Replies

1. 
   emerckx | Jan 04, 2004 02:43am | #1

   I have the Jet and outfitted it with a sliding cross-vise. I couldn't be happier witht the arrangement. All of the benchtops suffer a bit from their stock clamping system. The addition of a cross-vise made a huge difference in the ease of use. I got the idea from someone on the web...maybe Sarge who posts here a lot. A search will find it I'm sure.'

   Mike

1. 
   4yanks | Jan 04, 2004 02:57am | #2

   thanks

2. 
   NormInFujino | Jan 04, 2004 03:38am | #3

   I also have the Jet, but as a general reference, you might check the Benchtop Mortiser Review in American Woodworker online. The general consensus seemed to be that the models with slower motors (Craftsman, Delta, Jet) worked better, although all the benchtops have problems with their fence systems. I haven't updated my fence yet, but it's one of the things I have planned -- "when I get a round tuit."

   ". . .and only the stump or fishy part of him remained."

   Green Gables: A Contemplative Companion to Fujino Township

3. 
   alexlisa | Jan 04, 2004 04:49am | #4

   I have the Jet, and think it's better than the Delta, slightly more powerful motor. Ditto on the fence arrangement. I clamp everything down for each cut on exposed through-mortises to keep the holes clean. The Shopfox is supposed to be a good one also. Try a search for old threads on that one. Ditto on the speed issue. Get something that runs at the lower speeds, not the 3450 RPM models. I had a Woodtek mortiser (breifly) that ran at 3450, burned the hell out of the wood and bits.

1. 
   Jimma | Jan 05, 2004 01:14am | #5

   No one interested in the English Multico? Better than those mentioned above, all of which are Multico knock-offs, but none of them are equal to the Powematic, a very serious machine. Once again, depends on what you're going to do with it.

1. 
   Scrit | Jan 05, 2004 02:02am | #6

   Jim

   I have a Multico MCD and it's a pretty good machine, a sort of big brother to the smaller Multicos. It allows me to mortise lock openings in full width doors - something very few mortisers permit and certainly nothing in the price class. I think the problem is that Multicos are expensive when compared to the others....

   BTW, Multico moved from Harlow in the UK to northern France midway through last year, so they're technicaly not British any more. :-(

   Scrit

4. 
   tbhs1964 | Jan 05, 2004 03:37am | #7

   I have a Delta.  The holddown sucks.

5. 
   brookwood99 | Jan 05, 2004 05:57pm | #8

   i had the Delta and it SUCKED!!!!!!  The first one was broken out of the box and the replacement was not buch better.  I now have a big Bridgewood and love it.

6. 
   scooter1 | Jan 05, 2004 11:40pm | #9

   I am very happy with my Delta. I did a couple things to improve it:

   1. Extenstion Kit. This helps me mortise taller rails and thicker posts.

   2. Auxilary Fence. I rarely clamp the work being mortised, but I do always clamp stop blocks, so the mortise size remains constant. So I installed an auxilary fence, which is nothing more than a piece of half inch poplar. This makes fitting tennons a breeze, because all the mortises are exactly the same size, to about a 64th or so. Tennon fitting is now a thing of the past.

   3. Dedicated Cabinet. Go to a home Center and buy a cheap melamine base cabinet. I put a shop vac in the base and drill a hole for the tube in the countertop. I screw down the mortiser and wire both the shop vac and the mortiser to a current sensing circuit, so the shop vac is turned on when the mortiser is turned on.

   4. Dedicated Task Lighting. Mortising is fussy work, so I have a couple flourescent lights and spots on the machine.

   5. Drawers for depth guage, extra tape, pencils, etc. I also have a couple extra quarter inch mortiser bits, because that seems to be the ones that I use the most. Oh, and I have some specific pieces of wood the thickness of common mortises, like half inch, three eights, three quarters and an inch. Then I place the bit on the rail, lift up the Delta depth stop, put the block under it, and clamp it down. The depth will automatically be my pre-set depth. It helps to have a cheap sliding depth guage handy to calibrate those block, because they need to be a tad thicker than the stated depth, about a sixteenth over.

   I love my Delta, never had a problem with the holdowns, although it has limited range of movement, so if it is below the range, I have a set plywood boards, to raise the piece up to the level of the holdown. My only complaint is the Delta spring loaded chuck key, but this is the case will all Delta drill presses, too.

   Good luck with your new purchase.

   Regards,

   Boris

   "Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934

1. 
   TomFerreira | Jan 06, 2004 05:06am | #11

   Boris,

   I agree. I have the newer Delta with the large cast iron table and fence and I love it. I suspect most people who have problems aren't setting up the chisel and bit correctly. I have never had a burning problem and it cuts very smoothly. I have had no trouble with the holddown and like you don't clamp the work, but I do clamp stop blocks.

   I also feel that unless you are doing a lot of mortising, or have a large shop, the free standiong mortisers take too much floor space. I keep mine under the table saw extension wing, in a cabinet and bring it up on the workbench when I need it.

2. 
   Buzzsaw | Mar 30, 2007 09:25pm | #12

   Boris,

     Could you post a picture of your dedicated cabinet, fence, etc for your Delta?Regards,

   Buzzsaw

   "Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Gil Bailie

1. 
   scooter1 | Mar 30, 2007 09:39pm | #13

   "Could you post a picture of your dedicated cabinet, fence, etc for your Delta?"No, thats too much trouble for me. But I will say that there are a number of manufacurers of dedicated router tables which attach to the case iron cabinet or contractor's saw in lieu of the steel extension table. This is not custom.Regards, Scooter"I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow." WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934

2. 
   gregjones | Mar 31, 2007 01:26pm | #16

   I've seen several mortisers converted to handle an X-Y vise and most do so by raising the head with some type of wood extension. I converted my Delta 14-651 a little differently. The Delta comes with one riser block and I bought two more. With two blocks installed, the head is within 1/2" of the height of the stock configuration. Adding the third riser gets it to the same height as the stock configuration with one riser installed. This required new bolts to work and I found stainless 130mm and 180mm 8x1.25 bolts for the two and three riser configurations.The vise is a HF 4" model, with the slide flipped so I can operate both slides with my left hand while operating the mortiser with my right hand. The top slide was also flipped end for end and drilled and tapped to put the slide and vice cranks on the same end.All in all, I ended up with a very nice setup without too much investment. I bought the Delta at Amazon's blow-out last year for $142, the two risers were $25 each, the vise was $30, and the bolts were around $25 (at BoltDepot.com). That puts the total at right under $250, which is where the Amazon price is today for just the 14-651. While I am well pleased with how this turned out, I'd look at other options before converting another 14-651 at today's prices. This is a great system for under $250, not so great if it is over $350.

   
7. 
   alexlisa | Jan 06, 2004 04:22am | #10

   FYI

   Woodcraft has the Jet mortiser on sale for $199, marked down from $259.

8. 
   terrylee86 | Mar 30, 2007 11:12pm | #14

   I have the Steel City and like it very much.  I think SC takes what everyone does not like about Delta and improves upon it.  The guys at SC used to work for Delta and Powermatic.  I have their oscillating spindle sander and the mortiser and am quite satisfied.

9. 
   philip | Mar 31, 2007 09:15am | #15

   ''Dedicated hollow square chisel morticer ''
   I suggest that it would then be preferable to get something comparatively substantial, which can handle the full range of chisels, has proper hold down set up,reliable chucking, decent fence etc, such as already mentioned, but not pictured: Multico MCD, which was badged ''Felder'' when I got mine .

   Philip Marcou