Jointer vs Jointer Plane... which is faster?


ChetlovesMer

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Cutting this stack and the stack in the background sitting on the table saw (that stack is about half hidden by the planer) to rough length, flattening one face, and one edge took 4-1/2 hours-including cutting out bad sections of boards to end up with flawless rough lengths.  How long would it have taken with hand planes?  As much as I like using hand planes, my arms would be complaining.  If you can match that time with hand planes, you're better than me.

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http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/300/cf/cf801ff1-276d-4a9d-9090-32194609fb89_300.jpg VS http://www.woodcraft.com/Images/products/400/153104.jpg

Dropping $550 is easier to swallow for a big machine than $300 for a piece of steel, IMHO. Of course I would have no idea how to use either.

The beauty of the jointer plane is that it can dimension ANY size. I recently jointed 5 pieces of 13 and 14 foot long, 8 inch wide walnut boards. I would need a 3000 dollar power jointer to even attempt that.

I do own a power jointer, and I use it frequently. But sometimes a hand tool is an excellent choice.

If I won a contest and I could choose either a veritas jointer plane or the ridgid power planer you show above, I would not hesitate to take the veritas.

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Would anyone mind explaining the veritas jointer plane to a total noob.....

 

The fence I get (very cool btw), but the angles and A2, O1 or PM-V11 leave me scratching my head.   It is a very handsome looking tool!

I did a review on it recently. Check it out under the review section.

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==> Serious question: is your helical head good enough that the surface it leaves is ready for finish without any other treatment (smoothing plane, sanding, scraping, etc.)?

 

Not really..  While helical heads generally leave a nice surface, it's not that good...

 

I get tersa sets ground with a back-bevel that leave a glue-ready surface in species of about Janka 1200 or less...  So anything from non-figured hard maple (about Janka 1300) and down, back-beveled inserts are a big time saver for my projects in my workflow... In high-Janka stock, anything highly-figured, exotic, etc will get run through the wide-belt after surfacing anyway, so helical inserts wouldn't save me much time in my workflow.  But, depending on your workflow with the stock that you typically use, helical-head surfacing may save you time...

 

Further note: Helical heads can help with tear-out on complex grain and can out-perform back-beveled knives on 'confused' grain.. but in those cases you would probably need a further finishing step anyway -- so it may not save you time, but may save you dealing with less tear-out to deal with.  In any case, you won't have a 'glue ready' surface without further finishing...

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I did a review on it recently. Check it out under the review section.

 

I checked it out, thanks for sharing.  So A2, O1 and PM-V11 is just different steel alloys?  I'm guessing the difference is how well it holds the edge?  Any one have a review on the various steel alloys?

 

I am seriously thinking of getting that veritas jointer and not getting the ridgid.  I've been reading horror stories on ridgid not honoring its lifetime warranty.......  

 

Can you use a hand planer to true up all sides???

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==> Can we just agree to use whichever method we feel like at the moment?   :blink:

 

Sure we can, but what fun is that?  Posting on dogma is much more entertaining...  :)

 

 

GS is right -- for hobbyists, use the method that works for your projects and provides the most satisfaction...  For me, I get a great deal of satisfaction using a well-tuned smoothing plane... but if there's a deadline involved, I go 3-phase every time...

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I checked it out, thanks for sharing.  So A2, O1 and PM-V11 is just different steel alloys?  I'm guessing the difference is how well it holds the edge?  Any one have a review on the various steel alloys?

 

I am seriously thinking of getting that veritas jointer and not getting the ridgid.  I've been reading horror stories on ridgid not honoring its lifetime warranty.......  

Can you use a hand planer to true up all sides???

Yes, it can be used to fully dress a board. It takes a while, and requires a lot of practise to do all 4 sides. I find a better strategy is to flatten one face of each board with the jointer plane, and then run them through the planer. Then joint one edge of each piece, and rip to width on the table saw.

Keep track of your reference face. If you prefer, you can joint one edge directly after flattening the first face, before surface planing.

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You got it.

I'd say that's pretty close to reality. What I mean is this..

The lumber I usually get is very rough from the saw mill. I use a scrub, jack then a jointer plane in order to get it ready by hand. This is the fastest way with hand tools alone. An advantage comes in with a small (13") bench top power planer. I start with the face that is cupped, and make the top flat with the scrub and/or the jack set up with a heavy cut. When one face is flat (no rocking) I send it through my power planer, and face the other side. When that side is flat, I flip the piece and flatten the other side. With a flat face, now you can joint one edge, and rip to width using a tablesaw or handsaw, or even a scrub or jack, and finish with the jointer plane. This is when I smooth all surfaces.

It is important to have a dead flat surface. In use my tablesaw top to check for flatness.

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I'd say that's pretty close to reality. What I mean is this..

The lumber I usually get is very rough from the saw mill. I use a scrub, jack then a jointer plane in order to get it ready by hand. This is the fastest way with hand tools alone. An advantage comes in with a small (13") bench top power planer. I start with the face that is cupped, and make the top flat with the scrub and/or the jack set up with a heavy cut. When one face is flat (no rocking) I send it through my power planer, and face the other side. When that side is flat, I flip the piece and flatten the other side. With a flat face, now you can joint one edge, and rip to width using a tablesaw or handsaw, or even a scrub or jack, and finish with the jointer plane. This is when I smooth all surfaces.

It is important to have a dead flat surface. In use my tablesaw top to check for flatness.

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Good additions Mel. I normally use a jack plane to start, and then follow up with a jointer plane. I probably should have been more detailed in my response.

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Good additions Mel. I normally use a jack plane to start, and then follow up with a jointer plane. I probably should have been more detailed in my response.

 

Thanks. I just didn't want anyone to get a rough board, and a jointer plane and go at it for 6 hours, and still not have a flat board :) 

 

Sometimes I am just lazy, and use my scrub plane to get the rocking out of the board, then I'll send it through the power planer :) Works pretty good, and a scrub plane is relatively inexpensive. 

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