The Ridgid planer checks all of these boxes and ... If you prefer to invest in premium equipment, the DeWalt thickness planer is the best benchtop planer your money can buy.

The Ridgid R4330 Planer ($370) uses a three-blade, 96-cut-per-inch cutterhead to shave down to a deli-slice-thin 1/8 in.--veneer thickness. It's versatile, portable and surprisingly affordable.

Benchtop planers (also called thickness planers ... though some models have more for an even smoother surface, like the Ridgid three-blade planer we cover below. There are also spiral cutterheads ...