Easily adjustable jointer? NOT the JJP-12HH.

[Janis Stipins]

Hi everybody. I have a long rant saved up here; my apologies in advance.

For over a year now I have owned a Jet JJP-12HH jointer/planer. I have zero complaints about its performance. Over the past year I've put a lot of wood over it and through it, and it's all come out very well; everything from small project pieces to 12-foot long Douglas fir 6x6 beams (those took an extra set of hands and strong back to help, though). I've run it for hours on end with no motor problems at all.

The problem is when the jointer tables need to be aligned. I've done it twice now: once when I first got it a year ago, and once just yesterday, after I noticed last week that the jointer tables had gone a little out of alignment. Each time it took me roughly four hours to align it.

I realize that sounds insane. It is.

I should mention that I'm not a complete incompetent when it comes to tools and machines. I've spent enough time in a machine shop to know my way around a straightedge and a feeler gauge. And, for what little it's worth, I have advanced degrees in mathematics --- specifically, geometry. None of this helped in any appreciable way while trying to navigate the alignment of this thing.

The basic process is simple enough: get the outfeed table to be coplanar with the top of the cutters, and then get the infeed table to be coplanar with the outfeed table.

The complication is that EVERY adjustment to one of the tables, no matter how minute, involves unlocking the machine top; lifting it up; making a slight adjustment to one of six bolts (not counting the three more that need to be loosened and re-tightened to allow an adjustment to be made!); lowering the top; locking it down; and then checking to see what happened. For further entertainment, each of the six bolts moves the ENTIRE table, not just the corner closest to it... working out the cause-and-effect is, let's say, challenging. For even further entertainment, it's likely that the table lock mechanisms will have to be adjusted when the tables have moved; and this (of course) will also change the alignment of the tables.

It's sort of like solving one of the puzzles in Myst, except with back fatigue and allen wrenches.

I should also mention that I wasn't going for unreasonably small tolerances. I was using a three-foot Starrett straightedge and a .002" feeler gauge. There is no point in going for smaller tolerances than that, since the tables themselves are not machined flat, and have roughly .002" dishes in the middle of them.

Anyway, I don't have a lot of experience with maintaining a jointer. I got this combination machine because I was trying to be space efficient in my shop. But this is the first jointer I've owned, so I don't really know what's normal.

My question for you all: Is there such thing as a jointer that is relatively easy to adjust? I mean, I could imagine a setup where I'm sitting behind the machine with a wrench, and my buddy is using the straightedge and feeler gauge, and the whole process is over in under 10 minutes. This combination machine required that I unlock-open-adjust-close-lock it something like a hundred times. Do jointer-only machines require the same kind of process?

Thanks,
-JS3

PS: If you 1) live near Gilroy, CA, 2) are in the market for a combination jointer/planer, and 3) love puzzles, drop me a line in about a year. When this thing goes out of alignment again I'm selling it. :-)

[Peter Quinn]

I've adjusted a few parallelogram type jointers, not what I'd call a great source of joy by any definition, probably 2 hours working it back to an acceptable condition, but not as bad as what you are describing. The easiest jointers to adjust are the ones you don't have to. I worked on an scmi for nearly a decade, commercial shop, daily hard use from multiple person shop.....never saw that thing move out of allignment even a fraction.

[Jim Andrew]

I've had a Grizzly G0609 jointer for about 8 years, it was set correctly when I got it, took the infeed table off to install a Byrd cutterhead, put the table back on it was still right, and has been right ever since. No snipe, just excellent performance.

[glenn bradley]

I don't know about 10 minutes but, a parallelogram bed machine can be setup in pretty short order if the tables are flat. I set mine up once, use it almost daily and it is still dead on years later. If the tables are not fairly flat (or you don't mark where the dips and hills are) you end up trying to adjust to an errant reference and you can chase your tail for hours before deciding it is "good enough".

The Jet combo machines seem to take a lot of heat on the forums but, let's not go there. Are you saying that the table are out of alignment in general or that they do not return to alignment after changing over from the planer position? By many reports an aligned machine will not return to proper alignment following the change over without some fussing around. My point is not to dog the machine, I know some people are doing well with them. I am just saying that you may be killing yourself over something that is potentially a design problem.

[Jamie Buxton]

On my first-generation Hammer A3-31, the two tables adjust independently. That is, there are three bolts to adjust the outfeed, and three to adjust the infeed. For some reason, the outfeed adjustments are quite stable; I've adjusted that one once in over ten years. The infeed, however, drifts out of whack more often -- dunno why. I can tweak it back into spec in less than twenty minutes.

[John Coloccia]

I don't know about 10 minutes but, a parallelogram bed machine can be setup in pretty short order if the tables are flat. I set mine up once, use it almost daily and it is still dead on years later. If the tables are not fairly flat (or you don't mark where the dips and hills are) you end up trying to adjust to an errant reference and you can chase your tail for hours before deciding it is "good enough".

The Jet combo machines seem to take a lot of heat on the forums but, let's not go there. Are you saying that the table are out of alignment in general or that they do not return to alignment after changing over from the planer position? By many reports an aligned machine will not return to proper alignment following the change over without some fussing around. My point is not to dog the machine, I know some people are doing well with them. I am just saying that you may be killing yourself over something that is potentially a design problem.

It's pretty repeatable once it's set. The main problem is that there are a total of 6 adjustments, three bolts, and the lock adjustment on each side that you have to fiddle with, they're all somewhat interactive, and a couple of the set screws are nearly impossible to even get to. None of the adjustments, other then the ones in front, are reachable without lifting the beds. You're basically adjusting blind and it's a real pain in the butt. It's just poorly designed.

Once it's adjusted, it stays put for a while, though, and the machine performs well. It's just the stupid adjustments that are just incredibly difficult and fiddly, and lots of experience just makes you more confident that you'll eventually get it. It doesn't help a whole lot with the actual adjustment. I just started another thread where I think I identified one source of adjustment frustration. I'm going to give my theory a try in the next couple of days and we'll see if it eases the pain a bit. The thing is that it's a $2300 machine. For just a little more, you can get a 10" Hammer, which is much higher quality, has quick change blades, a better fence, and is much easier to align (not that most people ever have to mess with it, from all accounts). For $2300, they could skimp on some fit and finish if they want to, but they should really fix the basics.

Here's another example. For some reason, they added a moving baffle in the dust chute. My first one didn't have that...the replacement one did. Well, it drove me nuts why the dust collection didn't work in planer mode. What's the problem? My dust collector sucks the baffle up and closes it off completely. OK, so I think to myself, I'll just drill a hole and stick something in there to lock the baffle in place. Now here's the funny part. There's already a hole there! Obviously someone figured this out at some point but just didn't bother mentioning anything or including a little bar to actually do it. I end up just sticking an allen key in there to lock the baffle in place. Again, it's just inexcusable on a $2300 machine. I'd absolutely recommend one used because it performs really well, but it's difficult to recommend it new because of it's competition.

[Derek Arita]

I've got a MM FS30 Smart that has given me head aches from day one. Make sure tables are flat...mine weren't and it took machine grinding to fix that. Started at a bout .010 dished, then machined them to about .004, but that's another story.
My FS30 adjusts very similarly to yours. I have to lift, tweak, lower, then check the adjustment's effect with a gauge. My best friend is a One Way Multi Gauge, when it comes to those adjustments. I also use a 50" Veritas straightedge.
It's tedious at best, but doable and like you said, one corner adjustment effects all the others. Stay with it and you'll get used to the process. As you know, once done, you'll get good performance from it. That said, I don't look forward to having to redo mine. Good luck.

[John Coloccia]

I've got a MM FS30 Smart that has given me head aches from day one. Make sure tables are flat...mine weren't and it took machine grinding to fix that. Started at a bout .010 dished, then machined them to about .004, but that's another story.
My FS30 adjusts very similarly to yours. I have to lift, tweak, lower, then check the adjustment's effect with a gauge. My best friend is a One Way Multi Gauge, when it comes to those adjustments. I also use a 50" Veritas straightedge.
It's tedious at best, but doable and like you said, one corner adjustment effects all the others. Stay with it and you'll get used to the process. As you know, once done, you'll get good performance from it. That said, I don't look forward to having to redo mine. Good luck.

How much did it cost to grind the tables flat? Just curious.

[Derek Arita]

How much did it cost to grind the tables flat? Just curious.

I hate to admit it, but it cost about $700 for a Blanchard grind. I already had so much in the machine and with no help from MM on the issue, I had no choice. Tables didn't come out perfect, but they are flat enough to allow for good joints. Apologies to the OP for the sideline.

[Curt Harms]

Edge joint or face joint two pieces of wood. Butt them together. Do they rock? Are there gaps? Light getting through? If not why screw with it? You're producing wooden parts, not tight tolerance engine parts or aerospace components. Sure proper machine setup matters - to a point. To me the planer bed is more sensitive, I don't want a board thicker on one side than the other or with snipe I have to cut off.

[glenn bradley]

I just started another thread where I think I identified one source of adjustment frustration. I'm going to give my theory a try in the next couple of days and we'll see if it eases the pain a bit.

John, I saw that thread and this is great stuff. I see a lot of posts on this machine and folks like you on a forum are often the best resource to a cure for things like this. Kudos to you and good luck.