LumberJocks

Jointer Mobile Base

Project by Greg Wurst posted 345 days ago 3363 views 18 times favorited 18 comments Add to Favorites Watch

Saw this in an old American Woodworker magazine and modified it to fit my jointer. It only lifts the jointer 1” off the ground.



Nothing but 2×4’s and 3/4” plywood. There are a couple 3/8” dowels on each side and each “foot” is attached with a 3 1/2” x 3/8” lag bolt (I used a 3” lag bolt and countersunk the head). The interior dimensions are based on the footprint of your jointer, and you may not need or even use the center brace if you have a square cabinet jointer. I threw the whole thing together in about an hour using glue and 2 1/2” wood screws.

Here I assembled the frame. The height of the 2×4”s is determined by the total height of your casters minus 1”. The casters I used were 3 3/4” so I cut down the 2×4’s to 2 3/4”.

Here I attached the bottom piece of plywood and the top side pieces.

I then attached the casters. 2 fixed casters and 1 locking swivel caster. Got all three at Harbor Freight for less than $10 (the fixed casters were on sale for $1.99 and the swivels was $3.99).

I thought about just using the locking caster to hold it in place but it moved too much so I went ahead and added the “feet”. The feet are cut down to 2” and then 45 degree bevels are cut on all corners. I didn’t like the way they set when the feet were down so I took the belt sander and flattened the end that touched the floor to sit flat.

Borrow the neighbor to lift the jointer and I’m done.

If you are interested in my Sketchup files (which you would need to modify to fit your jointer) you can get them here:

http://cid-258899c12334cc4d.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Jointer%20Mobile%20Base?uc=2

A great little project and now it is much easier to get my jointer out for use.


18 comments so far

View brianinpa's profile

brianinpa

1325 posts in 474 days


posted 345 days ago

I have an old metal table that my 4” jointer and 6” belt sander are mounted to. The wheels I mounted under the table make it very unstable. I just found the way to stabilize it!

-- Brian, Lebanon PA, If you aren’t having fun doing it, find something else to do.

View lew's profile

lew

3701 posts in 507 days


posted 345 days ago

Very Nice!

View darryl's profile

darryl

1255 posts in 1078 days


posted 345 days ago

I’ve got the same jointer… this could come in handy.
thanks for sharing!

-- ~ www.darrylmasterson.com ~ www.darrylmasterson.etsy.com ~ www.woodworkingdungeon.blogspot.com ~

View bbqking's profile

bbqking

336 posts in 475 days


posted 345 days ago

I have Ridgid jointer exactly like yours. How well does your reducer work on taking care of dust & etc. and what kind of vacuum device do you use for control? bbqKing

-- bbqKing, Lawrenceville

View woodspar's profile

woodspar

705 posts in 851 days


posted 345 days ago

Great idea. I like shop made mobile bases. Happy with that jointer? What kind of thickness planer ya got?

-- John

View HokieMojo's profile

HokieMojo

867 posts in 479 days


posted 345 days ago

That is a great stand. I was thinking about getting this jointer either used or as a refurb (preferable if I can find it). I’d love to hear your thoughts on it too. Same wit you bbqking. This would be my most expensive tool so Its a tough choice to make. If I built this stand, which looks way affordable, I could fit this thing anywhere I want in my garage with no trouble. nice work

View SteveKorz's profile

SteveKorz

2007 posts in 465 days


posted 345 days ago

OK, I like this a lot. Thanks for sharing how you did it!

-- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17) †

View Bigbuck's profile

Bigbuck

1370 posts in 415 days


posted 345 days ago

I am going to have to make one of those soon, you can’t really move that thing around without one, at least not by yourself. Thanks for sharing.

-- Glenn, New Mexico

View Grumpy's profile

Grumpy

12048 posts in 602 days


posted 345 days ago

Well done & thought out Greg.

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

View Greg Wurst's profile

Greg Wurst

551 posts in 584 days


posted 345 days ago

BBQKING – I just use a Craftsman shop vac with that reducer and it really does eliminate most of the wood chips. That Ridgid has very efficient dust collection. I just have some light sawdust under the table when I’m done.

WOODSPAR, HOOKIEMOJO – I’m very pleased with the performance of the jointer. Got it used off Craigslist from a guy in Kentucky. I’m not sure how I did without one of these. I now cut all my wood slightly oversize and use the jointer to smooth the edges and remove any burn marks where I make a bad cut. I’ve used it as a planer as well, but it is not very good for that as you tend to not get parallel flat faces since the slightest edge variance will throw it off. I don’t have a planer yet, but that’s my next purchase (probably a Dewalt 735).

View Garyb6's profile

Garyb6

259 posts in 382 days


posted 345 days ago

Outstanding. I don’t have a jointer yet, but its on my list. I think I can modify this for other tools though. Thanks for sharing!!

-- Garyb6, “Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler” - Albert Einstein

View Darell's profile

Darell

102 posts in 345 days


posted 344 days ago

I llike your design. Good work. You can’t go wrong with the DeWalt DW735. Got one and love it.

-- Darell, Norman, Ok.

View RWR's profile

RWR

38 posts in 352 days


posted 343 days ago

Greg:

Thanks for a great post…..I may be dumb, but how do you get the base off the wheels and non-mobile ??
I am assuming the two vertical 2×4’s on the front lift the base up and down but I can’t figure out how
you make it sit flat and not move… would appreciate you enlightning this old man. Thanks.

-- Wayne

View Greg Wurst's profile

Greg Wurst

551 posts in 584 days


posted 343 days ago

RWR – Yes, the 2×4 “feet” lift the end off the ground and support the stand. The stand is still on the other two fixed wheels, but it doesn’t move with the 2×4’s down. The original article I read had swivel wheels everywhere, but I’d be afraid the two wheels on the ground would shift left or right.

Also, the jointer isn’t perfectly flat when the feet are down, but at a very slight downward angle. It doesn’t affect using the machine, though, since all the jointer needs is for the two tables to be level with each other.

View teenagewoodworker's profile

teenagewoodworker

2374 posts in 519 days


posted 343 days ago

cool! thanks for the post.

View USCJeff's profile

USCJeff

864 posts in 819 days


posted 341 days ago

How do you like the jointer? I’ve thought about that model as well.

-- Jeff, South Carolina

View Greg Wurst's profile

Greg Wurst

551 posts in 584 days


posted 341 days ago

USCJeff – I’m pleased with the jointer. It is smooth, the dust collection is good, an dthe knives are easy to change with jack screws for alignment.

View PurpLev's profile

PurpLev

1777 posts in 400 days


posted 334 days ago

AWESOME!
I was looking for some homemade mobile base for my jointer, and drill press, and will use this design to set something up- I really like the simplicity and functionality of this base.

thanx for sharing!

-- When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.

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