My first planer ever was a Ridgid benchtop with traditional knife style blades, and while it did the job I needed, the cost of constantly having to rotate then change the blades every few months was adding up. Upgrading to a carbide cutterhead planer was a huge step up. Within the first 6 months of using the Laguna PX 12 the slightly higher cost paid for itself with not having to buy new blades. Even after 2 years of regular use, I still haven’t had to rotate the carbide cutters, which just go to show how resilient they are and how sharp they stay despite the challenges I’ve thrown at it.

When I first got the PX12 it was brand new from Laguna, and as with any new tool there’s always room for updates and improvements. When I was given the opportunity to do a side by side comparison of the QuadTec and QuadTec II cutterhead I leapt at the opportunity. Overall the general layout and style of the PX12 has not changed, some minor changes in placement of components, but overall it’s the same planer with the exception of the QuadTec II cutterhead.

Standard dust collection is optimized for a 4” hose however an adapter is included for 2.5” hoses if necessary. With the carbide cutters the chips coming out are much smaller and finer than what would come off a traditional blade style cutterhead, so clogging of your dust collection hoses are a thing of the past.

One of the biggest and most notable differences between the QuadTec and QuadTec II cutterheads is how significantly quieter they are than the Ridgid planer, and when I say significant, I really mean it. A mouse vs a bull in a China shop would be an apt comparison between the two. But of course I still do strongly recommend using hearing protection when using any planer, including the Laguna PX 12.

One interesting feature Laguna including on the PX12 was a thickness gauge set in the top panel of the planer itself. While I know this isn’t something that should be done, but it’s inevitable, is when I’m running multiple pieces through one after the other, I have a habit of setting the most recent outfeed piece on top of the planer as I’m working, the top panel is fairly narrow in depth, so unless you perfectly balance a longer piece on top it’s prone to tip and fall off, which is a pain when you’re trying to work quickly feeding and removing those multiple pieces. I know I know, I just need to slow down, but we’ve all done it.

The QuadTec II cutterhead features 26 x 4 sided carbide cutters, with a 2 HP motor, spinning at 10,000 RM makes for a planer that can handle virtually anything you can throw at it. Even highly figured woods come out beautifully smooth. In many cases I’ve been able to go from the planer to a light 220 grit sanding and the piece was ready for finishing. Tear out is a rarity, and when following the guidelines of having the in and outfeed extension tables set at a slight angle up from the main bed, snipe is drastically minimized if not completely eliminated in most cases.

No matter the density of the wood I pass through, the end result is a beautiful clean finish. While I really liked the PX12 with the original QuadTec cutterhead, there is definitely a noticeable improvement with the quality of finish coming out from the QuadTec II cutterhead.

Overall, the Laguna PX12 is a great planer for the small shop, its compact design makes storage easy, its powerful motor combined with the carbide cutters make it able to handle virtually any kind of wood you can find. But most importantly the durability and ease of rotating the carbide cutters makes the PX12 an investment that will save you money in the long run versus a traditional planer with a blade cutterhead.