- published: 08 Jun 2015
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A jointer (also known in the UK and Australia as a planer or surface planer, and sometimes also as a buzzer or flat top) is a woodworking machine used to produce a flat surface along a board's length.
The jointer derives its name from its primary function of producing flat edges on boards prior to joining them edge-to-edge to produce wider boards. The use of this term probably arises from the name of a type of hand plane, the jointer plane, which is also used primarily for this purpose.
Fundamentally, a jointer consists of two parallel tables, a moveable fence which is normally set perpendicular to the tables, and a cutter head which is typically driven by an electric induction motor. (Older machines were driven by belts from line shafts.)
The two tables are referred to as the infeed (table from which the work piece is fed into the machine) and outfeed (table to which the work piece is fed as it leaves the machine). The work piece to be planed flat is placed on the infeed table and passed over the cutter head to the outfeed table.