Best Value Biscuit Joiner

[Mike OMelia]

I don't have a lot of uses for one, and if push comes to shove, I can use my router, but I'm interested in finding a "best value" (as in FWW) biscuit joiner. Best value in my mind balances cost and quality in a way that an occasional user will appreciate. Recommendations are welcomed. I am totally ignorant on this tool/subject.

Thanks!

Mike

[Ken Deckelman]

Since you have no immediate need for one, just watch CL till one shows up there.

[Will Overton]

I am not an advocate of buying used tools. However, there are always exceptions. With so many folks buying the Festool Domino there are a lot of unused biscuit joiners sitting around. I never thought about getting rid of mine until my neighbor mentioned he was going to buy one. I gave him mine.

The Porter Cable 557 is probably the best of the reasonably priced ones. I would post a "want to buy" on the woodworking forums.

[Carroll Courtney]

I had this posted about couple weeks ago,but got no responces just questions.Make me an offer,which includes shipping---Carroll

[Jon Toebbe]

+1 on keeping an eye on Craigslist. I just picked up a nice Craftsman Professional (the re-badged DeWalt) for $40. Not too shabby.

[Andrew Howe]

I got a Freud biscuit joiner for $80 at lows

[Fred Preston]

reply to carroll! the lamello is the best on the market IMHO. His asking price is fair.;-]

[Hank Wangford]

I don't have a lot of uses for one, and if push comes to shove, I can use my router, but I'm interested in finding a "best value" (as in FWW) biscuit joiner. Best value in my mind balances cost and quality in a way that an occasional user will appreciate. Recommendations are welcomed. I am totally ignorant on this tool/subject.
Thanks!

Mike

Pretty much the same situation I am in.
Thanks for starting the post and saving me the trouble



Thanks also for the responses. Good info.

[Ken Frohnert]

+1 I was wondering about this same thing. I want to make a couple of shop cabinets and thought a biscuit joiner might be useful.

[John TenEyck]

A bisquit joiner was designed for joining sheet goods, and is ideal for building shop, kitchen, etc. cabinets. It's also useful for a lot of other jobs; installing faceframes to cabinets, joining solid wood to sheet goods, reinforcing miters, etc. It is very fast, plenty accurate, and produces joints of surprising strength. Not much wears out on a bisquit joiner - I'm still using the same blade that came with my Ryobi 20 years ago, and I have built at least a hundred cabinets with it. I would not hesitate to buy a used one since most people never use their's enough to appreciate its capabilities, nor would I regret buying a new one.

[Paul Stoops]

I like my Porter Cable 557 very much. It also comes with a 2" diameter blade for use with the small mini biscuits for picture frames, etc.

[Gary Curtis]

The differences in Biscuit Joiners is primarily in the fence. However, you can override machine differences if you use Lamello brand biscuits. They don't cost much more, but gosh is there a difference in manufacture and consistency.

[Bob Landel]

I own the Porter Cable 557. It works very well.... like a dream. My first biscuit cutter was a Harbor Freight $29.99 special. It worked perfectly fine! I still have it in the original box. I use a biscuit cutter very rarely. The Harbor Freight cutter would probably serve all my needs, however I'm a tool nut.

[David Larsen]

The porter cable biscuit jointer will allow you to do FF biscuits along with regular biscuits so for the money, it is pretty universal. I have one and it does a good job. I also have a Dewalt that I use for the full size biscuits and leave my PC for FF only.

[Peter Scoma]

+1 on scanning craigslist. I got an unused Dewalt, nearly 1000 biscuits, and a brass dovetail marker for 40$ in philly.

Peter