Customer Reviews for Steel City 13 in. Quick Change Reversible Blade Bench Top Planer

The original Infeed and out feed tables are not real stable. I was having problems with snipe. I adjusted the tables just as the directions said and I was still having the same problem. I payed very close attention to the boards as they passed through and I noticed that the middle of the tables were bowing because of the lack of support. So I took a 2x4 and a piece of 1/4 ply and rigged up my own. Now I have little to no snipe. It's a great thicknesser for the money! I have used it a lot mainly red oak. I flipped the blades just to see how easy they are to change/reverse. Very easy. Great product if you don't mind fixing it up a little. Of coarse it smooths the wood great if you only make shallow passes, but what do you expect for the price. Now I'm working on a permanent station for it's place in my shop.

This planer is a good one for the money, though I would not recommend it for anyone serious about woodworking. If you are man-cave/hobby type, this planer is probably more than adequate. The trouble for me in my shop is that the blades are just too cheap. They are thin and will chip if you run anything exceptionally hard through it. Overall I am not - unhappy - with this planer, though I am in the market for one that is more durable.

Works great right out of the box. Product quality is obvious. Have not tested it under heavy use yet, or changed blades, but impressed so far.

Excellent value balance of quality and low cost. Solidly built, easy to set up, very minimal to nonexistent snipe. Doesn't do the greatest job of capturing all chips/shavings in vacuum hookup, but no complaints at all otherwise.

Have run cherry, tupelo gum, old fire hardened bourbon barrel staves thru and it works fantastic. If you have a lot of money go buy a more expensive unit so you can brag I just spent 1200. dollars on a new planner.

I like the product but it did leave lines and marks down center of wood

Prior to purchasing this unit I spent several hours reviewing online reviews and forums, checking out various manufacturers, web sites, etc. Also, I work in a small custom woodworking shop by day building custom cabinets, entertainment centers, etc. I decided on this unit based upon this research and also because of the price (I wanted the helical cutters in the 40300H), but I was pleasantly surprised. The boards come out really smooth and it is not as noisy as I was expecting it to be (important in the modern suburb where neighbors are as little as 20 ft away). Dust collection is adequate using a shop vac, so I expect this will improve when I upgrade my dust collection system.

My husband almost bought a cheaper one at a nearby retailer but decided to get this one instead with free shipping from Home Depot. He said he is very happy he got this one and has been happily using it without problems for about a month.

It was easy to set up took only a few minutes. Checked the in feed and out feed tables and they were level with the bed. I ran a piece of cherry thru with no snipes.

Pulled out of the box, quick set up. Plained mahogany with no snipe. Great!

This planer works great. Small but powerful. The wood came out so smooth, better then some I've seem at lumber stores. I can plane anything to the size I need with no problem at all. Thanks this little planer has saved me a lot of time and money.

I was very pleased with the machine........ but the screws that hold the blades in place came loose, chewed up a board, cracked part of the machine, spit a chunk of metal, popped the breaker and died. I took it back to my local Home Depot and they credited the money to my account no problems, Great costumer service. I was very pleased with the machines performance so much so that I was going to get the same one but they are now out of stock online. Snipe can be avoided with a little practice, but like any planer can not always be 100% avoidable. Nice smooth cuts as long as the blades are still sharp. Easy adjustments plus the manual helps explain the majority of the set up adjustments in a simple straight forward way. The blades are double edged so when one side gets dull you can flip them over and ya got another set of sharp runs. The motor ran strong as long as you don't try to make a cut to deep, then the motor would bog down a little but same goes on most any machine. They only thing to watch for is the screws may come loose that hold the blades in place.... I checked the screws every few days of running... I SHOULD HAVE CHECKED MINE MORE OFTEN !!!! I recommend double checking them before use and after every few hours or so of actual board running.

i ordered this planer it comes with a 2 1/2 and 4" dust shut. i unpacked it all the parts were there only a couple thu. i checked the in feed and out feed tables and they were level from the factory. i run some stock thru it and have no snipe. this is a great planer even if it had cost more. you cant beat the price thu. fast shipping i hade this planer in a couple of days. last thing this planer is made in taiwan.

My old planer recently conked out on me in the middle of a project and I needed a new one fast. I was frustrated at first. Living in a small town, the tool availability is limited at Home Depot and elsewhere. Then I saw the online free shipping. Not having a lot to spend, I looked at a lot of options before settling on the Steel City. Are there better planers out there? Absolutely. If you're willing and able to pay a fortune. But as far as I'm concerned, you won't find a better deal at this price. Easy to set up and after taking the time to carefully level out the infeed and outfeed tables, I haven't seen any noticeable snipe. So far I've ran curly Maple, Walnut, Cherry and Yellow Pine through it, Smooth as silk. Better planer for the money? Show me. Did I mention free shipping?