{"id":3104,"date":"2014-08-20T22:41:09","date_gmt":"2014-08-21T03:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/?p=3104"},"modified":"2014-08-20T22:41:09","modified_gmt":"2014-08-21T03:41:09","slug":"jointer-planer-combination-machines-part-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/2014\/08\/20\/jointer-planer-combination-machines-part-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Jointer-planer combination machines, part 6"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Hammer<\/p>\n

This final installment in the series will discuss changing blades in the Hammer A3-31<\/strong> and some summary thoughts<\/strong> on jointer-planer combo machines. [The entire series can be viewed here<\/a>.]<\/p>\n

With some jointers and planers, changing blades is a tedious chore. Long ago, I struggled with the old spring-loaded jackscrew system<\/strong> on a jointer. Brutal. By contrast, changing blades on the Tersa<\/strong> cutterhead that was in the Inca jointer-planer<\/strong> was almost unbelievably easy and fast. The OEM system on the Dewalt DW735 planer<\/strong> was quite easy, and now with the Shelix cutterhead<\/a> with carbide-tipped inserts installed, changing blades is practically a non-issue.<\/p>\n

The system for changing and adjusting the blades on the A3-31 is very good<\/strong>, though not quite the slam dunk of a Tersa. Each of the three blades has holes that neatly register<\/strong> on bosses on the blade holder<\/strong>, which is secured in a slot in the cutterhead with four hex socket screws using the provided T-handle wrench. (See the photo above.)<\/strong>\u00a0This is easy to do, though a cutterhead lock would make it easier.<\/p>\n

If necessary, the blade holder-blade assembly can be adjusted for height with the four adjustment screws within the holder block<\/strong>.\u00a0These can be used to make a consistent<\/em> projection of the knife in relation to the outfeed bed across its full width. Further, the height of the outfeed table is adjustable to set its overall<\/em> relationship to the arc of the knife edges.<\/p>\n

The factory settings,<\/strong> which I assessed when the machine was new and the knives were fresh, were excellent; no changes needed! So, when I installed replacement knives,<\/strong> everything should stay the same, right? Well, it worked out pretty well, maybe actually well enough, but not quite to my satisfaction. Somehow, despite great care on my part, gremlins sneaked in and I had to fiddle with the height adjustment screws to get an a consistent projection across the width.<\/strong> (This is not a matter of a difference in the overall projection related to worn versus fresh knife edges.) The manual explains a simple assessment procedure to help get it right and I am happy with the results. Note that perfection is not necessary for this.\u00a0By the way, another option is the helical insert cutterhead available for the A3-31 from Hammer.<\/p>\n

Here’s the key:<\/strong> the machine performs accurately, consistently, and efficiently. I get the results I need to make high quality things from wood. This is what matters.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In summary:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

1.<\/strong> For the reasons explained in this series, I highly recommend a 12″ jointer-planer combination machine for the small shop woodworker.<\/strong><\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> After 2 1\/2 years experience with the Hammer A3-31, I heartily recommend it.<\/strong> As with any machine, there are a few shortcomings (for this fastidious woodworker), which I’ve covered, but this is an excellent machine<\/strong> that can be a great partner as you pursue excellent woodworking. I cannot fairly compare it to corresponding offerings from Minimax, Jet, Rojek, Grizzly, and Rikon because I haven’t used them, and I’d bet the $7,000 Felder AD-531 outshines all of these, but I can say I’m very glad I have the Hammer A3-31.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This final installment in the series will discuss changing blades in the Hammer A3-31 and some summary thoughts on jointer-planer combo machines. [The entire series can be viewed here.] With some jointers and planers, changing blades is a tedious chore. Long ago, I struggled with the old spring-loaded jackscrew system on a jointer. Brutal. By […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27],"class_list":["post-3104","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tools-and-shop","tag-jointer-planer-combo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3104","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3104"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3104\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3108,"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3104\/revisions\/3108"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3104"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3104"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rpwoodwork.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3104"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}