Against_The_Grain
Established Member
Looking at @Grantx's posts it seems he did eventually buy an iTech with a helical head, only to sell it two months later after deciding the craft wasn't for him.
I can see the appeal of spiral/helical cutter heads, but they are a serious outlay for a hobbyist woodworker who may only use their machine a handful of times a year. If you're looking to upgrade it makes sense to look at new machines with spiral/helical cutter blocks, but retrofitting a block that's worth more than the actual machine is just a non-starter in my opinion. I'd personally invest the money elsewhere like getting a high-quality planer, Axminster has their craft planer thicknesser with a helical cutter head for £1500, which would buy you a very nice quality secondhand Sedgwick or Felder machine which will be built far better overall
I change the straight high-speed steel knives in our planing machines probably every 3-6 months depending on the workload, four-cutter planer moulders more often, in a professional factory that planes mostly Oak, Accoya and Pine on a daily basis. Someone who planes rosewood, iroko, or other abrasive timbers all day every day may see a benefit from cutter heads with carbide inserts for longevity but for most workshops they are just completely unnecessary.
I can see the appeal of spiral/helical cutter heads, but they are a serious outlay for a hobbyist woodworker who may only use their machine a handful of times a year. If you're looking to upgrade it makes sense to look at new machines with spiral/helical cutter blocks, but retrofitting a block that's worth more than the actual machine is just a non-starter in my opinion. I'd personally invest the money elsewhere like getting a high-quality planer, Axminster has their craft planer thicknesser with a helical cutter head for £1500, which would buy you a very nice quality secondhand Sedgwick or Felder machine which will be built far better overall
I change the straight high-speed steel knives in our planing machines probably every 3-6 months depending on the workload, four-cutter planer moulders more often, in a professional factory that planes mostly Oak, Accoya and Pine on a daily basis. Someone who planes rosewood, iroko, or other abrasive timbers all day every day may see a benefit from cutter heads with carbide inserts for longevity but for most workshops they are just completely unnecessary.