djonesax

I have two planers to choose from. A delta and a ryobi and both for $110

http://greensboro.craigslist.org/tls/849874810.html
http://greensboro.craigslist.org/tls/850695295.html

I will be planing initialy about 4 board ft of padauk. Will either of these be strong enough and which one is better.

David

knotscott

Hi David - Models numbers would be helpful if you can get them. Getting a planer with a cutterhead lock is good idea to reduce snipe....both Ryobi and Delta have base models without. Going back in recent planer history...AFAIK, the Delta 22-540, TP300, and TP305 did not have cutterhead locks, but the 22-560, 22-565, TP400, and 22-580 do. The new Ryobi 1301 does not have a lock, but the 1300 does.

The end performance of any planer really boils down to the condition of the knives and good setup.

Terry Beeson

I think you should buy both and send me the one you don't like... LOL

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dbhost

That Ryobi looks to be an earlier model than even the AP1300. I can honestly say I am happy with my AP1301, but would have been happier with a 1300. For the price, either seem to be a good buy...

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djonesax

I posted that i needed to plane 4 bft but I meant to say 40. Not that it really matters but for accuracy sake. I'm going to stop by woodcraft and buy a "really expensive" peice of scrap wood and just try it out. he is going to send me the model number for the delta in the morning. the other guy hasnt responded yet. I can pay the hardwood place .60 a bft to plane it for me but a few projects and a planer would pay for it self. i figure I'll learn on a cheap one and then upgrade later.

i'll look into the cutter lock, thanks for the info.

Howard Ferstler

I am updating my earlier comments.

The newer Ryobi AP1301 has THREE deficiencies when compared to the earlier AP1300:

1. It does not have lead-in/lead-out extensions. Once adjusted right those will reduce snipe and they make it easier to feed items.

2. It does not have a cut-depth gauge. I think this is the biggest defect of the two, because it tells you just how much wood will be removed from the workpiece. With a side gauge you are partially guessing.

3. I initially left out this one: the 1301 does not have a cutter head lock, a feature that lets the user clamp the head tightly and keeps it from shifting.

The problem with the AP1300 is that you can no longer purchase replacement blades at Home Depot, at least not at the two stores in my town. I should add that the blades advertised for sale on the Ryobi site are criminally expensive. They cost more than the blades offered at HD for the more upscale Ridgid 1300 planer!

Incidentally, the AP1301 has one big advantage over the AP1300, and it is one I just discovered: the 1301 blades are the same as in the more upscale RIdgid 1300. THis makes them available at Home Depot, and also makes them cheaper, by far, than the blades for the AP1300.

Ryobi should be ashamed for what they are doing by way of blade availability and pricing.

Howard ferstler

GeorgeC

What is a cutterhead lock?

G

ajh359

I have a 10 in Ryobi and had no problems with it.

knotscott

A cutterhead lock holds the cutterhead firmly in place on the support posts to prevent/reduce snipe. Here's a pic of a gross example but gives an idea of what it is. Snipe is far more likely without a cutterhead lock.

djonesax

I ended up purchasing the Delta but I havent had the chance to try it yet. I was going to use it on the book case I am building but since I was in a time crunch I decded to go with Home Depot wood. Which maybe cost me more time actually because I had to clamp the edges of the shelves bewtween some hardwood, to straigten out the cup so they would fit into my dado's.

The snipe is unfortunate but I can just cut the peices a little long before planing. I suppose this would be a problem with more expensive wood. I intend on building an extension for the outfeed, since the outfeed that came with it is only about 8-10 inches long. Would that help with the snipe?

knotscott

There are methods for reducing snipe. Here are some tips:

http://www.newwoodworker.com/plnrsuprt.html

http://www.highlandwoodworking.com

Gerry KIERNAN

I have a Delta 12-1/2 inch thickness planer, which has worked quite well for me. I was having a small amount of snipe, so I purchased some adjustable roller support stands, which I place one at each end, distance depending on the board length I am planing. This is as shown in the new woodworker picture. This has pretty much eliminated snipe issues for me.

Gerry

red

I would always cut my stock long. After the surface planer then drum sander, I would trim it down to size. Even if you don't see or feel any snipe, sometimes it would show up in the finished product when the light hits it. A little wood scrap is well worth it for a flawless piece. Red

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djonesax

My mother told me she was taking down a fence that was made of rough cut oak. I though it would be a great test on the planer I just bought. I went out and took a look at the lumber and it was pretty warped and twisted but I was able to take 6 or 7 8ft 1x6 planks home. I cut out the straight parts out and ran them through the planer. I planed about 40 lft and it did OK, not great but OK. This thing is LOUD and SLOW. Not having a cutter head lock is a pain too because the vibrations would move the dept crank.

The planer got worse as I did more. At first there was no snipe but the more wood I planed the worse the snipe would get. I was only doing a quarter to a half turn of the handle at a time maybe 1/32 but probably not even. The snipe got progressively worse. That may be because in the beginning I was babying the thing and as I went on I started trying to take off more material. But I thought I should be able to take off 1/8 at a time?

Anyway I ended up with maybe 6 - 8 5ft lengths. The finished product is OK but it took me 40 minutes per 5 ft section. So…. How to I know if the blades are dull or if this thing just sucks. Being the first I have ever used, I have no way of knowing if I replaced the blades if it would work any better. To the touch the feel sharp but not like a razor or anything. Can I hone then somehow?

Gerry KIERNAN

Hi djonesax

Old oak can be a very hard wood. It sounds to me like your blades are pretty dull. I was doing some old oak on mine awhile back, and the blades took a bit of a beating. If it hasn't been done yet, and you have the same model as I do, the blades should be double edged. If so, you can turn them over. My planer came with a little jig for setting the blade height. I haven't turned them over yet. That's a little future project. I think trying to hog off 1/8 of an inch at a time on a small planer like this is probably pushing it past its limits. I usually only take off about 1/32nd or so at a time, especially if I am doing oak.
The blades can be resharpened if you have the right tool, or you could take them to a shop that does resharpening.

Gerry

djonesax

Will dull blades make the snipe worse?

I can purchase a new set of blades and a dust port on Amazon for $60.

Gerry KIERNAN

Hi Again.

American National Knife has a set of double edged 12-1/2 inch planer blades for the Delta 22-540C planer for $35.40.

Gerry

Gerry KIERNAN

Hi Again

I do not know if dull blades will make snipe worse, but I would not be surprised. The excessive snipe may be due in part to the amount of wood you are taking off with each pass. Perhaps someone else out there can give us a more definitive answer on this question.

Gerry

djonesax

So I planed another plank yesterday. It was about 6 ft long and took 50 minutes to do both sides down to ¾ inch. I guess the blades definitely need to be replaced. I was wondering, if I can sell this planer for what I paid for it, do you think it would be worth it to purchase this one for an extra 100 bucks? It looks like the older 1300 model that still had a cutter head lock.


http://greensboro.craigslist.org/tls/867843630.html

How long should it take to plabe a 6ft plank to ¾ inch if the bladed are sharp?

Gerry KIERNAN

I don't have any personal experience with a Rigid planer, but I have generally heard good things in regard to most Rigid equipment on this forum. I have the rigid belt/spindle oscillating sander put out by Rigid, and it is great.
I am not sure what thickness your planks are starting at, but if as you mentioned in your earlier post that they were one inch thick, then 50 minutes to get one board down to 3/4 inch seems pretty excessive to me. I didn't time myself planing down my oak boards, but I don't think it took me that kind of time.

Gerry