Which Mortiser?

Willing to make one? Plans available for this one:
http://www.patwarner.com/morticer.html
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> I am in the market for a mortising machine.
>
> I think I want a dedicated machine and not a drill press attachment.
>
> Does anyone remember a recent magazine review of these tools?
>
> Does anyone have a recommendation or a brand to stay away from?
>
> Any advice you can offer would be appreciated.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Rob

I had a Delta drill press attachment and upgraded to a Delta dedicated
machine. So far first prject went well and I'm satisfied with the
results. The setup on the drill press got to be a pain in the butt
espsecially when I needed to drill holes and the mortiser attachment
was in there.

D.Martin





On Wed, 31 Dec 2003 22:19:40 -0600, "Rob" <[email protected]> wrote:

>I am in the market for a mortising machine.
>
>I think I want a dedicated machine and not a drill press attachment.
>
>Does anyone remember a recent magazine review of these tools?
>
>Does anyone have a recommendation or a brand to stay away from?
>
>Any advice you can offer would be appreciated.
>
>Thanks!
>
>Rob
>

Rob wrote:
>
> I am in the market for a mortising machine.
> I think I want a dedicated machine and not a drill press attachment.
> Does anyone remember a recent magazine review of these tools?
> Does anyone have a recommendation or a brand to stay away from?
>
> Any advice you can offer would be appreciated.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Rob

Having an XY table makes set up and use a great deal easier.
A 3/4 hp or bigger motor won't bog down. Slower speed
let's you smell the smoke BEFORE the fire and maybe save
a burnt (lost temper due to overheating) chisel and bit.
Built in left right stops mean no stop blocks clamped
to the fence. A really good hold down/hold in is also
nice to have. You WILL get a chisel stuck. Knocking
the piece off the chisel because the hold down doesn't
do the job is BAAAAAD.

If you begin doing M&T joints you'll find that, if the
early experiences are good, you'll do more pieces using
this type of joint. But, if the initial experiences
involve frustration, damage chisel/bits, wandering
sides etc., you'll likely shy away from M&T. M&T
joints have many advantages and one is that they're
self supporting and self aligning so you can do dry
fits of the piece as you go.

Long story shortened a bit - consider either the
PowerMatic 719A and the General International 75-075M.
Either one will not disappoint you and will get
a lot of use.

Here's The General info
www.wood-workers.com/users/charlieb/Mortiser.html

Here's a comparison of the two
www.wood-workers.com/users/charlieb/MortisersComparison.html

The tilting head and rotatable fence features on the
General is handy if you may get into making chairs or
non-square coners pieces

No matter what you get the set up of the chisel and the
bit is critical. Here's The Forty Cent Method
www.wood-workers.com/users/charlieb/MChiselBitSettingTrick.html

Sorry this adds to your acquisition dilema :)

charlie b

"Stacey" wrote in message
> I bought the delta as well. 2nd cut, the stupid pin on the handle
> mechanism broke so that I could not use it. TOok it to a local authorized
> repari place and it was repaired in 30 minutes. No problems since and it
> works really well.

Yeah, I remember you mentioning that ... glad you got it resolved.

Maybe I 'm missing something, but what I don't like about it is when the
riser is attached the fence/hold down is no longer usable, and if you have
it mounted on a bench, there is no place to easily clamp a fence. Had to cut
16 mortises in 5" aprons the other day, thank gawd they were for spindles
and were shallow.

That said, most benchtop mortisers probably have the same problem. I'm not
complaining because I've likely saved more than $275 +/- in time alone since
I bought it, despite its ocassional shortcomings.

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 12/29/03

"Jeff" <[email protected]> wrote in message > >
>
> Popular Woodworking #123, August 2001 did a comparison of 10 benchtop
> mortisers that is worth looking at.
>
> In a nutshell, it comes down to preferences of motor speed. All 10 of
> the mortisers had 1/2 HP motors, but the speed varied from 1,720 RPM
> to 3,450 RPM. The slower motors are supposed to cut down on smoking
> and keep the temperature down during the cut (thereby helping prevent
> "bluing" of the chisel). On the other hand, they have a greater
> tendency to stall in dense wood.
>
> PW's Editor's Choice was the Multico PM12, which is of the fast
> variety. Best Buys were considered to be the Bridgegwood HM-11 and
> Grizzly G3183. I bought the Grizzly, primarily because it was a lot
> cheaper than the Multico.

Workbench Magazine, August 2003 differs in the test of 8 machines. They did
have the reviews on line.
Delta 14-651 was top rated, Jet JBM-6 Rated Top Value

Delta 14-651 Vices: None
Bridgewood HM-11 Overpriced; capable but costly
Craftsman 21906 Sub-par performance
Woodteck 900-881 Lacks features
General Int. Loaded with features; Above average performance
Jet Solid performance. Vices: Requires some muscle
Fisch BTM-- Require enormous effort to cut 1/2" mortises Low
price (185) possibly an option for light use.
Multico Excellent fit and finish; Top performance; Very
expensive ($649)

I bought the Delta. Only made a couple of cuts, but I like what I see. Went
together easily. Hardest part was getting the 55 pounds up on the bench.
Ed
[email protected]
http://pages.cthome.net/edhome

"Rob" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> I am in the market for a mortising machine.
>
> I think I want a dedicated machine and not a drill press attachment.
>
> Does anyone remember a recent magazine review of these tools?
>
> Does anyone have a recommendation or a brand to stay away from?
>
> Any advice you can offer would be appreciated.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Rob

Popular Woodworking #123, August 2001 did a comparison of 10 benchtop
mortisers that is worth looking at. I was in the market for one
myself at the time, and since I did not have any hands-on experience
with any of the machines, I used the article as a source of
recommendations.

In a nutshell, it comes down to preferences of motor speed. All 10 of
the mortisers had 1/2 HP motors, but the speed varied from 1,720 RPM
to 3,450 RPM. The slower motors are supposed to cut down on smoking
and keep the temperature down during the cut (thereby helping prevent
"bluing" of the chisel). On the other hand, they have a greater
tendency to stall in dense wood.

PW's Editor's Choice was the Multico PM12, which is of the fast
variety. Best Buys were considered to be the Bridgegwood HM-11 and
Grizzly G3183. I bought the Grizzly, primarily because it was a lot
cheaper than the Multico. I've had different levels of success with
Grizzly products, depending on which machine we're talking about.
This mortiser, however, has worked very well for me and I am pleased
with it's performance. Unfortunately, I think Grizzly now only
carries the Shopfox brand. If you're interested in a clone, you might
check out the Bridgewood.

Don't let me steer you in any particular direction. If you can find
the article, I think it is worth reading to learn the various mortiser
features to look for. Then you can make up your own mind.

Good Luck!

Jeff

Ditto .. I can't fault my Delta. I particularly like the Dovetail gib the
head assembly slides on, damn strong. That particular 55lbs comes in handy
for use as a caul keeping large panel glue-ups flat. DAMHIK.

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 12/29/03

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in message

> I bought the Delta. Only made a couple of cuts, but I like what I see.
Went
> together easily. Hardest part was getting the 55 pounds up on the bench.

I bought the delta as well. 2nd cut, the stupid pin on the handle
mechanism broke so that I could not use it. TOok it to a local authorized
repari place and it was repaired in 30 minutes. No problems since and it
works really well.


"Edwin Pawlowski" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Jeff" <[email protected]> wrote in message > >
> >
> > Popular Woodworking #123, August 2001 did a comparison of 10 benchtop
> > mortisers that is worth looking at.
> >
> > In a nutshell, it comes down to preferences of motor speed. All 10 of
> > the mortisers had 1/2 HP motors, but the speed varied from 1,720 RPM
> > to 3,450 RPM. The slower motors are supposed to cut down on smoking
> > and keep the temperature down during the cut (thereby helping prevent
> > "bluing" of the chisel). On the other hand, they have a greater
> > tendency to stall in dense wood.
> >
> > PW's Editor's Choice was the Multico PM12, which is of the fast
> > variety. Best Buys were considered to be the Bridgegwood HM-11 and
> > Grizzly G3183. I bought the Grizzly, primarily because it was a lot
> > cheaper than the Multico.
>
> Workbench Magazine, August 2003 differs in the test of 8 machines. They
did
> have the reviews on line.
> Delta 14-651 was top rated, Jet JBM-6 Rated Top Value
>
> Delta 14-651 Vices: None
> Bridgewood HM-11 Overpriced; capable but costly
> Craftsman 21906 Sub-par performance
> Woodteck 900-881 Lacks features
> General Int. Loaded with features; Above average
performance
> Jet Solid performance. Vices: Requires some muscle
> Fisch BTM-- Require enormous effort to cut 1/2" mortises Low
> price (185) possibly an option for light use.
> Multico Excellent fit and finish; Top performance; Very
> expensive ($649)
>
> I bought the Delta. Only made a couple of cuts, but I like what I see.
Went
> together easily. Hardest part was getting the 55 pounds up on the bench.
> Ed
> [email protected]
> http://pages.cthome.net/edhome
>
>
>