Dewalt 735 at $699 CAD worth it? Or should I wait for a better deal?

[woodworkingmax]

I'm a guild member and it's very frustrating to try to follow some of the builds without a planer and a jointer.

In Canada, specially in Quebec we are very limited on the choices of brands for woodworking machines.

We don't have access for Powermatic or Jet and we are stuck with General International and King most of the times.

There is an offer for a Dewalt DW735 planer with in-feed and out-feed tables (DW7351), the stand (DW7350) and 3 blades (DW7352) for $699 CAD. Should I wait for a drop in price?

But I was wondering if it is worth it to buy it without having also a jointer or if I can get a planer and jointer for less than $1000 in other brands?

Should I spend the money on a jointer first. I sure can't afford spending $2000 right now.

Should I try to buy some used ones. Since I've never had those machines before I'm afraid I won't be able to identify if I buy used ones if they are in good conditions.

Any recommendations?

[ottacat]

That's as good as price as your going to get without looking for a used one. I have the same setup. I love the stand and the extra set of blades gives you quite a long before you'll need to be looking at buying new ones.

 

However a planer without a jointer is tough. You can make some shopmade sleds that incorporate either wedges or adjustable screws to enable a planer to act as a jointer. 

 

Personally I first bought a new 8" Busybee jointer and a used $150 planer for about $1300 all in with taxes. When I had more money I replaced the used planer with the DeWalt 735.

[woodworkingmax]

I wish I had access to Busybee or Jet but no such luck in Quebec. The new Jet jointer/planer combo looks really cool but of course if one break both break.

I can always try to use my router table as a jointer but never try it before. sung the planer as jointer, I have no idea how to do that.

[Carl Olsen]

I have seen it in rebate a lot cheaper. I also seen it on lespac/kijiji for 400$ brand new. 699$ doesnt look good, I mean you don tneed the blades right now , except if you really want that stand at 150$ its a not bad price.

 

499$ for the planer (not in rebate)

http://www.amazon.ca/DEWALT-DW735-13-Inch-Thickness-Planer/dp/B0000CCXU8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1384454405&sr=8-2&keywords=735

 

The tables sell for 55$

http://www.amazon.ca/DEWALT-DW7351-Folding-Table-Planer/dp/B0000CCXUA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1384454466&sr=8-1&keywords=7351

 

If you are in Quebec City you have elitetools.ca, they sell Shop Fox, General, and other brands

[sjeff70]

I'm going the used route. No one makes things like they used to.

Making sure you're getting a good, used machine for the money is the challenge.

I don't intend buying anything too old. Take the tool on a good test drive. A seller should allow you to do that.

A jointer isn't complicated mechanically.

Stick with good brands. The quality and resale value are better.

[Carl Olsen]

wwmax check stuff like this, someone called asked 275$ she said yes, etc.

http://qc.kijiji.ca/c-ViewAd?AdId=543196312&MessageId=MSG.VIEW_AD.REPLY_TO_AD_SENT&mpname=R2S&mpname=Activity-R2S&mpuid=1700279%3B715%3B543196312%3B-1245189441%3B%3B&secev=AQAAAUJT6EQAAM0AAAACACIxNDI1ODMzZTAyNS5hMjBiMjc0LjQ2NDI3LmZmZmVjZjExAAAAACBghJgBAAAAAgAAAAAR4aMAjbZBV8m5Q8qpV50inTQFeoFVqak*

Just change the blades like 35$ if needed.

[rodger.]

Try industrial supply. I bought my jointer from a machine supply shop, as opposed to a hardware store.

[ottacat]

The idea of using the planer as jointer by using a sled / jig can be found by searching the Internet. Here is one example. You can certainly use a router table for edge jointing.

 

http://www.finewoodworking.com/workshop/video/a-planer-sled-for-milling-lumber.aspx

 

Another poster indicated that $699 for the combo wasn't a great deal. However I'm sure the combo your looking at includes not just the blades in the planer but an extra set of blades (that is usually how these combos are packaged). Thus if you look down the Amazon.ca page you'll see the combo of the planer, tables and blades goes for $619. The best price I've seen on the stand is BusyBee's current sale price of $119.00 which puts the next best price on the full combo at $738.

 

If BusyBee isn't an option for a jointer then for sure look for one used. As an alternative you could order one from Grizzly. They ship to Canada at very reasonable prices and cover the brokerage fee. I do recommend an 8" parallelogram jointer and the Grizzly (delivered) is cheaper than a King at a retail store that might also charge delivery.