Replies

1. 
   watkinsjd | Sep 23, 2003 11:50pm | #1

   Ken,

   I have a Grizzley 1023ZX 5HP cabinet saw and I have found no reason to justify paying the premium for the Delta, PM etc.   There isn't much difference between it and the Delta and Jet machines for sure.  The PM does have beefier trunions.

   The guy I bought my saw from had the Griz 8 inch jointer.  He was moving from NY to FLA and his plan was to sell his tools here instead of paying to move them and was going to reorder from Grizzley when he got there.

   John

2. 
   PnCbWshp | Sep 24, 2003 12:08am | #2

   I've had both a Delta 8" and a Grizzley 8" jointer side by side in my shop both new just out of the box (its a long story how that happened). I could not fine $600 worth of difference between the two. The Delta was a little smoother in the adjustments, but that was it.

   I've owned a Griz contractors saw for 10 years and am going to upgrade to a Griz cabnet saw soon. My Griz radial drill press is terrific. I have no complaints about my Griz 15" planer except I wish it was a Griz 20" 5hp.

   For the money, I don't think you can go wrong with Grizzley. If money is not a factor then jump to the top of the line. Otherwise, save a lot and buy more power tools you don't have yet.

3. 
   shopdoc | Sep 24, 2003 07:04am | #3

   Ken,  I live 90 minutes from the Grizzly store in Pa. and 20 minutes from Wilke Machinery ( they sell the Bridgewood line ) so when I was looking to upgrade to a 12 inch jointer I had the luxury of being able to closely examine both machines. They were very close but when I put a pair of winding sticks on the tables the Griz had just a little twist. The sales guy let me check other jointers in the warehouse and every on of them had an almost identical twist! All of the BWs were perfectly flat. The fit and finish on the BW was also far superior and the price was several hundred dollars less, so I got the BW. Wilke also had the General and the Delta both of which were considerably more expensive but IMO of inferior quality! Don't get me wrong Griz makes very good machinery and I have owned and own lots of their stuff, I would never preclude buying Griz but it is nice to be able to check out the particular machine first as the quality can vary somewhat.

1. 
   KenMattie | Sep 25, 2003 04:04pm | #4

   Doc, your right.  Buying expensive equipment sight-unseen is unsettling at best.  I live in Atlanta, Georgia, returning a machine such as a 12" jointer to the seller if it doesn't meet my expectations is not an option.  Having said this, my impression is that enough time has passed since the introduction of other brands of imported Asian machines that the reliability of the industry's quality assurance has reached an equilibrium.  Thanks for your comments.