Hi all. Since Pete Casica granted me the exclusive distribution of his planer’s modification kits for Europe, the UK and SA, I’ve been looking for a manufacturer who could produce some kind of grit barrel for the Makita; I have one on my Skil 100 and I do love it and I am sure that many people would be glad to have one, especially EPS shapers (EPS doesn’t like blades that much).
I got in touch with a french rasps manufacturer (one of the very last to make hand-stitched rasps) and they were very enthusiastic about the project, providing me with a prototype in less than one month. the idea is to have rasps inserts that install in place of blades so they are interchangeable and you don’t need to replace the whole cylinder permanently.
I tested the prototype and asked for some minor modifications such as deeper teeth but the basic product is there and it’s just a matter of weeks before I get the definitive model and it’s available for sale.
Knowing about the Boardroom in san Diego and that Pete would have a booth there, I sent him the early prototype inserts for display so if any of you are interested, go and have a look. Just keep in mind that this is not the finished product; I’m just trying to make it the best possible before selling it. Thanks for your interest.
I will be at the Boardroom Show at the Shaper Supply booth with the grit inserts. Unlike full grit barrels, these inserts are essentially bolt-on’s so there’s no disassembly of the planer. The inserts work because of the large flat areas of the stock cutter when the blades / carriers are removed. Previous designs of grit inserts which went in the blade slots (Skil) were marginal at best; they simply didn’t have enough area. Balsa did a great job getting this project going, and he’s continuing to refine the design. We need to know how much interest there is in this product as work continues so please let us know.
Shaper Supply will have some new products since last year like carbide-grit router bits, super flex/durable vacuum hoses, the Wen planers and sanders, pigments pre-mixed to a huge variety of colors, and some rare 676 and 190 Skil’s for sale (restored). Hope to see everyone there. - Pete
Hi Adam, maybe on the 1900B. I checked the parts diagrams for both 1900B and KP0810 and the cutters are different part numbers but look the same. However, I can confirm that Makita uses different part numbers for the same actual part if used on a different model tool. The best way to verify would be to physically see if the blade carriers are interchangeable with the KP0810. You could also contact your local Makita service center and see what they say, but they will probably tell you they’re different part numbers.
Just want to be clear that I will just be showing the prototype grit inserts at the Boardroom, not for sale yet. But really the response here and my emails tell me that there’s demand for something like this which is what Balsa needs to know. And the inserts may also fit other Makita’s like the 1900B (see Adam’s post).
I’m working on it. Gotta be there. I’m running the “Surfboard Express” Monday – Tuesday the week after. Pete-- I’ll call you the next day or two. Lowel
