Help needed, Craftsman wood planer.

[PJs]

Here is the Parts list and exploded view of the 149.21871 from Parts Direct.



If it is that model then it appears to have Ball Bearings (2x item 4) and has a 4" drive pulley. I would think the bearing might hold up for a few minutes at that speed but IMHO 12k rpm seems a bit fast for a jointer. Even with a 3450 motor the pulleys around a 6" & 2" to reach ~10K. Personally I would shoot for around 8K Max. Cutter head speeds on larger units (6") is around 8k for a 1.88" head (Grizzly Page7).

Hand held Planers are a different beast and used differently. A Jointer is generally used on wood for taking the crown or bow out of it and reduced sanding for finish. I'm not sure tool SFPM is generally used with Jointers because the "Hand" feed rate of the material is pretty slow so as to get a good finish and the cuts are usually < .0625. Blades are typically some type of HS tool steel. My guess would be W1 or similar to handle the durability issue with a lower HRC. My old "American" (early 70's Taiwanese) WJ-6 (6") will take a piece of 6" Walnut and make it baby butt smooth in 2-3 passes but it has a 1.5hp motor.

PJ