Jointer knife setting

[Darcy Warner]

I order 4/4 SKP to 15/16 if I am just running boards for exterior trim or blanks for a moulder.

Most everything else is all RS.

I don't build cabinets though.

[Larry Edgerton]

Everybody does have their own way. The reality is that I build things to a price point. Virtually everybody does. I work in a decent market, most of the time they have budgets all the same as anyone else though. Rarely do I get something where there's a blank check, and the mandate to just make it happen. Maybe certain aspects, but never the entire job. My customers are happy, I'm happy with what I build from a pride and profitability standpoint and I feel that's a success for any business no matter what field or segment you work in. Some guys are content doing the starter homes, some won't touch anything other than the ultra high end. And that's fine. We all find our spot.

If I were making pass doors, I would certainly be face jointing everything. A small twist in a passage door can be a nightmare since there is so many constrictions to how a door can be placed in a framed opening and the overall size versus a regular cabinet door will make that flaw exponentially larger. Someday I might take that on, but I am ill equipped the way the shop is now. A couple here and there, sure. But on the regular it would be a nightmare for me.


I have wanted to try building pass door by basically glueing two cabinet doors together. I've kicked it around since you could have two different species or door styles on each face. Different specie might cause problems, but doing raise panel with a ogee sticking on one face, and shaker flat panel on the other. I'd probably use epoxy, and a crude press using red iron beams and a unit of MDF sitting on top to act as a press. It'd need some refinement if I wanted to move the idea to a production process though. Currently with all of my paneled ends I pocket screw the rails into the stiles. That could work well I'd think on pass doors as well instead of relying solely on cope and stick, adding dowels, or tenoning them together. Though it might not be as good. I don't know.

I make most of my entry doors just as you have thought about. I use a plywood/insulation core. I have done doors with different faces as well, just need to watch that the two species are of similar expansion rates, and as you have surmised liberal use of West System, both in the lamination and the base coats of finish. I use a base coat of 207 until it is sealed perfectly and then topcoat with automotive clear over a layer of clear adhesion promoting primer used for urethane bumpers. Have had no failures using this method, but it is expensive for both time and material. But.... It makes an awesome door and allows you to break the rules a bit. A door such as this would be in the $10k and up range.

The stuff I do Martin is not all that profitable, its just a job, and the business could never be sold really, but for me it is nice to be working at home at a pace that fits my age. Last few years have made many of my misadventures come home to roost, no more fast cars, no more bikes, a sad state of affairs really. You still riding sport bikes? I miss that Adrenalin rush.....

[Martin Wasner]

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The stuff I do Martin is not all that profitable, its just a job, and the business could never be sold really,

Woodworking? Not all that profitable? Surely you jest.... I knew I'd never get rich doing this stuff, but I'd be nice to pull something out of the business. I keep just shoving it back in for equipment hoping to make it happen one day. By the time my building is done I'll have way more money invested than I care to for what I'm pulling out.

You still riding sport bikes? I miss that Adrenalin rush.....

Unfortunately no. I miss it as well. I started doing a fair amount of track days, started getting far better than I needed to be, and started getting a little big for my britches on the street. I had a few closer calls than I cared to have and just gave it up. I used to use my bike for probably better than half of my transportation in the warm months, but now days I almost always need at least a car or truck once during the day and just having two wheels doesn't cut it. There's also the fact that when your skills start to slip, you know when you're screwing up and they little stuff starts scaring you more than it should.

Basically I turned into a wimp.

[Larry Edgerton]

What got to me was the cell phone idiots. Had a couple of really close calls and it started taking the fun out of it. And, like you say your skills get a little bit on delay. My last road bike was a BMW 1200 GT, and I looked at my hard bags after a particularly fun trip and I had ground the bottom corners off of the bags. Was pushing a bit hard for a guy on the upper end of his fifties. Had to give up dirt bikes because my knees got so bad that they would not hold me up in the whoops, and I was not capable of just putzing around.

I tried to sell my business for a while with the commercial building, but no real offers. Could have sold it on a land contract basis but I just wanted out. Ended up just selling the building. So now that my shop is in the middle of nowhere at my house there is no chance of selling, but thats ok, I didn't really want to stop anyway, just slow down a bit. Miss the big shop though, holy cow do I miss it!

Bought a fishing boat two years ago to try something more appropriate for my age, but have not had it in the water yet. Maybe next year......

[Ron Kellison]

That jointer is a good looking piece of kit! If it was mine I wouldn't consider putting a pork chop guard on it, I'd be looking around for a European guard. I think they're safer because you can move a piece through without your hand ever coming close to the blades while keeping constant control pressure on the wood. YMMV.

[Martin Wasner]

I'm not sure I'm sold on the euro style guards. The projection from the side of the machine would drive me nuts I think. I start material from the behind the cutter, but once there's enough to grab onto forward of the cutter, that's where I am. I step forward to keep pressure down on the out feed table. I feel I'd have to either walk around the guard, or stretch out to do that. I might be completely wrong on that too, I've never actually used one.

The only one that I'm interested in is the suvamatic one and the only price I could find was for £800, which is about $1100. I might call Martin and see if they'd sell one and what it'd cost, but I'm guessing the extra cost is more than I care to spend.

[Warren Lake]

if you joint like that and I get it then both guards are in your way more so with the european one. The porkchop you can push to the side to drop on. Really pulling the big fence over to board width a bit over is the same thing, only issue is you would be working the knives mostly in the same place. Saw a wood guard in hinged sections somewhere that seemed to cover the left side of the knives and allow you to work anywhere on the knives just nothing goes accross to cover the knives once the board is through but the pork chop is not there either at the end of the board as its held away just the same till the board passes it. Know someone who had a bad day and got caught when the pork chop was still held away by the board.

[Brian Deakin]

My approach
(1) Select a piece of glass ideally slightly larger than the width of the planer blade Knives ,clean the surfaces then spray one surface with a film of furniture polish to form a fine opaque layer Place the glass on the out feed table polish side down covering the planer blades
(2) Slowly raise the knives and rotate them by hand
(3) As the edge of the knives approach the film of polish the will begin to scrape the polish of the glass
(4) This will provide a visual indication when the knife edges are level with the outfeed table and shows if the blades are parallel to the outfeed table across their width indicated by the visual appearance of how the polish is scrapped of the glass

[Larry Edgerton]

My approach
(1) Select a piece of glass ideally slightly larger than the width of the planer blade Knives ,clean the surfaces then spray one surface with a film of furniture polish to form a fine opaque layer Place the glass on the out feed table polish side down covering the planer blades
(2) Slowly raise the knives and rotate them by hand
(3) As the edge of the knives approach the film of polish the will begin to scrape the polish of the glass
(4) This will provide a visual indication when the knife edges are level with the outfeed table and shows if the blades are parallel to the outfeed table across their width indicated by the visual appearance of how the polish is scrapped of the glass

I will try that. In my method I watch the water on the table but your method may be easier. Thanks

[Brian Deakin]

Thank you for your reply regards Brian