Originally Posted by
rudy de haas
Two notes:
1) Europeans often call jointers, planers. If this is part of the confusion, just keep in mind that American usage differentiates the two machines by usage: one flattens one side, the other makes the opposite side parallel.
2) 6" versus 8" depends on what you do and how efficiently you want to do it. Most (not all) 6" jointers have less power and precision than 8" units and are harder to work with even for boards under 6" wide. Most importantly, when you find yourself with a 7" board, you can't easily paste another inch on the side of your 6" jointer, but you can joint a 5" board on an 8" jointer. Basically the extra money buys you a better, more flexible, machine that places fewer limits on your future choices.