4" Jointer

I found a 4" jointer in my Grandpa's attic, and it looked like a neat tool. The bed is only about 24" in total, but with only 4" blades I'm not expecting miracles.

There's no identifying marks, but it looks to be a American Machine and Tool 2432

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or Sears #

149.21871 (It's got the green paint like the one here:
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)

I don't have a drive belt yet, but would a 1/3 horse motor be sufficient to use it to joint some pine? It's an old sump pump motor, so I'm not sure what speed it runs at.

The infeed table looks like the top is out of flat. How should I go about trying to flatten it? Should I?

One website

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suggested I could hone or sharpen the knives by installing them close to the outfeed table height, and run the jointer backwards against a stone set on the outfeed table. Has anyone ever tried this? (It seems like a dubious idea to me, but it would be easy to do on this jointer.)

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper
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------------------------------------ Looks like a jelly bean home workshop bench top jointer from some time after WII offered by several companies.

Mine was a Rockwell.

The knives are 1/8" x 4".

Carefully measure the shaft and fit it with a 2", STEEL sheave.

Forget pot metal sheaves like Congress.

As I remember the shaft is an odd ball size.

I bought a blank sheave and had it machined to fit after beating a couple of pot metal sheaves to crap.

1/3 HP is a tad small, 3/4 HP is more like it.

Have fun.

Lew

Reply to
Lew Hodgett

My Powermatic manual states to run the head normally (forward, not backward) for a temporary resharpening (or touching-up of the blades' edges). I perform this technique often and it works fine for a quick fix for blades that are a bit dull. It doesn't work for blades that are severely dull or with knicks. To me, running it backwards would cause the edge (burr) to curl toward the infeed side, i.e., counter productive. Besides, how do you run the jointer backwards?

Take the blades off and sharpen them properly or, I would think 4" blades aren't that expensive, so get new blades and be done with it, if the present blades are in fairly bad shape.

Since the infeed table isn't very large, lay a pane of glass on it and see if it is, in fact, flat or not. It may be flat, but not coplanor with the outfeed table.

Sonny

Reply to
Sonny

I bought an AMT lathe in the 1970's. The list price was about $70. That gives you some idea of the quality to expect.

The motor was extra. It needed tender care to use it, but it worked.

Alignment, vibration, step pulleys to adjust speeds, etc.

Reply to
Maxwell Lol

On 21 Jun 2010 06:05:34 GMT, Puckdropper wrote the following:

Those built many a set of dining, living, and bedroom furniture. For your use, build flat in/outfeed tables for it.

More is better, but that might work to try it. You'll probably have to feed the wood into it fairly slowly.

If it's cupped or twisted, you'll either need to learn metal scraping or find a machinist who can grind it for you.

You're kidding, aren't you, Pucky? Don't even think it. That would only end up rounding over the leading edge if anything. I think whoever wrote that had their tongue implanted firmly in cheek.

-- Peace of mind is that mental condition in which you have accepted the worst. -- Lin Yutang

Reply to
Larry Jaques

Sonny wrote in news:47f2a5dd-adde-46b7-bdc8- snipped-for-privacy@j4g2000yqh.googlegroups.com:

This jointer is belt driven, so reversing it is as simple as turning the motor around.

Fortunately for me, they've just got a surface rust. Lots of good metal underneath.

I've been checking with my combination square's ruler. It's not flat on the outside near the blade guard, presumably due to rust. (There were a couple spots there that started to flake.)

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

Larry Jaques wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

At the moment, it's all I've got. I can get a more powerful motor later, but I don't even know if this machine would be worth investing more than a couple bucks in.

I might just leave that part of the infeed table alone then, and use the rest. The surface rust at that point was worse than the others (maybe because of the porkchop covering it?)

Admittedly, the guy was probably only removing a few thousandths to try to get the blades set perfectly. Rounding over the edge did cross my mind.

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

I suggest using a straight edge for this and not glass. Glass can not be trusted to be flat. Granite, maybe, but never glass.

Reply to
-MIKE-

I dealt with this awhile ago for my used 6" jointer bed. After calling around the local machine shops and passing out from sticker shock, I decided to get old school with it.

Some rubber mallet blows took care of the course adjustments. Sand paper on a granite block took care of the fine adjustments. Then I lightly sanded to whole bed, down to a polish.

Someone in here suggested hammering for cast iron. Thus stuff is remarkably pliable.

Reply to
-MIKE-

-MIKE- wrote in news:hvo3kl$jmb$ snipped-for-privacy@news.eternal- september.org:

I could see that working out roughly. If I get it reasonably close, I might be able to get a buddy with a milling machine to finish the last little bit. It does look like the worst spot is off away from the fence, so I may be able to work around it.

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

Check out the front page of this manual. I think this shows the method that used to be more commonplace.

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few years later these instructions are no longer in the jointer manuals. I've never had the guts to try it.

Mike O.

Reply to
Mike O.

There's really no sense in doing all that work, then letting a machinist do, anyway. If he's going to do it, let him do it all.

Reply to
-MIKE-

Mike O. wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

That would sure take the work out of resetting the jointer blades. This old jointer doesn't have any method to adjust the blades up and down, just two set screws that hold the blade in place. (I suspect newer jointers would have some mechanism for fine adjusting blade height. Guess I'll have to assemble the big one some time and find out.)

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

-MIKE- wrote in news:hvpd2b$62c$ snipped-for-privacy@news.eternal-september.org:

That does make sense... It depends on how far that section is out to whether or not it's worth it. I'll have to go out with a straight edge and take a really good look.

It is good to know it's fixable easily enough.

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

---------------------- That's why you use a magnetic gauge to set them.

You will also need a thin open end wrench to handle those set screws.

Think old time ignition wrenches if you go back that far.

DAMHIKT

Lew

Reply to
Lew Hodgett

On 21 Jun 2010 15:49:33 GMT, Puckdropper wrote the following:

Set perfectly but dulled beyond belief still doesn't get you a working jointer. Are you sure it wasn't a leg pulling?

-- Peace of mind is that mental condition in which you have accepted the worst. -- Lin Yutang

Reply to
Larry Jaques

On Mon, 21 Jun 2010 11:22:45 -0500, -MIKE- wrote the following:

Make friends over in the rec.crafts.metalworking forum. Someone who lives near you might help you meet your metaldorking needs with a trade for wooddorking, or simply do it for much cheaper than a machine shop gouges.

Course? What direction was its course? Oh, you meant "coarse" dincha? I'm guessing that a large part of that was just adjustment/settling, a minor part actual metal movement.

If that's the case, it's grey iron, not cast. Cast is brittle and would shatter with hammer blows.

-- Peace of mind is that mental condition in which you have accepted the worst. -- Lin Yutang

Reply to
Larry Jaques

We call that a typo.

Cast is a process, correct? Not a type of metal, nor alloy.

Reply to
-MIKE-

Larry Jaques wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Perhaps. Probably just a misremembering of the forward running with a stone method. Anyway, that's why I asked here.

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in news:4c204917$0$5527 $ snipped-for-privacy@news.astraweb.com:

Does the magnetic gauge hold the blades in place as well as hold itself down to the table? The ones I've seen are basically a flat rod or the like and movement of the jointer blades to touch the rod is up to the user.

Puckdropper

Reply to
Puckdropper

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