Planer Thicknesser Advice - Record Power/Metabo/Axminster

tomosap · 7 May 2020

Apologies if this has been done to death, as I have found some older threads on the subject but, well, they're.... old. So thought I'd ask now in the hope that with time having moved on, more people might've had experience with the products.

So I already have a lunchbox type thicknesser (the Triton which is BRILLIANT btw) but really looking for something I can use to plane/joint pieces now.

Looking at the Record Power PT260, Metabo HC260c, Axminster Trade 6" Planer and the Craft Planer/Thicknesser. Price-wise they're all in the right ballpark, but curious what people's experience is wit the Record and Metabo models.

I'm inclined towards the Axminster 6" as it offers weight savings, longer tables and I think quality-wise it's the standout winner, but my worry is that the capacity isn't up there with the others.

Would anyone care to chime in with their experiences on the above - doesn't have to be a comparison, just a user-review would be helpful.

Thanks,
Tom

John McM · 7 May 2020

I have the Electra Beckum HC260, now Metabo but it's a widely available generic design. It's been fine for hobby use but I'd like something a bit more solid. I'm tempted by the Itech 260 with the spiral block. What's your budget? If you can stretch to that it's not much more than the Axminster trade

AJB Temple · 7 May 2020

I would say a 6" P/T is very DIY / hobby use. Small capacity. I would find that pretty hopeless much of the time, but it depends what you make. Spiral blocks are really good but at the DIY level, in my limited experience, not that much better than a good triple blade machine. You will almost always be doing further finishing after planing.

For me I would be looking for cast iron beds as long as possible (this makes a real difference), easy changeover between planer and thicknesser mode, a somewhat wider bed (mine is 10" and I wish it was 12") and effective chip extraction as chips going all over the place is a prime source of poor finish.

I like the cam type blade guards rather than the overhead guards personally as I think they are safer in practice.

RichardG · 7 May 2020

I have the Metabo, purchased from FFX during one of the eBay discount promotions for £470. I looked at the Record Power as well but didn’t think is was worth the extra money over the Metabo.

As a planer I found the tables to be flat but do need a regular polish. The fence is poor and needs to be checked if you move it, at some point I will lock it at 90 degrees. The extraction hood is also good when in planer mode.

In thicknesser mode the extraction hood is a bit flimsy and could be easily damaged. The height adjustment is good and true though.

Switching between the two modes is a bit of a pain but you soon get the knack.

Overall it does an ok job but I think if I was buying again I’d look hard at the Axminster craft planer thicknesser, especially as it’s now on offer.

Happy to try and answer any specific questions.

tomosap · 7 May 2020

Thanks everyone for taking the time to write your responses. Probably should’ve been clearer that the 6” option was just a planer, no thicknesser in that model.

So between writing my initial post and this, eBay were running a discount on certain sellers (including Axminster!) so I’ve gone ahead and got myself the craft thickness planer with £50 off and free delivery.

Will return to write my own review

Petey83 · 7 May 2020

You've ordered now so a little late but having had the Axminster hobby PT and given you have a thicknesser I'd not have bothered.

For edge jointing prep I'd use a router table
with the fence off set or for really long / wide / heavy boards I'd use a straight edge made from 18mm MDF or Ply and a template from bit in my router.

For surface planning it's just as easy to use a hand plane for the size of boards you'd get through a small PT or you could even make a jig for your existing thicknesser to allow it to work as a surface planner.