Jointer knife setting jig?

[Johnny4]

Hey all,

I have an old powermatic 6” jointer that badly needs new blades (lots of knicks, really really dull). I have never changed blades on a jointer, and have seen a lot of “miracle knife setting jigs.” Are any of these worth the money, and can you recommend a video or set of instructions to do this? 

Thanks again

[Isaac]

Did the machine come with any tools? My Makita planer came with some molded plastic covered magnets for this specific purpose. Make the process super simple.

[Dave's Not Here]

 

[gee-dub]

Dave's jigs look great.  I do the same basic thing with a piece of glass and some rare earth magnets.

[Chestnut]

I liked the glass and magnet method when i did jointer knives.

Best way to set your knives is a helical cutter head  

[woodbutcher]

18 minutes ago, Chestnut said:

I liked the glass and magnet method when i did jointer knives.

Best way to set your knives is a helical cutter head  

I thank myself every day that I bought a jointer with a HH. Worth the extra money and then some.

[pkinneb]

The Hammer straight knives are no hassle as well, never had to adjust them in over a decade. I would like the helical head for the reduced noise but I am happy with my straight knives from a performance and ease of changing perspective.

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

11 hours ago, Johnny4 said:

have seen a lot of “miracle knife setting jigs.” Are any of these worth the money, and can you recommend a video or set of instructions to do this? 

 

My experience has been that the magnetic jigs are helpful and are worth the modest investment. One other thing worth mentioning is that the quality of your replacement knives play a role too. I bought the cheapest knives I could find on Amazon and despite my best efforts, I just couldn't quite get them 'perfect'. It finally dawned on me that the knives themselves were contributing to my struggles. So I paid a little more and got some new knives from Freud* and was able to get them dialed in in short order. Like so many other things in this craft, you tend to get what you pay for. 

So, food for thought. 

--------------------

*I am not advocating for Freud specifically - just for any reputable brand with dependable quality. 

[Johnny4]

Thanks everybody! I have noticed some tapering on the machine. Upon closer inspection, the little raises ridges left by the knicks in the blade were causing the board to tip slightly. Shannon, on an episode of woodtalk said to card scraper the ridges until I could get new ones. The card scraper worked!

5 hours ago, Isaac said:

Did the machine come with any tools? My Makita planer came with some molded plastic covered magnets for this specific purpose. Make the process super simple.

No, unfortunately. It was my dad’s many many years ago.

[Johnny4]

Got the dang thing done. Thank you for all the advice. I ordered new blades from mywoodcutters....it’s like having a new machine. Didn’t realize how dull those blades were. Wow.