Makita 2012NB Review: A Planer Worth Getting?

Handyman'south World is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Assembly Program, an chapter advertising plan designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by ad and linking to amazon.com.

When it comes to woodworking jobs, the Makita 2012NB 12-Inch Planer is a promising automobile for trimming your wood, and it even has a clamping mechanism to reduce annoying snipe. If yous're working on repetitive tasks, whether you lot're a casual user or a serious woodworker, you'll find that this planer deserves a spot in your work expanse.

But what'southward to say about the Makita 2012NB 12-Inch Planer? In this review, I'll go over its features, specs, pros, and cons to assist you decide whether to buy this planer or not.

Reviewed Product

Makita 2012NB 12-Inch Planer

An overall remarkable planer with corking usability features and a good thickness capacity. It also features a unique clamping system to reduce snipe.

As a benchtop planer, this machine is ideal for the weekend warrior as well as the daily woodworker. The pattern includes clamps and gauges that will simplify your day-to-day tasks, and speed upwardly work with minimal snipe.

Specifications

The Makita 2012NB is a planer that tin handle materials upwards to 12 inches wide, 6-3/32 inches thick, and one/8 inch deep. It has a no-load speed of 8,500 RPM and runs on a 15-amp motor at a noise level of 83 dB. This means that the benchtop planer has just the right specifications to take on the most jobs (especially if y'all're not so much into brittle hardwood projects).

Begetting a table size of thirteen ten xxx-3/8 inches, the entire machine measures 19-1/64 x 30-3/8 x 15-25/32 inches. Similar many benchtop planers out there, it has 2 knives. The machine weighs 61.9 pounds, which is average when compared with many similar units.

Quality

Makita honors a 1-year limited warranty for this tool and it can be returned to any of their official service centers worldwide.

Nonetheless, to make the motorcar durable confronting article of clothing and tear, it has a 4-post design for stability when handling the unit, which is particularly great if you are also looking for diagonal cantankerous supports. With its large table extensions, this planer delivers great workpiece back up.

Usability

Usability features are abundant on this benchtop planer. For instance, it has an easy blade change system that saves time from configuring the unit, giving yous more time working on your material. It besides has an LED low-cal that lets you lot know if the unit is powered on.

My favorite usability characteristic is the Interna-Lok automated head clamp. This eliminates, or at least reduces, the likelihood of snipe. Moreover, it even decreases the noise levels created by the auto. Likewise, it has grit hood compatibility that allows you to conveniently connect to your shop vacuum.

Additionally, it has a large paddle on/off switch that makes operation user-friendly. A cutting depth adjusting mechanism allows you to tweak the thickness of your planed cloth. It even has a detachable toolbox and then you lot can shop your essential items in the machine. Furthermore, the adjustable depth terminate will assistance you create more output with repeated accuracy.

Should You Buy the Makita 2012NB Planer?

If you just desire a benchtop planer to practice the job for a wide diverseness of forest thicknesses, the Makita 2012NB is a great car for you. It has sufficient adjustability features and usability to help y'all end the job without much hassle.

Whether you're a weekend warrior, or wanting to begin your own woodworking business concern, this is a smashing beginner automobile to have, due to its speed and capacity. Besides, if y'all're prone to having snipe on your material, the clamping mechanism of this benchtop planer will help to avert that.

If you are however unsure well-nigh the decision, get through the beneath list of the pros and cons of the tool.

Pros of the Makita 2012NB

Let's starting time with the pros.

Information technology has a clamping mechanism to preclude snipe.

As mentioned above, the Interna-Lok automated head clamp is one of the central usability features of this benchtop planer. Its main purpose is to lessen the likelihood of snipe past belongings the material firmly in place when you brand your pass.

Having a unit that protects the cloth from potential snipe saves time and resources. Imagine having to cut off the ends of your wood material constantly due to snipe – it's abrasive! Having mechanisms that prevent (or at least reduce) snipe brand the job easier and more than enjoyable.

Information technology has a large capacity for material thickness.

Because this benchtop planer will take upwardly to 6-3/32 inches thick of material, it is platonic for some heavy-duty projects. While nigh of the machines out in that location merely take half dozen-inch wood, the added fraction already makes a difference. Being able to handle thicker material makes a benchtop planer more than flexible for handling different jobs and projects.

There's an adjustable depth cease.

The adjustable depth finish will help you make repetitive cuts without consuming a lot of fourth dimension. Just gear up the depth that you lot want and let the planer do its job over and over again. There will exist little to no loss of accuracy and you as well didn't waste material time or effort.

If you find yourself oft making mistakes and as well desire to mass-produce a specific thickness of wood material, utilize the adjustable depth finish of this benchtop planer. It provides convenience and volition better your productivity.

The on/off switch has a convenient paddle design.

If you ask woodworkers and frequent users of power tools, they'd prefer a paddle design because it allows convenience when operating the unit. Paddle switches are amend than traditional types due to the easy sliding mechanism. This benchtop planer has a blueprint that makes it elementary to operate to avoid wasting valuable time.

Makita 2012NB Planer in Use

Cons of the Makita 2012NB

Even though the Makita 2012NB is a great tool, at that place are a few cons worth noting as well.

You take to buy the dust hood separately.

While the machine has dust extraction arrangement compatibility, yous do have to buy the dust hood separately considering information technology is not included with the benchtop planer.

The paddle switch could be amend designed.

Although we did praise the benchtop planer for its paddle switch blueprint, it could use a lilliputian tweaking due to this small key that triggers the unit to turn on. The key could get lost due to its fragile design.

What Are the Alternatives to the Makita 2012NB?

Alternative to Makita 2012NB If you feel that the Makita 2012NB is simply not the benchtop planer for y'all, hither are other alternatives worth mentioning:

A like unit with a 15-amp motor is the Craftsman CMEW320 Benchtop Planer (read my review), which has a cutting speed of viii,000 RPM and sixteen,000 CPM. It is also a dual-pocketknife machine that allows for easy blade changes. Moreover, its caput-mounted ball-begetting construction reduces snipe, and delivers smooth operation. The Poly-5 cutter head drive is as well designed for added material removal.

Some other choice you might like is the DeWalt DW735X thirteen-Inch Thickness Planer, which has a 6-inch depth and xiii-inch width cutting capacity. It has ii speeds to choose from (96 or 179 CPI) but what's different about this benchtop planer is that it has iii knives. This makes it more suitable for hardwoods and other brittle forest types and materials.

If you want a higher cutter head speed of 10,000 RPM, go for the DeWalt DW734 Benchtop Planer, which has a 15-amp motor, also equally a long infeed and outfeed design to accomodate bigger materials. Information technology has 96 CPI and a 4-column wagon lock that decreases snipe in your fabric. Similar many benchtop planers out there, it has a cloth removal estimate and a turret depth end for adaptability depending on your material.

Summary

To wrap it upward, the Makita 2012NB is a considerable option for a benchtop planer. With a sufficient width capacity of 12 inches and an 8,500-RPM speed, plus information technology accepts up to vi-3/32 inches thick materials, this motorcar will cater to the needs of your common woodworking tasks, whether you just create items on the weekends or practice information technology for a living.

Reviewed Product

Makita 2012NB 12-Inch Planer

An overall remarkable planer with swell usability features and a good thickness capacity. It also features a unique clamping system to reduce snipe.