Best Jointer Planer Combo for Woodworking

Are you planning to start some wooden craftsmanship in your garage? Your decision might be related to saving some money or enjoying it as a hobby. In any case, there is one very important tool set that is a must for wooden creations.

Yes, you guessed it right! A jointer planer combo! It can give your lumber products the perfect finish. While a jointer defines the shape of the edges, a planer is used to ensure constant thickness.

People can buy them separately, but a combo is a better option owing to its advantages. They are often cheaper and also space effective. Moreover, you can perform everything in one place and avoid the hassle of moving your pieces around.

If you wonder what some of the best available options are, fret not. Read this article to find out everything about jointer planer combos!

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Top 5 jointer-planers of 2022

There are several factors to consider before choosing machinery. It should be cost-effective and efficient enough to fulfill all your requirements. We have tried to consider every aspect to make your task of choosing equipment easier.

1. JET JJP-10BTOS

Product Specification

  • Power: 1440 W
  • Head inches: 10
  • Jointer max cut depth: ⅛ inches
  • Cutterhead: 9,000 rpm 2-knife cutterhead
  • Weight: 74 pounds

Product Description

Suitable for a home shop, this product can be used for various crafty hobbies. The product has a compact design that can easily fit into your garage or a small shop. Moreover, it’s also lightweight and quite powerful. 

Jet JJP 10btos’ accurate adjustment knobs can be used to lock the piece you are working on. This ensures that your cuts are sharp and precise. The spacious compartment provided for saw dust collection will keep your place easy to clean.

Additionally, it also comes with a cord wrap making it portable to move around in limited space. This feature reduces the risk of loose plugs, thus making it safer to use in a home environment as well. 

Another great feature of this jointer planer is that you can transform it into a benchtop style planer as well. 

“I immediately checked the feed tables for coplanarity and found that they were very straight, with the outfeed table being about 1/64-1/128″ low on the front edge – which is basically unnoticeable in most applications. I was very happy to see this.” a satisfied customer said.

Pros

  • It’s quite affordable
  • Faster processing rate
  • Conveniently designed
  • Can be used standing up
  • Good for the price
  • Produces high-power clean cuts

Cons

  • The quality can be improved
  • Can be made in a bigger size
  • Alternative built material can be used
  • The standing design has the scope of betterment

2. Vevor Jointer Planer Combo

Product Specification

  • Power: 1280W
  • Head inches: 6
  • Cutterhead speed: 9,000 CPM
  • Planer max cut depth: 0.0125 inches
  • Weight: ‎32 pounds

Product Description

Are you a hobbyist looking for an easy start option? Well, this could be your first Jointer Planer. It is easy to set holders, and a scale for measuring makes things much easier for beginners. 

This equipment is also quite easily adjustable in small spaces. The dust collector promotes a cleaner working environment along with the machine’s compatibility with dense areas. Moreover, it has an electromagnetic switch that tips off with power overload and makes it safe to use.

This machinery has broad applicability. It is ideal for crafting old and weathered woods. It can also help smoothen up other items. For instance, you can use it for lining nylon and bamboo. 

VEVOR Jointers Woodworking 6 Inch Benchtop Jointer 9000 RPM/min Jointer Planer Heavy Duty 1280W Benchtop Planer 156 mm Maximum Planing Width Wood Jointer Benchtop For Wood Cutting Thickness Planer
  • 【PREMIUM QUALITY】- High-quality jointers woodworking equips the full metal workbench. With a maximum cutting width of 6 inches (15.24 cm), No-load speed:9000/min, Max. Planing width:156 mm. 
  • 【EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE】- All-copper motor with high power effectively improves the cutting speed of the benchtop jointer. Two handles for easy adjustment of the height and width of cutter head; scale ruler for precise machining.
  • 【CONSIDERATE DESIGN】- The dust exhaust interface can connect to dust collectors for easy cleanup of the flying wood chips to cultivate a clean working environment; This compact design of the jointer planer maximizes space-saving use. 
  • 【RELIABILITY & SAFETY】- Equipped with power-off protection electromagnetic switch, the over current protector, can be tripped when the motor is overloaded.
  • 【WIDE APPLICATION】- Benchtop planer is designed for planing of old, weathered, rough and worn wood, and giving it an exceptionally smooth finish. Planers woodworking can be used for planning wood, bamboo, lining nylon, etc.

Pros

  • Good quality and performance
  • Lightweight and easy to move
  • Cost effective

Cons

  • Area for more wood
  • Better and smoother wood feeding
  • Highly detailed installation guide

3. Jet JJP 8bt 8-Inch

Product Specification

  • Power: 1440W
  • Head inches: 8
  • Cutterhead speed: 18,000 CPM
  • Planer max cut depth: 0.125 inches
  • Weight: 67 pounds 

Product Description

If you don’t need to cut long pieces of wood, the Jet JJP 8bt might be the perfect jointer planer combo for your requirements. Reaching a max CPM of 18000, this model cuts wood smoothly, accurately, and fast. This model can handle a max wood length of 2.5 feet without a long outfeed table.

The Jet JJP 8bt comes with an aluminum barrier increasing joining accuracy. Additionally, the machine is also manufactured with large comfortable handles for easy adjustment of settings.

Pros

  • Compact design
  • Fast feeding and processing
  • Available at a good price

Cons

  • Has a plastic casing
  • Small outfeed table
  • Not the best cutting materials

4. Jet JJP 12, 12-inch

Product Specification

  • Power: 2990W
  • Head inches: 12
  • Cutter Speed: 16,500 CPM
  • Jointer max cut depth: 5/32 inches
  •  Weight: 500 pounds

Product Description

For all the space-constrained woodworking shops, the Jet JJP 12 is a heavy-duty jointer planer is a perfect choice. Its working tables are cast iron, making them highly durable and long-lasting. The Jet JJP 12 also produces extremely precise cuts due to its ingenious parallelogram design.

The massive size of this model helps in processing large pieces of wood, which sets it apart from the competition. The large size also allows Jet to manufacture high-quality precision control leading to accurate cutting. The three knife cutter head provides rapid processing capability.

“First time through was with a piece of walnut, 5/4 x 6″ x 5ft – edged and planed beautifully. If you work with wood often enough, you’ll be happy with this unit, purchasing rough material at a lumber yard.” reported a satisfied customer.

JET 12-Inch Planer/Jointer, HSS Knives, 3 HP, 1Ph 230V (JJP-12)
  • Three high-speed steel knife cutterhead provides rapid cutting and a superior finish
  • Extremely quick changeover between jointing and planing functions (fence does not need to be removed)
  • Heavy-duty cast iron tables with machined finish ensure accuracy and flatness
  • Large handwheel for quick and precise adjustments of planer table
  • Heavy-duty, one-piece steel closed stand includes mounting tabs for increased stability

Pros

  • Large capacity
  • High cutting speed
  • Extremely powerful motor

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Extremely heavy
  • Lacks carbide blades that handle hardwood better

5. Rikon Jointer Planer Combo

Product Specification

  • Power: 2860W
  • Head inches: 12
  • Motor speed: 3,400 RPM
  • Jointer max cut depth: ⅛ inches
  • Weight: 580 pounds

Product Description

This one has a feeding efficiency of 23 feet/minute. Ideal for heavyweight craftsman ships, you can use it to shop oak or walnut woods. The carbide inserts in its helical cutter allow it to work with the hardest of woods smoothly while lasting long.

No wonder it makes the cutting process super smooth and convenient. Moreover, the planer table is made of aluminum, making it conveniently affordable. However, this doesn’t affect its capacity and strength. 

“I’ve never had a helical head tool but looking at the cutters on the Rikon, I was initially surprised to see how far apart the cutting squares are located but I guess it works. All in all, I’m very happy. Great quality, easy to use, set up, and feels well made and accurate.” said a happy customer.

RIKON Power Tools 25-210H 12-Inch Planer/Jointer with Helical Head
  • Powerful 220V 3 HP, 3400 RPM Motor Easily Cuts at full capacity
  • 4 Row Helical Cutter Head Produces an ultra smooth finish
  • 56, 4 Sided Indexible Carbide Inserts Change easily
  • Feed rate speed of 23 feet per minute
  • Powerful 220V 3 HP, 3400 RPM Motor Easily Cuts at full capacity

Pros

  • Carbide inserts for hardwood handling
  • Large planer table
  • Heavy duty motor

Cons

  • Very expensive
  • Heavy
  • Bad quality fence

Things to consider for choosing a jointer planer combo

There is a common thing with most heavy machinery items. Almost all of them are more powerful on a stand-alone basis. The combo setups usually mean one or other feature of one of the items gets compromised.

Hence, choosing a jointer planer combo that’s both ideal for you and cost-effective is not easy. There are numerous specifications to consider to make the best choice. The best way to go about it is to analyze individual segments of the machine.

Following are some considerations to ensure you get the jointer planer combo in 2022: 

Project Goals

Depending on the type of material you wish to build, various components will be influential. For instance, what is the overall capacity of the machine? The weight it can handle and available space will define the item’s size.

Similarly, the efficiency of its blades in terms of sharpness, power, and speed decides the overall finish of the product. And most importantly, what is the purpose of the products you will produce? This will determine the rate of speed of your creations. 

Cooler Construction

There are two types of cooler constructions: 

  • Injection Molding – These are made by injecting hot plastic into defined molds. You can create precise shapes. However, they are susceptible to cracking.
  • Roto Molding – These are made of a single piece of plastic and are rotated until the design is formed. It ensures a thick outer shell, so the durability levels are high. 

Blade and Cutter Head Type

As mentioned above, cutter efficiency is one of the most important elements of the combo. There are two types of cutters available in the market:

Knife/Spiral: This type uses a long plane knife to share the piece. It is commonly used because it’s cheaper. However, they don’t produce high-end items. Their finishing is a bit rough, and it’s challenging to use them.

Helical: A newer and better version, helical cutters are easier to use and give a better finish. Their blade positioning is better and thus they are more useful in making deeper holes. Commonly used on oak or black walnut.

Material, weight, and size  

Before you shortlist the equipment, don’t forget to measure the exact dimensions of the place you plan to keep it. Even though they come in a variety of shapes and sizes, you can find a rough estimate to decide your working space.

The next important factor is weight. If you plan to move around the machine more or less, it’s crucial to go for light ones. A miscalculation in this department can land you a fix, as larger models can weigh up to 550 pounds.

Once you have figured out these logistics, you should pay attention to the material used for building it. For instance, steel, iron, or aluminum can be made. In case you plan on making heavy objects, the iron build combo should be your first choice. 

However, makers usually use a combination of all the materials to produce the most convenient design. While aluminum is the cheapest to use, iron gives out the most durable structure. Therefore, different components are built using different materials.

The breakdown is mainly like this:

  • Aluminum for fences
  • Cast iron tables
  • the stands are usually made of steel

Blade / Cutter Material

Blades and cutters, which are the heart of these machines, need to be considered separately. No matter the size of your operation or the wood that needs to be processed, the kind of wood being worked on is essential to consider.

If you primarily work with soft to medium hardness wood, standard steel blades would provide clean cuts and last a good amount of time. 

However, if your job requires dealing with hardwood, a steel cutter will produce bad-quality output and get worn down quickly. In such cases, choosing jointer planers with a more robust blade material like carbide is the way to go.

Stand type and dust collection

Last but not least, the point of consideration is the efficiency of the combo. This should align with the type of place you will be working. Hence, you should make sure it fits well in terms of convenience. 

For this, stand type and cleaning compartments are useful for deciding. While heavyweight work requires tabletop combos, lightweight standing models are good enough. There are two kinds of combos available in the market:

  • Benchtop Jointer Planer Tables
  • Lunchbox Planer

Wrapping Up

Jointer planer combos are essential for most woodworking activities. Every person has different requirements, ranging from quality and processing speed to price and portability.

By far, the Jet JJP 10btos is the best jointer planer combo overall. Created by Jet to fill the gap between its smaller and larger variants, this model should work well for a hobbyist or a small to a medium-sized woodworking shop. With a high-cutter speed, long enough outfeed, and good bang for your buck, Jet JJP 10btos is the easiest to recommend.

People who aren’t constrained by the price and have higher demands from their jointer planer machines should consider buying the Jet JJP 12. It gets ahead of all other models in durability and precision, although, as stated, it is pricey.

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