Swore by my old jointer for a decade, finally tried a spiral head cutter

I've been using the same antique jointer since I started my shop in 2018. Thought the spiral heads were overpriced hype. Then last month a buddy let me run a few boards through his new setup. The finish was glass smooth, no tearout even on curly maple. I ordered a new cutterhead that night. Anyone else been slow to switch over to these?

2 comments

2 Comments

adams.taylor10d ago

Man I was right there with you. For years I thought spiral heads were just a way for tool companies to upsell people who don't know how to set up a straight knife properly. Then I tried one at a friend's shop last spring and it was like night and day. The finish was so clean I barely had to sand anything, and it handled figured wood that would have turned my old jointer into a chattering mess. Picked up a shelix head a few months back and honestly I'm annoyed I waited so long.

black.patricia10d ago

Hard disagree honestly. A properly tuned straight knife setup with sharp blades and a light cut will give you a finish that's just as good, and you don't have to drop a few hundred bucks on a new cutterhead. Most of the chatter problems people blame on straight knives come from dull blades or taking too heavy a pass. I've been running the same straight knives on my jointer for ten years, touch them up with a diamond stone maybe twice a year, and I've never had issues with figured wood. Spiral heads are a luxury, not a necessity, and the noise they make drives me crazy.