Does anyone have advice on 3-1/4″ portable power planers? I’ve been looking at Bosch, PC, and Makita. A couple of contractors I know have Makitas(1902X7), but I can’t find any reviews on it anywhere. Seems the Bosch and PC generally get high reviews. Any advice someone can offer would be appreciated. I’m mostly going to be using it for planing down the whacked-out old 2 x 4’s between the walls so I can get 1/2″ drywall flush with door and window jambs. It’s an old house and there are a lot of areas that will need planing.
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just used the bosch cordless planer last week...it's beautiful.
Ooh, I've been looking at that for a while now. I like Bosch's cordless jig saw, except the rpm's seem a bit low and the balance is weird b/c of the battery. Does the planer have the same problems?
This topic was covered just a few days ago, refer to the following link. FWIW, the higher end Bosch seemed to be the majority favorite. At least it's mine anyway.
http://forums.taunton.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=tp-breaktime&msg=50899.1#a1
I have the Bosch 1594. I think its great I have nothing bad to say about this tool. Lowes just dropped the price too. I saw it last week for about $129.
I bought a cheap ryobi for 60 at the HD. Knew that I was going to use it for really rough work, and wasn't going to use it too often. Works pretty good, albeit some of the adjustments aren't as precise as some of the more expensive models. But you might consider one of those.Jeremy
I've used all of those, and suggest one of the Bosch models.
Cheaper Bosch is best value (particularly reconditioned), while the more expensive Bosch is the best machine.
Im the one who started the last thread and I ended getting the lower end bosch (3365 i think). I'm happy with it, smooth, clean cut, easy to control, quiet. I like it. Also the feature that lets you decide which side to shower out the waist is pretty cool.
measure once
scribble several lines
spend some time figuring out wich scribble
cut the wrong line
get mad
I have used a few of the smaller ones, and have a Dewalt which is OK, but if any of you want to get a real fine power-plane, that is really capable of doing the same kind of work as a jointer, I have had a 6 3/4"Mikata 1806B for about 20 years. You can find them online for $478.
It can be clamped in a vise and used like a normal jointer for small stuff, or hand held for large projects. It makes a good job-site companion for the small thickness planers. I have a long-bed 12" in the shop, but this thing still gets lots of use there even.
If this one ever quits, I will not hesitate to get another.