Inca 570 as a jointer?

[gcrimmins]

I have a Powermatic 6" jointer and occasionally find that a wider jointer would be useful. I've been watching for a used 8" jointer, but recently came across an Inca 570  10" jointer/planer for sale. I probably wouldn't use one as a planer much, but I'm wondering if it's a decent 10" jointer or if it's too short and light weight to be worth considering. Has anyone here used one?

[jteneyck]

I have a Powermatic 6" jointer and occasionally find that a wider jointer would be useful. I've been watching for a used 8" jointer, but recently came across an Inca 570  10" jointer/planer for sale. I probably wouldn't use one as a planer much, but I'm wondering if it's a decent 10" jointer or if it's too short and light weight to be worth considering. Has anyone here used one?

I had one for over 25 years.  I would take it any day over a 6" jointer regardless of table length.  Yes, it's easier to joint stuff on something with longer tables, but it's really hard to face joint a 10" board on a 6" or even 8" jointer.  I often jointed stuff 6 to 8' long on the Inca.  It's just technique and sometimes the use of a support or two if the parts are heavy.  

FWIW, the planer function is awesome, too.  I ran thousands of BF through that machine and it never disappointed me or let me down.  Change over time is less than a minute.  

[Philip1231]

My 2 cents: Inca was a well respected brand and I have seen numerous posts over the years praising the merits of the INCA equipment. I have never owned or used them. If availability of repair parts is not a concern, I'd say from anecdotal experience that these were very good machines. For what its worth.....

[barryvabeach]

I have never used one, but don't worry about the short length of the infeed and outfeed tables.  It is usually pretty easy to build extension tables out of plywood for a jointer - which is what I did for my J / P  - leveling feet get them right on the money when I need them.

[Hank Knight]

I owned an Inca 570 for over 25 years. It was my only joiner and planer. I built a lot of furniture with that machine and my experience was ihe same as jteneycek's. The 10" joiner capacity is a godsend. Yes, it would be nice if the machine had 72" tables, but it doesn't. It's easy to develop techniques for jointing long boards on short tables, and I can't recall a single time when ths short tables got in the way. The 10" jointer capacity opens a lot of doors to the hobbyiest that would remain firmly closed with a 6" or even an 8" jointer. And, as John said, don't overelook the planer. It does a fine job too. You can't get that kind of power equipment capacity in a small shop unless you're ready to spend $3K to $5K on dedicated machines or anoher combo machine.

[gcrimmins]

I owned an Inca 570 for over 25 years. It was my only joiner and planer. I built a lot of furniture with that machine and my experience was ihe same as jteneycek's. The 10" joiner capacity is a godsend. Yes, it would be nice if the machine had 72" tables, but it doesn't. It's easy to develop techniques for jointing long boards on short tables, and I can't recall a single time when ths short tables got in the way. The 10" jointer capacity opens a lot of doors to the hobbyiest that would remain firmly closed with a 6" or even an 8" jointer. And, as John said, don't overelook the planer. It does a fine job too. You can't get that kind of power equipment capacity in a small shop unless you're ready to spend $3K to $5K on dedicated machines or anoher combo machine.