why no really long-bed 6" jointers

Question

It seems like the common bed size for a 6" jointer is about 45". You can get at least a few that are 55" (General International and King Industrial, maybe others, then the Powermatic at 66".

It seems like stepping up to an 8" jointer generally gets you up to the

74" length.

Here's my question. Given that many people want to joint long boards, but don't necessarily need the additional width, why don't manufacturers sell 6" jointers with really long beds? Do they basically assume that if you want the extra length you'll pay for the extra width? Is it just too hard to make a long skinny bed flat?

Just curious...

Chris

David · Accepted Answer

not enough room to dedicate to one longer?Cost?Weight and shipping cost?difficulty keeping overly long tables from remaining perfectly parallel?to name a few...Dave

Ba r r y · Answer

My guess is that the extra width isn't all that expensive if you're already building the length.

FWIW, the extra 2" really is useful. I've owned 6" and 8" machines, and since most of the stock I buy is 6-8" wide...

6" is good, 8" is perfect for the serious hobby or small pro shop.

Barry

Toller · Answer

Presumably because there is no demand for them.99% of the people who want a long jointer also want a wide jointer.  To build one for the other 1% isn't economical, especially when they will just buy a 8" if they can't find a long 6".

Phisherman · Answer

I can't answer your question, but even if you really don't need to joint a 8" edge, having an 8" jointer allows you to move the fence to more areas of the blade, extending the time required between sharpening.

Frank Boettcher · Answer

One tried, but got shut down before it got off the drawing board.Frank

JJ · Answer

Why bother? The 6" longbed would probably be just as expensive as the 8". The length is the floor space eater not the width, so no advantage there. I'd rather have the extra couple of inches. :)-jj

Leon · Answer

Want longer?  Look here here

Warren · Answer

As a newb to woodworking, I had read enough commentary on "go for 8" that I was determined to get an 8" but the bed length in my small shop just wouldn't work.

If I could have handled the length, I would have sprung for the extra

2 inches as the 6 has forced me to rip many a wide board already just so I could joint it.

Someday...

Warren

CW · Answer

There are devices, still made by Stanley and a number of others, that allowyou to joint boards any length, any width. They also hang on a shelf whennot in use.

Chris Friesen · Answer

Yep.  I don't have a jointer or planer, so I recently made an end-grain cutting board (13x20x2) using a table saw and a hand plane for all my milling.Chris

Charles Self · Answer

There are probably a couple reasons, including a need to increase size to make the length stable, and the fact that it doesn't add much more to expense overall to use almost the same motor and 2" to the cutterhead and cutters than to just use the 6" cutterhead. You've already paid for the extra table mass.

why no really long-bed 6" jointers

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