Straight edge for jointer setup - Veritas best in breed?

[Kent A Bathurst]

"best" is a subjective term. I bought a 48" Starrett straight edge some years back and it is a dead accurate tool. However it's not an inexpensive one!

Me too. Had mine for 15 years or so. Built a storage case for it. It comes out maybe once per year, for the jointer and the planer, and maybe some other odds and ends - but not general work that can be handled by a level, etc.

Way overkill, I admit. But - ain't nuttin' even close, IMO, and I do not regret the purchase. It solved setup and operational issues for me on both jointer and planer that the 48" level did not take care of, and those machines have run like a champ ever since. REcheck / realign every couple years or so. Will never buy another one, of course.

If I had kids - which I don't - this could last many generations. Imagine a knowledgeable WW guy walking up to LOML's post-funeral yard sale, and getting it for $5? Or, the wall of LN, etc. for $10 each.

Not to mention the Sage or Shimano Stradic gear ...................

[Chris Padilla]

This is woodworking, not metalworking. A good level is all you need.

I disagree. I realize ww'ers don't need more than a few mil accuracy because after all, wood can move more than that. However, setting up one's machines to better than accuracy needed for wood just makes them better and for sure not exacerbating any issues a machine might already add to squirrely wood.

Levels are NOT straight-edges.

[David Kumm]

A good extruded level is not a bad tool for jointers of size. An 8' level is easy to test against a jointer by using feeler gauges and checking each side. The difference will give you how many thousands the level is off and then you can set tables accounting for the feeler strips. If the jointer is 72" long, a 72" level is better than a 48" straightedge. Alignment across the width is important too. In addition to the long straightedge, I've found my Starrett Master machinist level is the go to tool for calibrating machines. Best way to tell if the table saw top is level, jointer tables are co planar, etc. A long straight edge, level or board, two oneway type dial indicators, and a machinist level will take care of 90% of machine set up, including sliding table saw and shapers. Dave

[Frederick Skelly]

Scott,
I have that same tool and like it for setup, flattening my bench, checking the sole of hand planes for flatness, etc. It worked well for me and Id buy it again.

I have not ever tried to confirm its accuracy against some NIST-like standard flat surface.

Fred

[scott vroom]

If the jointer is 72" long, a 72" level is better than a 48" straightedge.

I gave that some thought and came to the conclusion that if the 2 jointer tables are determined to be coplanar using a 50" straight edge then they are coplanar for the entire combined 72" length. The exception would be if one or both of the tables were warped, which could be determined by checking each table individually using a 50" straight edge.

[David Kumm]

Scott, my 72" example wasn't as good as my real world jointer that is 96x23" but there can be table issues a short straight edge won't easily identify. Not so much with a small wedgebed, but a longer pedistal or even parallelogram can look good for a few feet near the head and then twist on the back half ( particularly the Oliver 166 ). A straightedge or level long enough to go diagonally end to end makes that problem much more obvious. That is also the benefit of the machinist level but I assume not many use those. My jointer also has a spring joint mechanism that pretty much requires a long straightedge. I'd have a 50" straightedge anyway so didn't want to imply no one should use that, just that someone with a good extruded level of long length can get the job done. Dave

[Jeff Duncan]

Problem is a lot of guys seem to be assuming their levels are dead straight….not necessarily the case. And even if they are that doesn't mean they'll stay that way, especially if they see some use. My Stabila's get used for getting cabinets level, my straightedge for checking flatness. The Stabila's are pretty straight and can certainly be used for a lot of quick checks, but if it needs to be dead on I'm going for the straight edge

As far as implying that because it's woodworking and not metal working it doesn't need to be accurate….all I can say is why bother? I guess it's fine if your doing rustic furniture or simple birdhouses or something that doesn't need any real precision. But one should realize before making such statements that there are many guys on here who create work that does need to be precise and accurate. If your equipment is not aligned properly, especially a jointer, your work will suffer. IMHO a good craftsman takes care of his tools…..whether powered or not. Part of that means keeping the powered ones in good alignment.

good luck,
JeffD

[David Kumm]

Yes, not good to assume a level is straight, but a jointer with the tables set on the same plane can serve to reference a long level ( or a long countertop ). Usually they will be bent, not wavy, so you can measure with feeler gages on one end, set the level on it's opposite edge in the same spot and measure. Any difference in reading is twice what the level is off. Center doesn't matter much because it is easy to adjust near the head. Good news is when it is right, you can feel it when you joint the board. Dave

[Frank Martin]

Problem is a lot of guys seem to be assuming their levels are dead straight….not necessarily the case. And even if they are that doesn't mean they'll stay that way, especially if they see some use. My Stabila's get used for getting cabinets level, my straightedge for checking flatness. The Stabila's are pretty straight and can certainly be used for a lot of quick checks, but if it needs to be dead on I'm going for the straight edge

As far as implying that because it's woodworking and not metal working it doesn't need to be accurate….all I can say is why bother? I guess it's fine if your doing rustic furniture or simple birdhouses or something that doesn't need any real precision. But one should realize before making such statements that there are many guys on here who create work that does need to be precise and accurate. If your equipment is not aligned properly, especially a jointer, your work will suffer. IMHO a good craftsman takes care of his tools…..whether powered or not. Part of that means keeping the powered ones in good alignment.

good luck,
JeffD

I could not agree more. When I first started, I listened to the folks who claimed precision adjusting machinery was not necessary. If found that to be untrue in my experience. When machines are setup with precision, the results are far better. Jointer is better, table saw is better. This is how I got to glue-up ready rips from the table saw. Similarly, how I was able to cut perfect miters in about 60" long and 3" wide frame members with nothing else (no jigs, etc) but just a perfectly adjuster miter gauge.

I understand humans have been working wood for many centuries before all these "modern gizmos" have been invented, but this does not mean that they don't add value to the process, they do.

[Bradley Gray]

I have a jointer that is 9 ft long. I use a 10 ft length of drip edge to set it up. I also use it to lay out edging lines on live edge boards and many other tasks. A 10 ft straight edge is a delicate thing - when the inevitable damage occurs I buy a new piece.

[Myk Rian]

I guess it's fine if your doing rustic furniture or simple birdhouses or something that doesn't need any real precision. But one should realize before making such statements that there are many guys on here who create work that does need to be precise and accurate.

You call these rustic? All made with jointers set up with a level.

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[Bruce Wrenn]

John White's book, "Care and Repair of Shop Machines," shows how to make a straight edge for setting jointer beds using three pieces of MDF, and nine dry wall screws. Buy the book for $20, and have tools money left over.

[ian maybury]

+1 that a long level can be very effective for this job - but it needs to be a good straight extruded one (hand picked from stock - use two others as a reference), and from a good deep and thick section of aluminium as the metal is relatively quite flexible. Best also to always reference off the same (marked) edge and end.

As somebody else said you often end up needing to do some trial and error dialling in of the table inclination so that it cuts straight or exactly as you want anyway, so that as long as the edge you use gives a consistent reading/repeating datum and isn't far off it's probably not such a big deal. Many modern cheaply manufactured jointers seem to have less than perfectly flat tables (are actually highly unsatisfactory - beats me how the guys doing the very low cost granite surface plates now coming in from China can reliably hit much tighter flatness tolerances at a fraction of the cost), and even quite small irregularities of only a few thou in the wrong place will lead to the need to dial in table inclination anyway to hit the best avaiulable compromise. i.e. it may not joint quite straight with both tables set precisely horizontal to your edge.

I actually bought a shorter ground steel straight edge early on and get lots of use from it, but quickly found that having an edge long enough to cover the full length of both tables at once is very useful - pretty much essential in fact unless you can be 100% sure that your tables are very precisely flat. If there are humps, dips or a little twist then the end of a short edge may fall into or not reach them and deliver a misleading result. It's also hugely useful (essential?) to get a straight edge that will sit stably on its reference edge.

The problem is that it's a very pricey proposition to get a ground straight edge that covers all of the above bases...

I hand scraped the less than originally flat tables (worst was a 0.005in dip in front of the cutters on the infeed) accurately flat on my machine, and was amazed at how alignment with even the level (or setting cutter heights with a Oneway gauge) went from being a hit and miss deal (very hard to get a reading to repeat consistently) to a rock solid/one shot job...

ian

[Frank Drew]

Setting up cast iron machinery is metal working; the woodworking comes later.

[Mel Fulks]

Haven't seen that book,Bruce,but that three piece method goes way back. I made one 7 feet 10 inches from tempered
Masonite with laminate glued to both sides ; with UF ,NOT contact cement. That was over 30 years ago,it's stored hanging
up and ONLY used for machine setup.