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Hello luthiers, anyone have experience with a smaller jointer like this Craftsman 4 1/8" ? It's listed on Craigslist in my area for $50.

Joe I have the delta " shopmaster "desk top jointer for 13 yrs.it screams like crazy, works and I use it for edge jointing vy occassionally. for small parts.You could check it out ? the price is reasonable. but only for small stuff because of the short bed.I find mine a pita to align the front and rear beds , and the chute is easily clogged if no dust extaction is attached. It is my back up jointer when my old big chiu ting 8in jointer causes problems

not a high quality tool. you would be better off with a good hand plane.

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

Amen!

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formerly known around here as burbank
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

Pass it up if you can. Take the $50 and put it toward a Vintage Stanley #7 or #8 that is in good shape with a nice flat sole. You should be able to come up with something decent with $50 or a bit more, but bring a straight edge with you to check the sole. You do not want to have to lap the sole flat on any plane bigger than a #4 at absolute most a #5. This is from experience, I have spent many hours trying to get a #7 flat. It is doable but requires patience and lots of sand paper.

Or you can save up another $400 and get a Lie Nielsen, my LN #7 is the most used plane that I own. It basically touches every piece of wood in my shop.

I'd take a pass on it. Your ears will thank you! They sound like a 3hp. router with a bad bearing, and they aren't stiff enough to maintain any accuracy.

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

I was intrigued so I did some searching online. I was surprised that it got some fairly good reviews on some of the woodworking forums. I also checked Craigs List in my area, Phoenix, and found 3 of them going from $125 to $149, in a lot worse shape then that one looks. The reviews I read said that the granite tables were rock solid and easy to get aligned. They also praised the fence. The only down side was the noise and the limit in what size stock you can run through it. To be honest, at that price I would buy it. I've been wanting to sell my big jointer/planer and do more by hand and downsize. I'd use it just for small parts.

Kinda cute. Heck, for $50 I'd give it a try (after pricing new blades).
One good thing about Sears - replacement parts are easy to get.

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Just quoting this to get it one more post of air time. I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate my planes, and how much I wan that LN #7.

I own a larger jointer by jet now but still own a delta shopmaster. It's a pretty capable little machine. I keep it as a backup. I would look for something like that.

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