# Newbie with a jointer problem!



## bupsall (Jan 7, 2009)

So I am new to the woodworking scene in the past few months but so far I LOVE IT. I took a few classes at a reputable college in Seattle and have started to look for some used power tools to start building a bit of a shop. Anyway a guy at work sold me his old 6" Mark 1 jointer (Model SJ-1503UL (J600UL) - Tiawan made back in 1985). The motor and base seems to be just fine but the blades are really dull I think. I can edge joint but when I try to face joint anything the board seems to bounce a lot and it is really jerky seems unsafe. While the cut is not what I would describe as rough...it is definitely not planar. So I took the blades (three of them) off which may have been a mistake but I figured I needed to measure them to order the proper replacements. Well I can't find replacements. The knives are exactly 6.0" long, 5/8" wide, and ...here is the kicker...1/16" thick. Any tips? Also I can't find a user manual for the thing. I called the importing company that worked with the Tiawanese company that made the think and they said that Mark 1 went out of business a long time ago. Any thoughts on that either? Any help would be really appreciated.

Cheers,
Ben


----------



## Leo G (Oct 16, 2006)

Sounds like a sharpening is in order.


----------



## bupsall (Jan 7, 2009)

Where would one go to have that done? Or would you do it yourself? I don't have any sharpening equipment stones etc.


----------



## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

As the old add says "Let your fingers do the walking."

If there are no sharpeners listed in the yellow pages then ask clerks in stores that sell tools. If you live in an area of any size at all surely there is at least one person who sharpens saw blades and other items.

George


----------



## Chuck Seehuetter (May 15, 2008)

Give this place a call for new knives.

http://www.americannationalknife.com/?gclid=CMW2xOSk_JcCFRqgnAodrlMACA

I'm don't know where you live but you should be able to find a sharpening service in your area also. If you can't find one in the phone book, try cabinet shops or woodworking related stores to see who they use.

Chuck


----------



## Geoguy (Feb 22, 2008)

Also, check to make sure a maximum 1/16" is all that will fit in the cutter head. There may be some extra room in there for a thicker knife if you fully retract the bolts that hold the knives in place.


----------



## bupsall (Jan 7, 2009)

Good point! I'll check to see if I can stack two of the knives and slide them into place...then I could buy a very common 1/8" thick knife set. Otherwise I'll look into a sharpener to give these a tune up. Thanks for your help everyone. I appreciate it!

Ben :thumbsup:


----------



## bupsall (Jan 7, 2009)

As it turns out...http://www.americannationalknife.com had my blades. But they are about twice as expensive as the 1/8" knives. I figure that the 1/8" knives will hold up a bit better (maybe foolish) but I checked with my blades and they will fit. Thanks to everyone for the help!!! :thumbsup:

Now I just have to wait for them to show up and get them installed...does everyone recommend one of those jointer blade jigs or can it be done by hand?


----------



## Leo G (Oct 16, 2006)

Get a Wixey digital height gauge. I did it with gauges and sticks and all sorts of other ways. With the digital gauge it was perfect the first time, no fussing.


----------



## garyger (Oct 23, 2008)

bupsall said:


> As it turns out...http://www.americannationalknife.com had my blades. But they are about twice as expensive as the 1/8" knives. I figure that the 1/8" knives will hold up a bit better (maybe foolish) but I checked with my blades and they will fit.
> I checked out the price of the blades and I think it's a very good price. I'm a machinist by trade so I get to sharpen all my tools while at work. Don't get no better then that....:thumbsup:


----------



## johnv51 (Oct 27, 2008)

You can get a decent jig from Grizzly or just crazy glue a couple of rare earth magnets to each end of a 6 to 8" long piece of glass. Set the glass magnet side up on the jointer and adjust the blades just like you would with a jig.


----------

