Ebrusky Posted June 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2011 Go for the spiral head. I have it on my jointer and will be getting it on the planer when I do upgrade. Probably next year. I will be getting the G0453X. What are the benefits of a spiral cutter head? It's quite a bit of a jump up in price is the finish quality that much better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ebrusky Posted June 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 4, 2011 Ebrusky have you considered looking at one or two of these machines being used? If not may I suggest you consider this with the planer and add a jointer as well. The costs are much lower but you would have to know what you are looking for and be able to discern damages or defects that the seller may be trying to hide. I do know there are many of us here that could help to advise you if this was a route you chose to go. Regardless I wish you the best on this adventure you are taking Hey Joe, I have been hitting CL for some time, quite a while in fact. And unfortunately, while a lot of tools go by(mainly really old table saws, and a lot of radial arm saws for some reason) nothing I've seen comes close to what I'm looking for. I can't even say that I've seen one cabinet saw on CL in my area in at least 6mo. I've even been hitting a couple of the larger Metro areas(Minneapolis\St. Paul, MN) all the way to Madison[i'm in Eau Claire, WI which is about 3hrs from Madison, 1.5 hrs from St. Paul.] And while there have been a lot of table saws and other equipment posted, everyone seems to want darn near full price(haven't seen some of the great deals that some of you have but maybe I'm missing them.) My other difficulty in buying used is that I'm not an expert and while I think I know what features to look for, like you said some defects can be hard to spot on initial look over.(got hit by that with the 33" mower I picked up. Cost me $150 in parts to repair, glad I talked him down $100 though so not to upsetting.) I appreciate your suggestions, and I think I will post a wanted add on CL, stating what I'm looking for just to see, but not holding out much hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted June 4, 2011 Report Share Posted June 4, 2011 What are the benefits of a spiral cutter head? It's quite a bit of a jump up in price is the finish quality that much better? The big advantage of a spiral head cutter is the ability to work any figured woods. Straight knives produce a lot more tear out. Both Sac and I have the 12" Grizzly G0609X, which is a phenomenal price point/benefit. I'm planning on the same planer Sac has on his list and with the spiral head. But, I really like working with figured wood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted June 4, 2011 Report Share Posted June 4, 2011 I agree and disagree a little with this statement Vic. I think it depends on your hardwood dealer. The hardwood dealer in my area will let you pick out rough stock and then mill it for you that same day for only .35 extra a board foot which I consider a pretty good deal. I know that it will add up over time but not come close to the cost of a new jointer and planer for at least 5 -6 years. This is of course assuming that he has a hardwood dealer that can mill lumber for him otherwise I think you have a valid point. James That's really cool, James. My sawyer is a small operation and wouldn't do that. He will on the other hand slice up my burls for $35 plus the price of a new blade, which isn't a bad deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sac Posted June 4, 2011 Report Share Posted June 4, 2011 What are the benefits of a spiral cutter head? It's quite a bit of a jump up in price is the finish quality that much better? Like Vic said, it allows you to work on figured woods with better results, but it is also the teeth them selves. With a knife machine you have three or four knives. These knives, when the get a knick in them, have to be adjusted to get that knick out. Or they have to be sharpened. With the spiral head, they are carbide teeth. They each have four cutting edges. All that you have to do is take out the screw, turn the tooth 90 degrees and tighten it back up. They will last a long time, and while it may take a little longer to change them all out, you probably wont have to do it as often. Popular Woodworking did an article a few issues back that talked about the difference between spiral heads and straight knives. I thought it was a pretty good read. Might want to see if you can find it somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joestyles Posted June 4, 2011 Report Share Posted June 4, 2011 I dont like craigs list much. I like the local papers classified sections up here we have the "Pennywise" A weekly magazine that is only classified ads from the local area. The stuff in there is within an hr or two drive from where I live. If you want to get something used sometimes you have to go hunting. Auction houses for example. Online auctions are not something I use I like to have a chance to run my hands over something I am gonna put down cash for. The other thing is time. My spindle sander which was a cheap model was on its last legs for about the last twelve months I wanted the General bench model which retailed for under $600 (it is a good machine) I picked mine up last month for $385 new from the store. The general rep was giving a deal for demo models that were used one day by local high school students to make stools for sale to raise money for grad. The tools were discounted from a really good sale price. While I was there I met the rep and he told me that sometimes they get machines damaged in shipping that are then restored they are really cheap but are first come first serve deals. Networking helps big time. Local wood guilds associations etc may open some doors to used machines and free advice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ebrusky Posted June 5, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 5, 2011 Like Vic said, it allows you to work on figured woods with better results, but it is also the teeth them selves. With a knife machine you have three or four knives. These knives, when the get a knick in them, have to be adjusted to get that knick out. Or they have to be sharpened. With the spiral head, they are carbide teeth. They each have four cutting edges. All that you have to do is take out the screw, turn the tooth 90 degrees and tighten it back up. They will last a long time, and while it may take a little longer to change them all out, you probably wont have to do it as often. Popular Woodworking did an article a few issues back that talked about the difference between spiral heads and straight knives. I thought it was a pretty good read. Might want to see if you can find it somewhere. This brings up a good question; What type of life span do you get out of the blades(assuming no physical damage, and say the primary wood being planed is oak)? Do they make carbide straight knives? Besides longevity, and less tear-out do spiral cut heads produce a better cut requiring less sanding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texfire Posted June 5, 2011 Report Share Posted June 5, 2011 You're probably best off doing a search for pros and cons of straight and spiral cutterheads. There are several types, and they all have their selling points. Most seem to be variations on the angle the knives present to the wood, and the material of the cutting surface. Straight knives are easier to resharpen, that's a bonus if you lean that way. The carbide tipped ones are intended to be rotated and replaced after all four sides are dulled, no idea how easy or hard it would be to resharpen them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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