I am a professional remodeler and in the past five years I have burnt out three Delta planers. Twice, the feed rollers gave up and the last one apparently suffered a major internal failure. I have had the Makita now for two months and it has been flawless as I would expect. We plane some tough stuff like Ipe so we definitely give these things a workout. If it is still flawless in a year, I will give it a fifth star. I appreciate the ergonomics of this well, thought out machine. I am glad that Makita has eliminated a cutterhead lock. I personally couldn't care less about "snipe", of which this machine creates very little. We plane long and then cut to size on the miter saw. Don't you? I do have one question ..., is there any reason why I can't buy replacement blades online?
Okay, so I'm a year late, this is one VERY good planer! It continues to perform like new, with only blade changes. I have it hooked up in my shop and have run hundreds of feet of maple, pine, poplar, Ipe, oak, even plywood and MDF. It just does its thing. Very uneventful, I like that. That's what I pay for. The only downside is that it makes justifying a 15" Powermatic planer difficult!
So here were are now, its 2004 and the little bugger just keeps going! I may never get that new planer. What can I say, after, I don't know, five or six thousand feet of various hardwoods, no changes to date! See you next year!
What can I say? Late again! So here we are almost eight years later and the little SOB just keeps running! New blades, vacuum occasionally, lube the posts if I think of it and it just keeps going. If it ever dies, I'll let you know! Makita 2012NB 12-Inch Planer with Interna-Lok Automated Head Clamp
I received my new Makita 2012B Portable Planer for Christmas. I had researched all the available models and felt that the Makita had the edge on paper. Putting it to the reality check test, a friend and I ran over 100 board feet of quartersawn white oak through the planer, then finished up by using the system to shave down a walnut inlay in ash. I was really impressed by the performance! No snipe, very smooth surfaces, quiet operation, and ease of use were at the top of my list of favorable impressions. We especially liked the depth stop option for reproducibly machining multiple boards to the same thickness. Too early to tell how the planer will hold up with time. I will write a follow-up after a year of use. The only objection I have to the tool is that for the price, Makita should include the dust hood. It is essential and has to be ordered separately from Makita.
I spent a lot of time looking at portable planers. They all had something I liked and didn't. The Makita 2012NB had everything I was looking for. Lower the cutting head down until the depth pin moves, set the dial indicator to zero, then lower the cutting head to the depth you want. Easy, fast, accurate and quiet. It has an adjustable rod for making plaining more than one board to the same thickness and can be set to any thickness you want. The interna-lock head keeps snipe to a minimum and I'm happy not to have to mess with a head lock. It seems to be constructed to last a long time but I haven't used it long enough to say for certain yet. It is more expensive but I wouldn't hesitate to buy it again. The only complaint I have is for the price why didn't Makita include dust shut with dust collector connection?
This planer is excellent, giving both reliable service with new features. No cutterhead lock to worry about, higher RPM than the old planer (which was still great), and beefed up to 15amp. The Makita has on-board storage, for tools, generous infeed & outfeed trays, and is truly lighter than the rest. Powerful and extremely smooth finishes. Popular Woodworking lists it as snipe equal to that of a floor model, best of the benchtops. I agree!
Much like other reviewers, I have a small shop and make personal furniture and cabinetry. I too agonized over the purchase of a planer. The obvious dilemma is between a floor model 15" and a portable 12". The Makita is more costly than most of the portables, but less than half of the stationary 15" models.After reading of the trouble others have had with the Delta (and my own negative experiences with Delta) I decided to spring the extra bucks for the Makita quality.Great decision. This planer performs flawlessly. As long as you keep each pass shallow, snipe is of no concern, and I also agree that you have to cut the ends off the stock anyway. Snipe won't mean a thing if you have a board end check on you after you have completed a project.I too reserve the other 5th star for longevity, as I have only had the planer for several months. As for the dust hood-I plan to save myself the money and just make my own. Any true woodworker can handle the fabrication necessary for a rectangular plenum with a round outlet-it's held on by a couple of thumb screws. I say you can't beat this planer.
I recently read an article in one of the Popular woodworking comparing many of the 12" bench top planers. I had my heart set on a Delta, since my experience so far had been good. Boy did that article change my mind in a hurry. They has only good things to say about this planer. The only downside was the price. They said that they loved the planer, just couldn't justify the price. Well, I could. I'm sick of getting exacty what you pay for. I'm willing to spend a little more and get top quality. If you are too, this is the planer for you. Got it (from the tool-crib BTW) on Sat and spent the next day planing some 4/4 red oak. Beautiful finish !! A fine sanding is all that's required. Also, the stop remembers what your last, final, thick- ness was, which came in handy as I needed another 3/4 board and had already put the planer away. Snipe was a minimum, maybe 2-3 inches on the feed end and, as long as you're careful, none on the back end. Take some advice, get yourself a nice pair or dial calipers. I got a 6" Starrett from the tool crib here and it, in conjunction with the planer will give you the _exact_ thickness that you need. I'm sick of going to the lumber yard and ordering 1/2", and some are a little strong of 1/2" and some a little shy and none of your dados are fit like the test cut did. Another cool feature is the thickness dial on the crank. Using the calipers, you find that you need another 1/32" off the side. Set the 1/32" mark on the thickness dial, turn the crank until the '0' matches up with the mark and it takes off the required amount, no more, no less. - Planers - Makita - Makita 2012nb - Planer'
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