planers and jointers

[TexasTimbers]

I talked to them about 6 months ago asking about one for a 25" chinese machine I was looking at on ebay for dirt cheap but he wasn't too enthused about it and neither was I really.
I think what I will do is call them and ask what 24"+ planer new or old would be best for me to look for in their opinion.
I've had my eye on a 30"er (that Reid has) but the freight quotes have  been killer and I have been afraid to call and ask Byrd about that one anyway. 

[woodbeard]

I just bit the bullet and put in an order for the Grizzly 0490.
I was really keen on getting the Shelix head, but decided it would be just as easy to wait and see if I really need it. This model isn't offered with any spiral head, yet, so I'd have to refit it anyway.

[TexasTimbers]

I went to see what model you are talking about and I'll be DanGed if I could find an 0490 listed ???

[pigman]

jointer

[woodbeard]

Umm ya, what Pigman said... sorry, shoulda been more specific. ;D

[OneWithWood]

Kevjay, go to the Grizz site and search for G0490.

[flip]

No spiral on my Griz., couldn't pony up the $$ for it, maybe soon though.  I would like to see one in action before I buy just to see if there are any issues I need to be aware of.  I've only planed maybe 600-800 ft. since we set it up and already the blades have nicks >:(  I found out it is a absolut must to check all adjustments prior to planing, they say in the manual it is pre set at the factory : 

[TexasTimbers]

OWW thanks for the tip - if you just type in 0490 like i did before I made the post, it won't work. :

flip, I can't afford the one I want either, but in a perfect world, a guy could get a 15HP 3 phase, 30" wide, 9000+ pound, SHELIX HEAD Oliver #361 planer with re-worked wiiring and rewound motors, shipped to your door for around $10,000!!!

Of course, that's impossible isn't it? No. It's ready to happen for anyone with the time and money to make it happen.
I can't afford either one right now but if i could i would buy Reid's Oliver 361, ship it to my place, send the head to Byrd, and when it got back I would have a 30" wide planer that could handle thick, thick slabs up to 30" wide with very little to no tearout; a machine that can't be touched for that price.
I called Byrd because the curiosity was killing me. They have already made one for a 361 for a guy and still have the drawings for anyone else who wants to do it.
Wish I had the coin to do it - I would make the time. If you do have pocketbook to do this, I would get in touch with Reid pronto. Deals like his don't come along everyday that planer is a steal. I was keeping quiet about until I decided ofr sure I could not get it but now that I know i have stretched my funds all I can for now, I'd like to see a FF member get it.
I hope someone in Texas buys it I can run my table slabs over there and get an instant finish with no muss & no fuss. Maybe I'll call Arky and tip him off he's within a days drive. 

[Don_Papenburg]

Flip,  The nick is the reason I am converting my planer to a Shelix . It seems that a good hard knot would nick my blades then I would have to slide them over a bit to misaline the nicks.    Also the small carbide  cutters tend to last a bit longer.

Kevjay , What is reid wanting for the Oliver?  I want a wide planer also but I had to settle for revamping my old one for the time being.   I had the planer pages wore out  in the new Grizz catalog trying to justify the new planer. But I think that if I was to get another one I would like to get a 30"  Oliver  and refit it with a Shelix.

[TexasTimbers]

Don, if you want to put a 30" Oliver into service with a Shelix head this is probably as good a deal as you will find. i can't speak for him, but I did speak with him and i know he wants to move it out.

Here is the link and his phone number is listed. Hope it works out for both of you.

[Cedarman]

For years I ran a 20" straight knive planer.  It would do ok, but knicks, blade changes etc and lumber that always had a few streaks.  Cedar has knots, so the knots would many times have little pulls on the vertical grain as the knife pulled it out.  Sent the 20" to Alabama where it is for sale as of now.

8 years ago bought a 26" Northtech planer.  It did fine, but same as the 20".  Just wider and more powerful.  It is a $7000.00 machine.  About 2 years ago bought a helical head for $3000 and changed it out in about an hour.  One of the best investments I have ever made.  We will plane 30 to 40 times as much wood as with straight knives before rotating.  They seldom knick unless dirt is on the board.  There is minimal knot pull.  I can hog 5/16 off of  2    8" boards at a time for shavings for our sawdust customer. 

For those of you thinking of the coin.

1. Smoother finish around knots.
2. Fewer knife changes
3. Easy to change out one knive if knicked
4. Plane faster because less horsepower is needed to remove same amount of wood.
5. Much less noise
6. Take off more wood at one pass than straight knives will because of horsepower needs.
7. Increases the value of planer if you need to sell it.

Negatives
1. Costs more money.
2. Knives are more expensive when replacing a set.
3. Takes longer to change a whole bunch of little knives than 3 or 4 straight knives.
4. Leaves very fine lines along board in some cases.

[woodbeard]

Sent the 20" to Alabama where it is for sale as of now.

How much?  ???

I got my Grizzly jointer today, and am quite happy with it.
I had been a bit nervous about it, being made in China, but I have to say I am very impressed with it. I remember putting together a chinese jointer for a friend about 10 years ago, and it was just awful! Every bit of it, right down to the hex nuts with the off-center holes. They sure have come a long way since then!
I opted for the paralellogram type tables because they are easier to adjust than the wedge bed type. They are mounted with eccentric cam bushings with which each corner can be raised or lowered. No sticking pieces of feeler gauges under the tables.
Also, if they ever do need to be reground, it is a much easier process than with the wedge bed tables. An important consideration with reports of warping chinese iron.
Another pleasant surprise was that it was set up almost dead on right out of the box.

[Justin L]

I vote for spiral cutterheads and for jointers. I run all my lumber over a jointer with a powerfeed taking off 1/8". It takes out the cup and lots of bow/waviness. The planer sits right next to the jointer so two people can plane both sides of a board at the same time. They both have helical carbide cutterheads that get rotated every 15,000 BF or so. I think they do a better job when they are dull than my straight knife planer did with sharp knives! There are always lines to beltsand, but rarely any tearout. I do dread haiving the rotate the knives every six months to a year...

[ksu_chainsaw]

This is an old MOAK 12" jointer with about a 9' bed on it- I have a call into Byrd to ask about the price on making a shelix head for it- cant find regular knives to replace the ones on there now- only about 3" of the blade is useable thanks to previous users.

Charles

[ronwood]

ksu_chainsaw,

I just obtained a Moak that looks very similiar to the one in the picture. Why is difficult to find the blades?  I wound mind having a Byrd head for mine also. Just put one on my 15 grizzly planer. Works well.

Ron

[ksu_chainsaw]

I work for the National Guard as a carpenter.  That means that anything that I need has to be paid for by a government credit card, and they prefer to purchase things locally.  None of the lumberyards or tool vendors can find the same size blades.  So, I am waiting to see how much a new head will be, and if I have to jump through many different hoops- the credit card has a purchase limit, and it is like pulling teeth to get something that is over that limit.  Also, nobody locally will sharpen the blades- all the oldtimers that used to have now retired.

After I get the jointer some new blades, I need to get this planer running


The picture isnt the greatest, but if  I  remember right, it is a Newman or something like that.

Charles