Are Shelix heads worth the cost?

[Michael Yadfar]

I'm relatively new to woodworking and someone brought up adding a Shelix head to a table top planer I may buy. I looked up Shelix heads and now I know what they are. I also know it would be $450 for the Shelix head, almost as much as the Dewalt 735 planer itself. All together it would be around $1100 including tax.

My question is if this is worth buying. By this I basically mean that I have the money to afford one, but I'm wondering how much of an advantage it gives and if I would be better off buying a better planer for $1100 without a shelix head?

I'm a hobbiest by the way, this is not for commercial use

[Sam Babbage]

It's all a matter of perspective. Shelix heads are awesome, with many benefits and no significant downsides (in my opinion,) but it comes down to a cost benefit analysis. Do the benefits outweigh the cost, for your specific circumstances, and can the capital be better used elsewhere? Personally I consider putting a Shelix in a 735 to be over-capitalisation. One of the main benefits of a Shelix is the huge reduction in noise, but this is offset by the motor in a 735. You are asking a tricky question because it depends so much on your individual needs and budget. Given my circumstances, I would invest in a bigger planer or combination with or without a Shelix depending on budget, and if without consider upgrading down the track.

[Jeff Duncan]

I think you'll find they are very popular. Personally if it's between an $1100 planer or a $650 planer with a $450 insert head, I'd opt for the better planer. My feeling is you can always upgrade the head at a later time as long as the rest of the planer is decent quality. Just my opinion though!

good luck,
JeffD

[Michael Yadfar]

It's a really tough decision. If I were to go with straight blades, I would probably buy the Makita table top jointer. I don't quite have room for a stationary one but that doesn't mean I wouldn't consider it. If the Shelix head gives me a major advantage, I would definitely consider going with Dewalt and getting the Shelix head. But you are definitely correct, what's considered "worth it" for me may be different from "worth it" from someone else. Issue is, I don't quite know what "worth it" really is. I really wouldn't know until I were to go out and actually buy one...

[Dave Bonde]

The others have given you excellent advise. My input is also not going to give you a clear yes or no. I have been a woodworker for over 30 years. Bought my first planer when the little Ryobi AP-10 hit the market 25ish years ago and just (a month ago) installed a Shelix in my current planer a 20" Powermatic. I upgraded because I was not happy with the tear out I was getting, the noise reduction is great and hard to compare until you hear the results but was not the reason and would not be worth the money to me. I also have a well equipped shop and really do not have any tools on my must have or need list right now so buying the shelix did not delay a needed tool. If someone asked me was the upgrade worth it I would say absolutely because the upgrade has eliminated all the tear out I was getting before the change. I worked a lot of years without it without thinking I needed one. On the other hand thinking back to all the wood I have planed without it and now say I wish I would have bought it earlier, so who knows?? Lots for you to consider, buy now and pay the price, bigger planer without shelix, adding another tool instead .... I can say the only negative I can think of is the initial investment. Dave

[Peter Quinn]

I put a shelix head in a used dc-380, I love it. All together, used planer, new head, cost me just over $1k. Beats the pants off the dewalt, which I had previous to the delta. I used the delta with straight knives for several years before doing the upgrade, that was a much better experience than the dewalt too. I'm guessing the shelix in a dewalt will give you a bit less noise, and reduced chip out, long blade life.....but the depth per pass isn't going to change, it just feels limited, and at that cost, I don't see the sense. My primary problem with the dewalt was you can't take much more than 1/32" per pass much beyond 6" boards, and that's awfully slow. Not that I'm in a huge rush in the home shop, and I like milling stock, but it's too time consuming on a large project. So I'm in the save your pennies and go up market camp. But I have the space for the floor planer, the need, and all the rest of the tools are in place, so it may be a different circumstance?

[John Schweikert]

I put a Byrd in my Jet jointer and never looked back. Simply a superb finish is what I get. I'm looking for a planer to add a Byrd, but being patient since I have a small planer that does fine for now.

Just remember you can get 10% off and free shipping for Byrd heads at Holbren with the discount code which can be found in the forums/deals and discounts.

Something else to consider when buying a Byrd head is that you are getting 4 entire cutting edges to all the little square cutters. They last far longer than HSS knives.

[Charles Coolidge]

Both my planer and jointer have Shelix cutter heads, love em. So quiet my dust collector is louder.

[glenn bradley]

I pondered putting a shelix into a lunchbox planer but, most folks advised against it. I took their advice and spent a little more on a 15" floor machine with the head already in it. As to cost analysis, the spirals win every time. I found this to be true in my research tracking my own sharpening / replacing schedule in the past versus the performance of my new spiral head machines. There was at least one magazine article that took this to the bitter end in cost comparisons; the spiral is much less expensive over time. As for me, I paid for the difference in price on a new Grizzly planer in the first year or so. From here on out its all gravy.

[Michael Yadfar]

Basically what I'm picking up from the advice here is that the Shelix head is an improvement on a bench top planer, but not really worth it on that kind of planer. But if I can find a better stationary planer and shell out the bucks, it would be worth it in that case. Definitely a lot to think about...

[Larry Frank]

As others have said, it breaks down to a cost analysis. If you are putting a lot of board feet through a planer each year then it is likely worth it. Also, if you need to run types of wood which are prone to tear out, it is worth it.


For me, I probably run at most 500 board feet through my planer each year and could not justify it as typically I am putting red oak or ash through the planer. I buy high quality straight blades for my planer and they have worked fine for me.

[Sam Babbage]

Basically what I'm picking up from the advice here is that the Shelix head is an improvement on a bench top planer, but not really worth it on that kind of planer. But if I can find a better stationary planer and shell out the bucks, it would be worth it in that case. Definitely a lot to think about...

I think that's a fair summary, unless you have a compelling reason to limit yourself to a lunchbox planer, then a 735 with spiral would be an excellent choice (but the money may be better spent elsewhere, depending on your equipment/requirements.) Space would be the most likely reason for this, and in that case I would investigate spending more on a combination, again with or without a Shelix. A side-benefit of a combination is you get both your jointing and planing "upgraded" for the cost of a single Shelix.

EDIT: Clarification

[Jack Lemley]

I put a Shelix on my 735 last year and am very happy with the results!

Jack

[James Hansen]

I'll add some other +'s of the Shelix head, I went form 15" with straight blades to a 20" Shelix head (planer) . with a lot of time spent setting up straight blades, you will still get some waviness in hard wood, like hard white maple. this waviness can be time consuming to sand out, the finish on the same wood with the Shelix head is way better, this takes way less effort to sand out.

I have also got a set of straight blades back from being sharpened and put a nick in them that now leaves a visible line in your planed wood, time to either have them sharpened or do the offset trick of one blade which is still time consuming to move and reset the blade. If the same happens with the Shelix head, just find the nicked blade and rotate it 90 degrees and get back to work.

[Loren Woirhaye]

No. Get a stroke sander instead.

"Cost" is I think actually a business or accounting term and it is not only the price of a given thing, but the price of maintaining it, using it, and the time cost in compensating for its weaknesses.

The fancy head doesn't take away much sanding time. It takes away time in industrial applications though because the carbide things are easy to turn and maintain, as opposed to the cost of knife grinding, either by grinding on the planer or removing the knives and doing it off, then resetting them.

The insert heads are said to be quieter. I've never used one. I can't see much advantage though because so many woodworking machines make a racket the idea of a quieter shop is really absurd. Cut quality and "feel" is also said to be nice, though the cut surface will be sanded off anyway in most circumstances.