Replies

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Nov 07, 2003 06:46am | #1

   CW

      Was Amazon when I was shopping. You need to check them and others to compare at the current moment. Lowe's has the older DW on clearance. Depends on what you want in features and what you willing to pay. In essence, yesterdays prices and features may not be todays.

   Good Luck Shopping...

   sarge..jt

1. 
   user-399008 | Nov 07, 2003 03:10pm | #2

   Thanks Sarge... I've looked at Amazon, just didn't know if there was anyplace else out threre that offered great discounts on shop equipment.

   Thanks

2. 
   JMartinsky | Nov 07, 2003 04:11pm | #3

   Amazon, good prices, nice to deal with, no tax & free shipping! Good Luck!

   John

1. 
   watkinsjd | Nov 07, 2003 11:56pm | #4

   A good place to check for tool prices is http://www.toolseeker.com.

   This will give you the prices of several online sellers.  Probably not all of them but usually enough.

   One observation, you need to add the item to your shopping cart then go to the cart to see the total you are being charged at the online sites.  It is not always obvious what the bottom line really is because of hidden handling, freight charges, tax, etc.

   JW

   Edited 11/7/2003 3:57:46 PM ET by DR WATSON

1. 
   CRAIGCONEY_M | Nov 08, 2003 12:42am | #5

   If the price is drastic enough, I always take the internet/mailorder pirce to my local suppliers.  Most will match or come close to the price & you get the local service as well.

3. 
   fdampier5 | Nov 08, 2003 06:33am | #6

   It really depends on what you want to buy..

     I had a Delta (actually two of them),  but I needed a larger unit.. In the end I wound up buying a Grizzley and sure don't regret it.   So far I've planned over 20,000 bd.ft. of hardwood thru it and it has been almost flawless (One drive belt quit but I was able to get a replacement at my local auto parts store and have it running again in less than 15 minutes)  Changing blades is a breeze!  I can do it in less than 10 minutes.  From white oak to eastern white pine I've put thousands of boards thru it and they always amaze me with the wonderful way they come out..

     No one can accuse me of treating it with kid gloves either, the first year I had it it sat under a plastic tarp and was regularly rained/ snowed  on..It was used outside in the cold 15 below and colder sometimes.    I've stuffed great big 8x8 timbers, 6x9 timbers, 6x12 timbers, thru it and some are over twenty feet long (the longest was 26 feet.. because sometimes the sawmill doesn't cut the timbers perfect I've had many occasion when I've wedged timbers in and forced the planner to try to swallow something it couldn't.   The price for my 20 inch Grizzley was about what they wanted for a much smaller Delta at Amazon

         

1. 
   watkinsjd | Nov 08, 2003 08:42am | #7

   Frenchy,

   It's good to hear you have had such good results from the Griz planner.  I have a Grizzly  1023ZX, 5 HP table saw that I love more every time I use it.

   One suggestion. I remember a thread in this forum within the last few months about replacement belts for machines.  One of the posts suggested that there were different characterstics for automotive belts and machine belts that would influence me to prefer to get the replacement belt from a machine belt supplier or the manufacturer such as Grizzly rather than an auto parts store. The old memory is a bit fuzzy on just why but it made sense at the time.

   Your auto belt may work great forever but you might want to track down the discussion to see what to expect in case you have any furure problems that may be belt related.

   JW

1. 
   fdampier5 | Nov 09, 2003 04:51am | #8

   I kinda remember the discussion but it's one of those issues That don't seem too important to me.. There are three belts and only one failed.. Normally as anal as I am I'd replace all three with a matched set, but I was and am still in the midst of building my house myself from wood straight from the sawmill.  Priorities force me to do things that I would never do under normal circumstances. 

     Luckily the Grizzley doesn't seem to care.   It's planning right along just as content with it's mismatched belts as when it was new..

2. 
   forestgirl | Nov 10, 2003 12:04am | #9

   Frency, glad to hear you like your Grizzly planer.  Have to make a point though that the quality of their stationary, belt-driven planer is not necessarily reflected in their bench-top planer.  They have yet to make one with a head-lock, and from what I hear they snipe pretty badly.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl   ;-)

1. 
   fdampier5 | Nov 10, 2003 04:05am | #10

   I had two Delta's (12 1/2 inch bench tops)  actually I still have one)  and they are supposed to have the feature that eliminates snipe but sure enough if you don't lift up on the board as it finishes it's cut there's that ugly snipe.    Kinda think that they all do it.. that's why I get boards that are longer then needed and that way if I should have some snipe it's easy to cut off..

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Nov 10, 2003 07:32am | #11

   frenchy

      You mentioned that you think that all thickness planers can produce snipe. So do I. I have never seen a protable that didn't. I have not seen the new DW at work, but I doubt it will overcome snipe on occasion. If you don't lift as mentioned, it is almost a gaurantee on longer stock. I also use a slightly longer piece. Better safe than sorry. ha..ha..

   Have a good nite...

   sarge..jt 

2. 
   forestgirl | Nov 10, 2003 07:48pm | #12

   There are definitely "degrees of snipe" and the machines with the headlocks fall into the lower range.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl   ;-)