Planer / Thicknesser Combo or Seperate

[Arry]

Hi

I have now decided on the new tablesaw I am going to buy but not on the planer / thicknesser.

I currently have a Carbatec 6" Planer/Jointer and a seperate small 15" thicknesser.

I find 6" is just not enough (had to laugh as I typed that :;) for planning as boards are often too wide for it.

The thicknesser is ok, but can often produce snipe.

Can anyone who has recently been down this road make any recommendations?

Cheers

[IanW]

Arry - If I ever win the big one (highly unlikely when I rarely even buy a ticket! :U) I will immediately build a bigger shed & fill it with industrial size/quality machines, but for most of us backyarders, it's always a compromise. I ended up with a 12" over/under, partly because of space limitations, but mainly because that was the only affordable way to get 12" planing capacity. Neither planing nor thicknessing is as good as you can get from hefty single-purpose machines, IMO, but I could not justify a 'proper' 12" jointer - even an 8" is a lot of $$s for an amateur setup, & both have hefty footprints.

The tables of my Woodfast are a bit shorter than I would like to have for planing, but it does a pretty good job if I take it slowly & I rarely need to plane very long boards, anyway. I'm not trying to make every second count, and it's a heck of a lot easier than flattening & thicknessing manually! So if you want more planing capacity, that's about the best compromise, I reckon, unless you regularly work with long, heavy boards.

Cheers,

[TTIT]

I don't do a lot of flatwork but I do use the Scheppach planer/thicknesser (10") I inherited a fair bit. Very quick and easy to change from one mode to the other and for just one or 2 boards I don't even bother as you can still access top and bottom.
I bought a Jet thicknesser (15") just before the Scheppach came my way and haven't even plugged it in since 'cos even the shortest pieces I put through the Scheppach come out perfect while the Jet snipes every #$@&#@! time!
My shed is a bit cramped so the 2-in-1 is perfect for me in many ways :2tsup:

[Arry]

Cheers guys, do you know which model of Scheppach it is?

[TTIT]

Cheers guys, do you know which model of Scheppach it is?Mine is a HMT260 which is fairly old - couldn't tell you if their current offering is as good :shrug:

[yowie]

I picked up a 12" planer and a 20" thicknesser from Ron Mack machinery in Ossie Park. Very happy with them and it is great having seperate machines. Of course it comes down to space and budget but my shed is fairly small and I still managed to get it all in there.

Thicknessers (http://www.ronmack.com.au/content/machinery-products/?ecpage=2&cattype=sub2&category_id=606)

and

Surface Planers (http://www.ronmack.com.au/content/machinery-products/?ecpage=2&cattype=sub2&category_id=607)

Matt

[Arry]

Matt, if you don't mind me asking how much did you pay, as they look expensive ! :unsure:

[spencer411]

i recently went down this path, and almost went with the combination machine to save space. my reasoning for buying the seperate machines is so that once you have a set up on one of them then you dont have to fiddle about to use the same machine for a different opperation. i'm sorry if this sounds confusing but i'm sure you have an idea of what im talking about. therefore i went the 2 seperate machines.. all i need now is a bigger workshop! :U:doh:

[yowie]

Matt, if you don't mind me asking how much did you pay, as they look expensive ! :unsure:

Sorry for slow response, internet was down at work. Yeah, weren't cheap but still cheaper that the hammer machines. I can't remember the exact price but Sean at Ron Mack will give you a good price. They have heaps of second hand machinery there too so definetly worth a look.

[Cliff-R]

I got the Hammer 12" J/P and I don't know how I managed to draw breath before I got it. It's a great kit.
Same for my K3 Sliding saw .

While I'd like to have separates (I do have an old iron 6" jointer), my space is limited and the combo J/P has worked out very well for me. The J/P is not attached to my saw. That would drive me nuts.


One thing that you won't see in the comments and reviews about the other brands of J/P combos out there is anything about their reliability over time. That will all depend on things like the quality of the cast iron, the bearings, and other hidden things that might make the machinery seem good while it's new but may in fact rapidly decline with age. And not many manufacturers have been making them for very long

[Scissors]

I have the 12" Jet with standard knives, I think it's a good machine and don't find the changeovers troublesome. I use industrial grade SCM separates at work (the jointer looks like a fricken aircraft carrier) but quite frankly, I don't lust for separates at home. With a little bit of technique the shorter bed of a combo isn't a problem: I can straighten a bed rail quite easily, which is probably the longest furniture component one will ever make.

The other advantage of a combo is that when you eventually upgrade to a helical head (and trust me, you will) it's cheaper than separates. :)