CL planer score

[Matt Day]

I posted a thread a few days ago about taking apart a 15" planer for transport. Unfortunately that deal fell through and sombody swiped it from under me. Needless to say I was bummed, but today I see a posting on my local CL for a 15" Jet JWP-15HO. Instead of waiting for pictures I just called the seller, asked if it was in working condition and if it had be hobbiest owned, and got in the car!

Turned out to be the older style, with minor surface rust from being in an unconditioned garage. It fired up and sounded good and the test piece came out as good. It didn't have infeed/outfeed rollers, but for $375 it wasn't a deal breaker! The guy bought it for milling the trim in his house and hasn't used it since.

The two of us managed to load it in the back of my Forester by strapping a sheet of MDF to it and tipping it in and pushing it back, but I HIGHLY recommend no one else ever tries this. Very dangerous. I used my head a little more when I got home and managed to get it out myself by removing the base/motor and sliding down a ramp.

Once I get it in the basement I'm planning on taking most of it apart and cleaning the surface rust. What do you all suggest I use for cleaning? I'm thinking of trying Bar Keepers Friend and Mineral Spirits.

Since it didn't come with in or outfeed rollers, I'm contemplating either buying new cast iron ones like Grizzly sells (I need to check that they'd actually fit first of course), buying the roller version, or making my own. Does anyone have any suggestions?

[Andrew Howe]

Nice.score. Like your ramp. I had to get an inca planer / jointer in and out of a acura suv like that. Wish I had a good idea for rollers for you. I need to do.something similar to.extend.the.beds on my inca.

[Stephen Cherry]

I would skip the infeed and outfeed rollers. They do more harm than good, unless you like snipe. Bed rollers should be level with the bed, at the highest.

Barkeepers friend should do the table very easily. WAX WAX and more WAX.

The grizzler has the byrd head on sale.

also, you may want to loosen way up on the tension of the roller springs. And, when you are on your final cuts approaching your desired thickness, tighten up on the table lock knobs. I have the same basic machine, and if you work with it, it can do a nice job.

[Bob Coleman]

I second leaving off the tables. I never got around to attaching them to my planer (the PM version) and I haven't missed them.

[david brum]

I built some shop made extensions for my planer a few years ago. I think it was a two evening project. They are little torsion tables with laminate tops. I just made them out of scraps. The wood slides really easily on laminate and no moving parts. My planer's bed is stationary, so I was able to hinge the extensions for storage.

I have to respectfully disagree about extensions causing snipe. At least for me, having them properly tilted takes the guess work out of how much to lift the wood on each pass. I usually don't get much snipe unless I'm trying to take off too much in one pass. For sure it helps to seriously reduce the indeed/outfeed roller tension.

+2 on the Byrd head. It's no picnic changing blades on these things.

[Andrew Nemeth]

Bob,

Do you still have the extensions laying around? Any interest in shipping to Ohio?

PM me if you are.

[Matt Day]

Bob,

Do you still have the extensions laying around? Any interest in shipping to Ohio?

PM me if you are.

Talk about a thread hijack, from a fellow a buckeye too!

[Jim Andrew]

You guys that live back east have all the luck with craigslist finds. I've been checking CL for months, and there was one overpriced Jet and some suitcase planers.

[Bruce Wrenn]

My Delta 380 has fold down tables that attach to the stand. They are laminate covered particle board. Came with the planner when bought new in 1997.

[Matt Day]

I'm still debating about what to do about the extension wings. I'm used to using them on my DW734 and I think it would be nice to catch stock and help feed it, not necessarily be 100% dead on parallel with the planer deck. Because the table moves and not the cutterhead, anything I shop make needs to be extremely secure since I can't support the wings like the Delta 380.

Grizzly has roller extensions for about $65 each, and cast iron ones for $115 each. That's a bit pricey I think, so maybe I'll try making some and see how they turn out.