What is a jointer used for?
The design is always equipped with 2 knives. The presence of a pair of knives makes it possible to improve the quality of processing, not waste a lot of time, and prevent worker overwork.
Jointer knives have a greater sharpening angle compared to a plane. Gradual progress through the material guarantees an excellent result.
- The length of the frame is 3 times longer than that of a standard product. The cutting block of the jointer has a special chip breaker or chip breaker.
- In combination with an extended base, the level of final processing can be significantly improved.
- A handle is attached to the base of the jointer, which guarantees comfortable operation and equal pressure on the entire cutting surface of both knives.
For certain tasks, a shorter jointer is used. The dimensions of its frame do not exceed fifty centimeters. This unit is called a semi-jointer. Each of them is given his own license plate. It determines the scope of use and properties of the structure.
The most popular are semi-joints, numbers five and six. They are characterized by a difference in the width of the tip. It is 10 mm.
Thanks to its parameters and the improved design of its blade, it is easier to remove the top ball. They can easily process wood units that have an impressive area.
Semi-jointer number six has fairly compact dimensions. The duration of the frame is several times shorter compared to the classic model. Small dimensions made it possible to obtain equipment with a small mass.
Thanks to this, the worker does not overwork, and as a result, a high-quality product can be obtained. This point can be attributed to the first advantage of this structure. The second advantage is the provision of fairly uniform planing of the workpiece coating.
Working area dimensions
An important criterion for choosing an industrial machine is the width of the table. Depending on the size of the parts that are intended to be processed, modifications of planing units can be divided into the following types:
- Heavy, with a milling width of up to 63 cm.
- Medium, for which this figure is 40 cm.
- Lightweight, with a table width of 25 cm.
The table has a smooth surface. Its receiving part is located at the level of the contour formed during torsion of the knives. The front plate is adjustable; by adjusting it, it is set below the receiving half of the work table to the thickness of the layer that needs to be removed in one pass of the board.
What is the difference between a jointer and a plane
A specialist masters a small but integral plane in carpentry mainly only in the first stages of working with wood raw materials.
The main task of this stage of work is to make the material smooth, eliminating noticeable tubercles, knots and bulges from its surface. Then the worker, as a rule, takes another device.
- If we talk about the secondary processing of a fairly large product, then the jointer comes first, since the traditional option cannot properly level the coating over the entire area.
- The second one is laid like a “bridge” on part of the part, slowly eliminating minor defects from its surface. If you watch the specialist’s activities at this time, you will notice that at the start of work, small chips will fly out from under the structure, and then they will begin to come off in strips or elongated coils.
An additional function of the jointer is edge processing.
This structure will be an integral tool when gluing the edges of two surfaces, as it makes it possible to perform better processing.
Why do you need a jointer?
A woodworking shop can have a variety of machines, but the most commonly used (besides the circular saw, of course) are jointers and planers. These two types of units are slightly similar in their function, but differ in the method of use.
If you need to make a wooden blank in the form of a board, beam or shield, then it is better to use a thickness planer. Such a device, the main tool of which is the same knife, is capable of cutting the source material into two parallel parts. In this case, both of them will be adjusted to certain sizes.
Thicknessing machines are available in both single-sided and double-sided types. In the first case, only one side of the workpiece is processed in one pass. A double-sided thickness planer is more productive. Here the output is an almost finished part.
Thicknessing machines have a shaft located above the tabletop. Moreover, the latter is made massive in order to smooth out large vibrations. In addition, the mechanism is equipped with a special casing, which is designed to dampen noise.
A jointer has a slightly different task. This device is used to create a smooth surface without significant roughness on the workpiece. This machine, like the previous version, is equipped with a shaft with knives, only in the jointer it is located under the table top.
The workpiece is fed onto the work surface from one side, and the output from the opposite side is already partially processed. This way, layer by layer, the desired evenness is achieved. After processing on a jointer, the part can be fed to a surface planer.
Types of jointers
Available options include:
- Manual (mechanical) - can be plastic, metal, wood or a combination - are almost identical in functionality, however, the technical properties directly depend on the material used to manufacture the construction equipment frame;
- Electric – thanks to the additional equipment of an electric motor, they make it possible to carry out large volumes of work at fast processing rates.
Wood structures are in great demand when processing wood in everyday life.
Design Features
Planing and thicknessing machines are designed for beautiful and high-quality processing of the front part of wood. All defects and irregularities are removed, giving the product a beautiful appearance. The devices are used both in home workshops and in large-scale production, where these operations must be performed daily.
After processing, the result is a smooth and clean workpiece that preserves the texture of the wood. Some models are capable of not only performing this process, but also chamfering
It should be remembered that it is important to completely dry the wood before starting work. This is the only way the operation will be completed without problems.
Hand plane device
Since its inception, the design of the plane has remained almost the same. Only the material used to produce the basic components has improved. Initially, the frame and other components were exclusively wooden.
Currently, many types of metal and plastic are often used for this.
Despite this, the main components of the plane are:
- Block. Load-bearing part of the structure. The basic components of the product are fixed on its surface;
- Front and rear handle. Designed to properly hold equipment in the hands of the consumer;
- Sole. The lower flat component of the block. Allows the product to slide over the coating of the workpiece;
- Slot. Necessary for mounting the knife edge and removing chips;
- Knife. Working component of the product. Thanks to it, the outer layer of material is removed. They make exclusively metal;
- Fasteners and bolt. They serve as a tip retainer, a coordinating part for waste disposal and a knife for crushing chips. In certain variants, the wedge method of fastening the sharpening is used.
Installation of knives
The blades must be strictly straight.
Special instruments are used to check the details of this parameter. The tested knives are mounted on the shaft sequentially, their edges protrude above the edge of the clearance lining by 1-2 mm. To control the parallelism of the knives, an indicator or a checking parallelepiped is used. The first gives less error when checking parallelism. The knives must not be distorted when fixing them.
Attention! It is strictly forbidden to use any gaskets when installing the blades. Knives that are worn out or mechanically damaged must be replaced as soon as possible.
Mechanism of operation
The mechanism of operation of the product consists of removing the outer ball of the tree using a device, a tip, securely fixed in the frame.
Before the planing process, it is necessary to carry out preparation work by performing the following manipulations:
- Align and secure the clamp and cutter of the structure with the fastening bolt.
- Place the cutter of the product in the working position, moving it from the slot to the desired interval. Do not forget that the edge of the cutter should be close to the sole.
- After mounting the cutter to a suitable offset, it is necessary to secure it using a clamping plate or a wooden blade.
- Carry out a test run of the unit on coating the workpiece. If necessary, make additional adjustments to the tip.
Electric drive of the jointer
And of course, don’t forget about the drive. All mechanisms must rotate. This means that the drive will be the “heart” of the machine. Here are some recommendations for this design element: - first of all, prepare the electric motor.
Electric motor for jointer
It is best to use a three-phase unit for these purposes. Of course, in this case you may have to redo the electrical network in your workshop, but it will be worth it. Three-phase electric motors operating at a voltage of 380 V are capable of developing greater power. In addition, the torque of such devices is suitable for our purposes. The minimum power value should be 3 kW, but the maximum is at your discretion;
- To transmit torque from the electric motor to the working shaft, it must be done using belts. A two-strand wedge-shaped shape is best suited for these purposes. Such belts are more reliable;
- the electric motor itself can be mounted cantilever, directly inside the machine frame. This method will help solve the problem associated with belt tension. If you want to strengthen the engine more firmly, then you need to add a slide to the design, with the help of which adjustments will be made;
- to increase the shaft rotation speed, it is worth using two pulleys. One, larger in diameter, is installed on the electric motor. A pulley with a smaller cross-section is mounted on the shaft.
Be very careful about providing power to the machine. Three-phase current is supplied through a four-core cable. In this case, reliable grounding must be organized. These requirements will help avoid accidents when working on the machine.
Photo of jointer and planer
Description of options to choose from
jointing depth regulator
Some power tools are equipped with a device for automatically removing dust from the work surface; in others, the jointer is connected to a vacuum cleaner through a pipe. The lock button will help prevent accidental activation of the tool.
Electric jointers differ in power consumption, engine speed and depth of the cut layer. The choice of tool is determined by the required technical parameters, which are responsible for the desired performance of the jointer.
The 500 W motor power is suitable for tools used at home and for small and light work in private workshops. Professional work in harsh conditions, requiring high productivity, will require the use of stationary jointers with power consumption up to 2200 W.
Main technical characteristics
An electric tool has an undeniable advantage over its mechanical counterpart. It is installed on a workbench and does not require the use of physical effort that is needed to process parts with a mechanical hand jointer. Its use is comparable to the operation of a small woodworking machine. The planing width takes into account the size of the cut strip in one pass and varies from 80 to 372 mm. This wood cut rate is determined by the capabilities of the knives installed in this tool.
Precise and delicate work requires the use of a jointer with a small planing width, and for a large surface to be processed it is more convenient to use a tool with a wide strip
Planing depth is an equally important characteristic and shows the size of the maximum insertion of the knife into the depth of the surface layer of the workpiece. For powerful machines and household tools, this value is significantly different.
One of the main basic characteristics is the rotation speed of the drum, depending on the engine speed
A high-speed jointer is used for complex and precise work, which has a positive effect on the quality of planing and increased productivity. To compensate for low engine power, choose a tool with a large drum diameter. The weight of the jointer affects the ease of use; a lightweight tool is more functional and does not require intense physical activity. But the advantage of a heavy device is high-quality jointing, since it eliminates the appearance of an air gap between the tool plate and the surface of the wood.
Accessories included with the jointer to increase functionality:
- wood dust collection and removal system;
- sampling depth adjustment mechanism;
- protection against unplanned switching on;
- Vibration-absorbing handles ensure comfortable use and prevent slipping;
- a mechanism that facilitates quick replacement of a used blade;
- a set of additional knives for different purposes;
- stops of the required varieties;
- guide parallels;
- set of hex keys;
- dust bag;
- device storage box.
