Jointer - Thicknesser purchase - any advice greatly appreciated

[xwute]

I'm going round & round in circles - I cant work out which of these machines is best suited to my needs & if one is better/more reliable than the next. Any help is greatly appreciated!! I'm limited to bench top thicknesser & jointer as I dont have a decent workshop for floor units. Not looking to run any redgum sleepers or anything that hard/thick through these devices - mostly old oregon offcuts I have & jarrah boards (19mm)

Thicknesser
Carbatec CT-330X
https://www.carbatec.com.au/machinery-and-accessories/thicknessers-and-accessories/thicknessers/13-planer-with-helical-head-1-carton
373534

Sherwood MB-1395 (granite base?)
https://www.timbecon.com.au/planing/thicknessers/13in-spiral-head-thicknesser
373535

Hare & Forbes T13S
W815 | T-13S Thicknesser - Bench Mount | For Sale Sydney Brisbane Melbourne Perth | Buy Workshop Equipment & Machinery online at machineryhouse.com.au (http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/W815#)
373536

Jointer (all 3 look to be same machine with slight changes on each)
Carbatec TB-6
https://www.carbatec.com.au/machinery-and-accessories/jointers/jointers/jointer-6-benchtop-single-carton
373537

Sherwood TB-6
https://www.timbecon.com.au/planing/jointers/6-1-8in-bench-top-jointer
373538

Hare & Forbes W618
http://www.machineryhouse.com.au/W618
373539

I'm based in melb, if you know a better solution I'm all ears - if you own one of these or know someone who does I'd love to hear what you think. I dont want to buy junk but I'm on a limited budget and unable to buy the machines I really want until I have a purpose built workshop. Thank you, Dan

[orraloon]

Hi and welcome to the forum.
The 3 thicknessers are pretty much similar and any one will do a fairly good job for the home woodworker.
The bench top jointers will all be a bit limiting however. Nothing to do with quality but due to the short bed length only really good for shortish bits of wood. There are ways to get by with only a thicknesser until you have space for a larger jointer and some manage without a jointer all the time. By using a sled to joint the first face in the thichnesser. With that first flat face then thickness the board as normal. The video shows one way and there are many more if you search online.


A Planer Sled for Milling Lumber - Fine Woodworking Video (http://www.finewoodworking.com/workshop/video/a-planer-sled-for-milling-lumber.aspx)

Regards
John

[sje-tools]

Agree with the above comments about planers - had a bench top previously and they really aren't worth the money.

In in terms of the thicknessers - the Carbatec and Hafco are essentially the same thing. In fact the Hafco is the newer version of the two. Both use Accu-head spiral (not helix) heads (for which high quality carbide inserts are available from myself).

The Sherwood one uses a new head and Steel City (who were the original importers of all these thicknesser varieties) introduced it as a replacement model for the Hafco variety (still with me...). However Steel City went bust and they ended production, however the Taiwanese manufacturer of the Sherwood version still produces them. I have had a few requests and if I can get the dimensions to the insert I will be stocking some (waiting of email replies)

Personally I own the Hafco and have only good things to say about it.

Cheers

Steve

[derekcohen]

The most important first step is creating a reference side - one flat and, ideally, with a squared edge.

The bench top jointers here are the limiting factor in your strategy. They are narrow .. 4-6".

I do not view a lunchbox thicknesser-with-a-sled to be a viable alternative to a jointer. They are incredibly noisy and slow.

You would be better looking for a combination machine .... and, yes, I did note that you lack for floor space - but the room for one of these is not great. They are wider than any expensive jointer - less than all lunchbox thicknessers - and shorter than any stand alone jointer (not that much more than a bench top jointer). You can tuck one away in a corner and wheel it out when required (I do).

Regards from Perth

Derek

[justonething]

You could just get one of the above three and the H&F would also be my choice as well. For jointing, you could also use the thicknesser

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UONmuQt_98

[derekcohen]

Can you imagine doing this for several boards? It would take forever.

Get the appropriate machine. You will be thankful later.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[justonething]

Can you imagine doing this for several boards? It would take forever.

Get the appropriate machine. You will be thankful later.

Regards from Perth

Derek

I could, I could also imagine ways of making it faster also....
Some combination machine is also quite slow to flip from one mode to another.
The best is to have two separate machines. I reckon.

[derekcohen]

Two machines, if you have the space and finance for a wide jointer. However a 10" combination machine is excellent. I am spoilt with a 12" combination machine. This takes me about 60 seconds to change over.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[CharlieZ]

I'm a bit late on this but have to agree with Derek. I used a cheapish bench top thicknesser and a small 6" jointer for many years, but it was endlessly frustrating because i was always fighting the poor and lightweight quality of the machines rather than getting on with the woodwork. I finally bit the bullet and bought a Jet 310 combination machine (footprint is modest considering what it does) three years go and, while I had to spend more than I wanted, it was one of the best decisions I made. Getting exactly square and flat reference surfaces is critical, and my years of compromising on that was just silly. A decent machine will last you many years and will give you endless satisfaction as every bit of jointing and thicknessing comes out perfectly! Good luck.

[Mr Brush]

What they said......

I initially went with a small jointer and one of those benchtop thicknessers, but rapidly got fed up with all the issues they presented (limited capacity, snipe on thicknesser, etc.) . Sold both and invested in a JET JPT-310, never looked back. I think JET still make a slightly smaller (260mm) version if you get sticker shock from the larger model. Helical head wasn't available when I bought mine, but if I had my time again that's the way I'd go. Combo machine changes over from jointer to thicky in 30 secs...and you're only paying for one cutterhead.

[DomAU]

I know you said you don't have the space, but if you do, or can make the space (by making the garage a car-free zone for example ;) ) then I have to agree with the above two posters. I also looked at bench top machines initially, then moved onto wanting a Jet JPT-260 straight blade combination and then about a week later purchased a Jet JPT-310HH (helical head model) at the Melbourne woodworking show after agonizing over the decision for 2 hours. I am soooo glad I stretched and purchased this machine. The shock of the price tag (and interest free credit card balance!) faded very quickly but the machine remains. The Jet works amazingly well, takes less than 30s to change over modes and with the helical head the finish is great and the machine is also very quiet. Sorry this doesn't really answer your question, but ultimately, if you stick with it you'll probably end up buying something like this. May as well bypass the costly denial stage ;).

[Albert]

Get a proper Jointer/Thicknesser combo and you will be right.

say the likes of Robland

375125

Happy medium between $10,000 Felder and an average Carbatec

[KBs PensNmore]

I have access to a Leda combination machine, at a local Day Centre where I help out, it takes about a minute to change from one to the other, and snipe is an adjustment fault on a single machine normally.
Kryn