I'm in the market for a benchtop jointer, and saw this posting on Craigslist: http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ram/tls/4647981473.html. Does this seem like a good deal? I was thinking of offering $250 and hoping to land around $300, although I don't think $350 is totally unreasonable. I've seen other JJ-6's sell for $200-$300 but I'm willing to pay more if this one has good sharp blades and is set up to go right away.
Alternatively, can anyone recommend a decent 6" (or bigger) benchtop jointer in the $200-$500 price range? I've been checking out the Delta 37-071, Steel City 40610GH, and Porter-Cable PC160JTR. The Amazon reviews for these machines are kind of helpful, but I don't really know what I should be looking for. I have no experience setting up or using a jointer, but now that I have a large amount of roughcut stock I think it's time for me to dive in.
Edit: Or, if anyone sees another good deal on the Minneapolis Craigslist I'm all ears. It does need to be a benchtop model, because my shop is 11×17 and I don't have space for a big standalone machine.
I was looking at that but I'm worried I won't have room. I edited my original post to include the details about my shop size just before you posted. I did email the seller to ask if I could look at it, though.
If an aluminum jointer table is not anodized it
will not hold up impressively. I had a Delta
for awhile and the tables were pretty soft.
Many smaller 6" iron jointers with a 30" table only
weigh about 60 lbs and if a motor is set up
on the bench the jointer can be put next to
it with a short link belt. Voila, benchtop jointer.
Loren, considering you haven't posted a single sentence you're surprisingly helpful ;-). I did check out that review, and the Steel City looks like a decent machine but it has some bad reviews on Amazon compared to the P-C.
Edit: I see you added an actual sentence - and a helpful one. Thanks for the tip re: aluminum tables.
The portable jointers aren't going to be in the same class as a stationary jointer. All will be very loud, all will be short, light, and a bit sloppy, which inevitably will get some bad reviews, especially if the author has been exposed to larger jointers. A portable is better than none, but if there's any way possible, I'd encourage you to see if you can figure out a way to make a stationary jointer fit.
The 40610GH is a granite bed, Delta is iron, Jet is iron, not sure about the PC. Initially I thought he meant to say "fence" instead of "table" except he followed it with a comment about the Delta table. Maybe he meant fence. Doesn't matter I guess.
Unless your made of money, buy the stationary $150 jointer and find room for it. Spend the rest of the money elsewhere. I have that same Delta jointer, it's not very long.
The Delta's gone but I'm checking out the Jet tomorrow. What do you think is a reasonable price for it? Is $350 too much, or if he won't negotiate should I take it?
I have an older model( Grey) Ridgid jointer and often find the table/ bed too short,but it is considered average size for a 6" jointer,can't imagine a bench top short bed type would be much fun to use.
I had to put $40 bearings, and then upgraded the motor (another $40) on my $150 Delta before I was happy with it. I'd say over $250 would be too much, under $200 then expect it to need repairs.
Considering you can get a brand new Grizzly for $455 (plus shipping, but there seems to be 10% off coupon codes floating around these forums), I would hold off on the Jet.
Also, I can't imagine it takes up all that more room than that Jet.
I had a benchtop Delta jointer for awhile. It had
aluminum tables and I bought it new at Lowes.
It was an adequate tool. It had variable speed
and wasn't very loud. I used it on job sites
here and there. Whether it is still available or
not I do not know or care. If they've replaced
the soft tables with something heavier, good
for Delta (Chang Iron).
If you're looking at new, it's basically all coming
out of the same Asian factories and fundamentally
the same stuff.
What do you think a reasonable price would be for a Craftsman 113-20651 with a resurfaced bed? I've got a friend who's willing to trade one for some of my hardwood slabs. Apparently the bed got cracked but he had a new one fabricated, and it's been tuned/calibrated and has pretty much new knives. The problem is, it's so old that I'm having a hard time finding information on it - such as fair market value, and also whether I can still get knives for it. Anyone know anything about this machine?
It isn't a benchtop model, but I suppose I can find a place for it somewhere in my shop or garage. Considering the consensus against benchtop jointers - and the fact that I'll probably be working with longer slabs - I'm leaning towards this option.
I agree with Knotscott and Loren about bench top jointers being inadequate for most jointing work, unless your only going to be working with wood that's 30" long or less .As for a repair and resurfaced jointer I would stay away from that also. In my area 6"-8"Jointers pop up on craigslist in the $150-$300 range. I would holdout for a floor model . If $350 is a price range that works for you, for a little more you can get a Grizzly 6"jointer http://www.grizzly.com/products/6-x-46-Jointer/G0654
I agree with knotscott (edit: and Jim) that no new benchtop jointer is going to give you acceptable results for anything but small pieces-the beds are far too short. The only people I know personally that are happy with their benchtop jointers are turners that use them to square up small pieces, but never for anything over a foot long. I'd promote purchasing a jointer hand plane before buying one of those.
Several people have linked good options for used machines.
Good tip from wahoo about searching alternative misspellings.
Thanks for the advice. I have the option of trading lumber for that Craftsman jointer, which is attractive because it means no out of pocket expense and I came into a giant stock of hardwood slabs recently. But maybe I should just focus on selling off slabs and putting the money towards that Grizzly jointer.
Decent and bench top are usually mutually exclusive when speaking of jointers. The bench top Delta still exists with a Porter Cable sticker on it now, very little if anything has been changed. It would be worth considering only if you can get it very cheap and you'll be using it on a jobsite. Outside of those parameters it would need to be free. Patience and ability to act quickly should net you good 6" jointer for around $150 needing nothing (at least that's what I can expect in my area). If you need one sooner than later, you can expect to spend more.
set it up correctly,use the push pads,press evenly and not too hard,take 1/32" of material at a time,keep you fingers away from the blade.enjoy your new toy.
Well, I'm excited for my new 6" jointer but now I've got a follow-up question: do I need the lift gate service for this thing? It's shipped in a single 236 lb box. I posted a separate thread soliciting thoughts from people who've had tools shipped from Grizzly - http://lumberjocks.com/topics/64179.
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