)))) Just haven't had any need for greater than a 6" to date. So I'll more than likely order the cutter head. I'll shop around for pricing.

   Again, Thanks for the feedback.

   Mike 

    "The path we walk, is full of decisions. The direction we choose is the destiny of life." (mikro)

1. 
   JMartinsky | May 19, 2006 09:49pm | #3

   Dear Mi,
   OK, just to muddy the waters:1) Change out cutterhead.......5-6hrs, but I had a hard time due to bad alignment, my fault.....Cutterhead.......$350.002) 8" Yorkcraft jointer with shelix INSTALLED: $1094.00 (No tax or shipping included) http://www.wilkemachinery.com/default.tpl?action=full&cart=114806430037316&id1=7&--woSECTIONSdatarq=7&--SECTIONSword=ww&--eqskudatarq=2351If I had to do it again, I would get the 8" , wider longer (72" bed). for $1100.00 that is a steal. My PM cost me $750.00, then with the upgrade is was $1100.00 not figuring my time or tax. John

1. 
   MiKro | May 19, 2006 10:50pm | #4

   John,

   There's some since to what you say and I'm thinking the same also as I look at the bottom line. Oh Well!! It's not something I have to do just this minute, so I'll ponder the wasting gray meltingpot of my brain and wait for more input.  LOL:)))))

   MK"The path we walk, is full of decisions. The direction we choose is the destiny of life." (mikro)