JET Reviews

I liked how this saw was heavy and stable and it cut beautifully...for the 15 minutes that the motor lasted. Burned out before I got through cutting up one sheet of plywood.

I understand that these things happen and WMH and ToolCrib/Amazon were very good to order a replacement motor for me. However, since it's coming from Taiwan, it would have taken 2-1/2 months to get here. Again, WMH and ToolCrib stepped up and agreed to pay for shipping the saw back to ToolCrib/Amazon for a full refund well after the standard 30-day return policy. So service wasn't the issue, it's the availability of replacement parts that is the concern.

So I ordered a Powermatic to replace the Jet (hey, you've got to upgrade whenever possible, right?)

Also, the documentation that comes with Powermatic and Jet are pretty scarce in the details. It's important to note that these 5HP beasts pull alot of amperage. WMH recommends a 40amp breaker for both the Jet and the Powermatic. This necessitates an 8-guage wire from breaker to outlet. Pretty beefy, but it sure beats a fire...

All in all, although disappointed in the downtime, to be fair to the Jet, it's a nice saw that really does a good job. The service is good too. I'd like to think that this is an isolated incident, and given the other reviews, that's very likely. So take this with a grain of salt if you need to, just be aware of the wiring needs that aren't plainly spelled out in the manuals and be aware that if you do have issues, you'll likely get good service, but it may be a LONG time before you get your saw fixed.

This is my third table saw in twenty plus years. I've had it for a few years now.
There have been other saws that where used but, they belonged to my friend/employer.
This saw is SOLID, My use is varied. over the years, primarily restoration and cabinet work. All those other saws pointed to this setup. Five HP, absolutely! Hard woods "like butter". My first was a Sears cable- drive contractors, second a Taiwan Delta knock off, contractors ( still have).
I added the Incra Jig TS, having used them for years and appreciate their precision.
Workmanship is slick, the cast Iron polished. Jet, has endeared me with their products and customer service with prior experiences, so I knew that was a given.
Shipping, via FedEx Freight with a hydraulic tailgate made this heavy delivery a breeze. A moblile base gives you options in the shop.
Now, I can forget about it, in a good way, knowing that it's very very capable. Now its the projects, design, and of course the wood.

Bud

Absolutely great saw. I've had it for a year now. Before I bought this saw, I used a Delta 10" contractor's saw for a lot of years. I liked that saw and cut a LOT of wood with it, but the 1-1/2 hp motor was a bit on the weak side. When it was time, I knew I wanted a Cabinet-type saw with a lot of power. The only saws that I really considered were the Powermatic, Delta and Jet. I did a lot of research to determine which was the best saw. The cheapest was definitely the Jet with the Powermatic being, by far, the most expensive. With the amount of money that I was spending, I didn't have a problem paying more if I felt that I was getting more for the money. With all that said, I chose the Jet, and I have not been disappointed in the least. This machine is a monster. You can shove a piece of 2" oak through it as fast as the blade will allow with no motor bogging. As far as fit and finish go, it's beautiful. Shipping was great. Everything arrived in perfect condition. Set-up was quick and easy once I had all the correct parts. This leads me to the only downfall to my experience. The hardware to set up the fence, (bolts, nuts, and washers), were missing. I did not want to wait a week for Jet to send them to me, so I went to the local Home Depot and purchased the items for about $4. Everything else went smoothly. Though the missing items were frustrating at the time, I certainly would not downgrade my rating after using this great saw. The one thing that I would recommend is to buy the Delta mobile base. It is built well and much easier to use than most of the other bases available. The Delta base fits the Jet saw like it was made for it.

Don't get me wrong here, this is a real good machine. Very heavily built, excellant finish, and very quiet. The dust collection is great, it has plenty of power and tracks well. But I had to return it and replace it with the Shop Fox G4790(see separate review). There were a couple of reasons for this. First you cannot remove the end piece from the belt sander and sand on the radius. This piece is an intregal part of the tracking system and must remain on the machine when sanding. I need a machine that I can sand/shape large radius on. Second..I need a machine that I can quickly change belts, as I will go thru 4-5 differant grits in a 10 minute period. Changing the belt on this machine involves removing parts...too slow. The last item was the casters...they should be heavier duty. If I had kept the machine I would have changed them out for Gizzly 3" locking casters.
If none of these are important to your use, I would recommend this sander. It's a nice machine and I wish I could have kept it.

Purchased in February 2004 to replace a smaller sander that wore out after 15 years. I was impressed with the quality of the machine. Tracking was easily set up and has stayed true. Plenty of power, smooth operation and the vaccuum system is helpful in dust removal. Only negative was in the foot lever to lock the wheels which bent if I engaged the lock with a foot. Worked fine if one used a hand to set the lock. This flimsey locking mechanism should be improved.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS UNIT. IT IS MY FIRST JET PRODUCT AND I AM VERY SATISFIED WITH THE QUALITY AND OPERATION. WAS A LITTLE SKEPTICLE AT FIRST BECAUSE OF THE SMALLER H.P. MOTOR , BUT SOON FOUND OUT THIS IS NOT A PROBLEM.

THE SAW WAS GREAT, VERY WELL MADE AND TIGHT TOLERANCE. IT WAS VERY IMPRESIVE. THE TABLE ON THE OTHER HAND WAS POORLY MADE. THE OAK WAS SPLIT IN SEVERAL AREAS BUT DID NOT FUNCTIONALLY AFFECT PERFORMANCE. THE CUTOUT FOR THE ROUTER LIFT ASSEMBLY WAS CUT TOO CLOSE TOLERANCE AND MINOR HUMIDITY CAUSED TOO TIGHT A FIT. IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO GET ASSEMBLY TO FIT INTO CUTOUT WITHOUT FORCING IT WHICH I HAVEN'T DONE. I WOULD PREFER A REPLACEMENT TABLE. I WAS VERY DISSAPPOINTED IN EXTENSION TABLE.

If you are reading this review you are probably doing the same thing I was. Looking for the ultimate killer table saw to get old with. But in the back of your mind is the nagging idea that your better half may not see things quite the same way. So you look at the Deltas, Jets, Powermatics and maybe like me try to come to grips with not buying a good solid piece of Amercian steel.

Well give no more thought to your decision. JET has made the choice pretty plain.

Lets get the bad news out of the way. First, plan to devote a weekend of your life to setting up your new Jet. I got mine with a sliding table and between that and the saw it took a full weekend in part due to the incredibly poor manuals. A bolt sheared and two holes found their way into the wrong place. Only other complaints are the poorly sealed collection chamber bottom plate and the cheeseball vinyl labels instead of a decent rivited nameplate. Come on JET spring a buck or two.

Alright, enough complaining! Lets talk about how this beauty does its job. Punch on the power and this puppy snaps to life. Your first butter smooth perfectly square cut tells the story. This is an outstanding saw. Jet's attention to design and machining accuracy are evident with each cut. The fence has a useful and clever bubble magnifier to aid precise positioning. And is made in USA (which explains why its screws are sae and the saws are metric). Add the handy cabinet and router lift and it seems to me this saw is tough to beat. My suggestion is to use the money you saved over another brand and invest in Jet's sliding table. It's a bit of a challange to set up but makes handling even large panels a breeze.

I was looking for a solid, powerful and highly accurate saw with well rounded features JET delivered and left me with something to spend for more JET products.

Hope my experience helps in your decision! Happy woodworking!

saw was delivered in perfect shape had no trouble putting it together,am very happy

The engineering on this item is admirable. It is heavy, tightly machined, smooth acting, tight gripping. With a T-wrench instead of the two tools for tightening and loosening its grip it would be better, because with two tools an operator needs four hands to work it and control the object one is working on. A very good piece of equipment, however.

Conspicously missing from this product is the availability of LH thread inserts. Most bowl turners turn on the outside of the lathe. Unless you have a reversing motor (IE a newer lathe) you need LH threads. Some of Nova's competitors do offer the LH thread.

Nova does offer a blank insert so you can cut your own thread but you have to have a metal lathe or a left hand tap.

After having a 3 week wait for the insert for my lathe, I put the chuck together and made a little goblet with it to give it a little test. Being kind of new to turning, any woodturner would appreciate my hesitance at turning a piece of wood being only held at one end. But I found that once I tightened down the jaws, I could grab the piece of wood and lean back on it, and that piece of would was NOT going to come out or even loosen! I was able to turn the whole goblet without ever adjusting the chuck or even paying it any attention at all. The instructions for putting it together were great, and is really easy to use. My only thought (regret) would be that if this chuck performed this good, how much better is the Supernova chuck? GREAT value for the money, especially if you have a less powerful lathe where getting a bigger scroll chuck may be too taxing on your motor. Would definately get this guy. Comes with all the tools you'll need to use it, plus a heavy screw for screw chucking.

I have owned this jointer since the late 1990's and I have been very pleased with its performance. I only have a shoestring budget for tools, thus I have had to collect what I could, when I could (at times leading to the purchase of cheaply made tools). I am thrilled to report that this tool is in no way flimsy or cheap.

The cast iron is significant and I would give the fit and finish a grade of B+. The infeed/outfeed beds and the fence are very flat and hold their settings well. Though the open stand is not as sturdy as a closed stand would be, if you snug all of the bolts tight and then install this machine on a mobile stand, you won't have any trouble. In my experience, this tool has VERY little vibration, and it is EXTREMELY quiet. I would guess the low vibration is due to the weight - this thing is heavy. I love the fact that this machine comes with two hand wheels for infeed and outfeed bed height adjustment. I have not had a bit of trouble using mine to fine tune the table heights.

As for performance, I have edge/face jointed red and white oak, pine, poplar, walnut, and hard maple with no problems. The motor is more than adequate for all of my jointing needs as I always take a light cut. As for the knives, by varying the fence setting for narrow boards to insure even wear of the blades, I have only had to change my blades once. Though this was a terribly frustrating ordeal, that is common of all jointers so it is not really a valid criticism of this tool.

Overall, I am well pleased with this tool and don't expect that I will ever have need to replace it. Highly recommended!

This is a well made machine. It is easy to adjust and holds it's adjustments well. Very little vibration and not to loud. I have used it nearly every day for several weeks sice it's purchase and would definatly recommend it although I can see the advantages of an 8 inch jonter.

After comparing reviews between the Jet jointer and the Delta jointers - I decided to go with the Jet. I have used it many times now and couldn't be happier. It wasn't too tough to put together - but I had another person there to help so that made things easier. The fence and bed are all straight - no problems with those - and getting the tables matched up was very simple. There is little to no vibration when in use - I think it is much quieter than the tablesaw. The system to collect the chips - the hookup for a vacuum - isn't really worth much - I always end up with a pile of chips on the floor - but most reviews claimed this issue. I have used my jointer for several projects now and couldn't be happier with the results. I am getting straight edges for glue-ups and have also used it to plane down narrow boards. I would recommend this Jet very highly!!

This works fine as a floor sweep if you secure it to the floor. As a hand held wide-mouth dust collector, it leaves a lot to be desired (and a lot of dust). I purchased mine for 6.74 from Rockler and it is less than 8 at WoodCraft, so the Amazon price is way high for this item.

I agree with the previous reviewer that this is an excellent "tool" to clean up all of the dust and scraps that have would up on the floor. The unit it self is sturdy and should stand up to lots of use. But that is not all it can do.

I found one very cool use for the floor sweep. Since I don't have a sanding table with built in dust collection, I tried something different. I clamped the floor sweep to my bench top and sanded my project in front of the sweep. All of the sanding mess was sucked up into the sweep and away into my DC system.

I definitely give Jet Floor Sweep 1003 and my Jet DC 1100 a big thumbs up.

The Floor Sweep is an excellent "tool" to clean up all the dust that escaped from the DC system and made it's way onto the floor. The large size, about 24" by 6", with a 4" outlet, allows for a quick and easy cleanup of the shop floor. Just use it like a regular vacuum cleaner. The plastic housing is heavy duty, will stand up to a lot of use, and abuse.

Include a blastgate to the floor sweep, then you can turn it on and off when needed. It is somewhat too large and bulky to clean the bench tops, but does an excellent job on the floor. It is worth setting up a branch on the DC system just for this floor sweep.

I bought this hose to use with a Jet dust collector in my one car garage wood shop. Though my shop is small and the collector is very portable, I decided that the best dust solution for me was to duct the collector down one wall of the shop with several gated outlets for various stationary tools and one gated outlet near the floor for mobile tools out in the center of the room.

This 10' Jet hose proved to be an essential component of this system. I used 4' lengths of galvanized metal duct everywhere that I could, but I still needed plenty of this flex hose to make the connections to my radial arm saw and miter saw (since the dust ports on these tools move while in use).

I have been very pleased with the rigidity and strength of this hose - in fact, my only beef is that it is almost too rigid. If you have a length of it that you use for mobile tools, it is very cumbersome since it does not easily roll up for storage.

I am happy to report that this hose fit perfectly on all of my 4" dust collection fittings (all of which were made by Jet also). In my opinion, the hose is well made even if its a bit too rigid, and the price is ok. I have also used the Woodstock International hose and find it to be cheaper and more flexible but not nearly as strong or crush resistant. Choose the one with the features that meet your needs.

This hose fits the standard 4" couplings snugly. The nice thing is that it will not get damaged by accidentally stepping on it. It springs back. It is light enough to be used as a movable hose for picking up a pile of sawdust. It isn't affected by a strong vacuum, so it is strong enough to not collapse without springing back. Nice job Jet. It is a wire reinforced hose.
The wire clamps are the best to secure it. Typical band clamps, like the type that are used for water hoses are not suggested. They spread themselves over the coiled wire. Such a wire is not meant to collapse. The wire clamps on the other hand are meant to slide down in between the wires, meeting with the plastic hose material, enabling the preferred compression directly onto the sleeve. Jet makes nice wire clamps as well.
Overall highly recommended.

I use several of these hoses in my shop to connect power tools to my Jet vacuum system. They work great. They work the best with the wire clamps. I recommend using a distribution of rigid plastic or metal pipe to get to the woodworking machine, then use one of these hoses to connect the machine to the rigid system. These hoses also can be used to vacuum the floor or other areas but are a bit clumsey due to the large diameter.

I have one of these on my left-tilt JTAS 5 hp saw. It solved a few problems for me; thin strips don't get "hung up" in the wider slot of the standard insert; tearout is eliminated if the blade is set at the maximum opening you have cut in the insert. The phenolic material is very dense and the insert stays put when you mount it. It is most easily removed by fully retracting the blade and pressing down on one end to pop the other up.

It does create one big problem: the standard Jet blade guard cannot be used so you are faced with an unguarded blade. BE CAREFUL! If you add an aftermarket guard that is mounted from above (Delta Unifence, Biesemyer T-Square), you will have a useable guard. These of course, add $250 - $400 to your saw investment. A worthwhile investment for safety in any case.

This insert fit perfectly without adjustment to size into my Jet JWTS-10jf table saw. It does reduce noise coming up from the blade spinning. Be sure to clamp it tight to the saw table when raising the blade to cut the slot.

Insert is excellently fitted. Screw in forward end does help any slop issues. I use several for different types of blades including my stacking Dado.

Works well with blade guard, although you do need to cut out opening for table side mounting bracket. Easily done with table saw.

Recommend for serious wood workers were tearout is important. Shop around though you can get them on sale.

This is a significant upgrade over the older 12.5" Jet planer. Auto set knives are a breeze to set-up, and unlike the DeWalt 13", you don't have to buy the in/out feed tables. The two speed feed results in a very clean finish and the locking head dramatically reduces snipe - it doesn't stop it. I don't know why accessories for this model are so hard to find unless Jet is trying to blow out the 12.5" stuff first.

MAJOR COMPLAINT - no dust collection port, it's an option? (How to create a wood chip snowstorm in the shop? Don't use a dust collector on your planer.) Amazon doesn't even carry the optional dust port - nice touch, huh? I had to have Woodcraft order it for me and it took two weeks to get it.

I still love the finish this planer produces and it's very easy to set-up and adjust. I gave it 4 stars because they decided not to include a dust port that must cost them all of $5 to produce.

ATTN JET Product Managers: Raise the price $10, add the dust collector port, and get a MUCH HAPPIER customer. You have no price pressure at $429 - the competition is the DeWalt at almost $600 with the in/out feed tables.

This is my first thickness planer and am very happy with my purchase. I agree that a dust hood should be included and is a pretty pricey extra, but well worth it. As with my other Jet tools, I'm amazed at how well it performs out of the box with minimal adjustment.

I looked at a lot of other benchtop planers, and trusted Jet's reputation and took the plunge. The finish this produces is smooth, adjustment is easy and I get very little snipe. I was hesitant with it only having two blades, but it seems to work just fine, plus it will be cheaper when it comes to replacing blades.

I appreciate Jet's simplicity and performance. I'm sure this tool will be in my shop for many years.

Been using this saw for about a month now and I'm quite impressed. The enclosed stand is a major plus because of the dust collection ability and the fact that it just looks good (a must in my shop!). The belt drive 1 3/4 hp motor lacks the balls that I wish the saw had, but it gets the job done. The saw after assembly required minimal adjustments, unlike a Delta that seems to take days to align.

The sliding table is awesome except for one major design flaw, when extending the table to make cuts above approx. 12", any heavy materials like MDF actually make the table bend downward causing a "jumpy" slide movement and an in-accurate cut. So what I did is actually built a set of adjustable legs (like table board rip fence legs that come with any 52" rip fence) and drilled them into the thin steel under carriage of the sliding table. Using a thin washer head screw to allow the cast iron to glide over it. The results are perfect, been building cabinets cutting 24" panels of MDF effortlessly. I plan on contacting Jet about this so that maybe they can send me a set of their own steel legs that will match the ones that support the extension table.

I ordered the version with the 52" fence, that because of the sliding table actually gives you a 62" rip capacity! An unexpected bonus. Overall I love this saw, it does it all, but would like to see a miter track on the left side for using jigs and feather boards. But like most of us woodworkers, I can improvise. After using the saw for a month now, I'm not having any regrets about choosing this saw, even with the table alteration that I made. Jet has done a fine job, especially if your a small cabinet builder that requires a super accurate 28" crosscut.

Well this is the 4th Jet product I've purchased. I already own the 6" jointer, the dust collector and ceiling mounted air filter. I have other Delta products such as my drill press and compound miter.

I was a bit nervous buying this saw without any reviews since it is new. However, since I own the other Jet products I felt confident that they wouldn't let me down and I was right!

This saw is big and heavy! Amazon got the product to my garage door within 5 days of placing the order, no tax and no shipping, they're the best! Came truck freight (Eagle in my area) and in several boxes (fence, body, sliding table, etc). There was zero damage to the unit since it is expertly packaged and lashed to a pallet. Total weight is 420 pounds, so get some help!

After my neighbor and I got it in the basement we loaded the main unit on a Jet Heavy Duty mobile base (see my other review of this product). The mobile base is a must since this unit can not be moved once built at 420 pounds. Plan on a full day to get the unit setup and assembled, including all adjustments.

The cast iron tables are super heavy and well made. I also got the Xacta fence and boy is that nice. The dust port is 4" and is well designed and works well with my dust collector. The blade guard is very intricate and I am still getting used to this, it even tilts when the blade does. The instructions were about 9 out of 10, but not bad overall. Make sure you don't jump around during setup since there is a specific order as I found out the hard way.

No blade is included, so make sure you buy one, I purchased a Freud 10" combo from Amazon and it works very well with this saw. I also purchase a Freud 8" dato set and a zero clearance insert which I should have soon.

I opted for the sliding table which adds about $100 to the cost. If you have a good miter saw, this may be overkill. I have grown to like this feature though. The actual miter can be fixed in several locations, then you use the built in clamp to hold it in place, and then just slide the table. The sliding mechanism is all roller bearings and is effortless to move.

I've had the saw for about a month now and really enjoy it. It's big and powerful, yet quite and makes superb cuts. The accuracy of the fence and miter are right on and can be adjusted very easily. With the blade guard down, this is almost a dust free saw, with or without a dust collector attached. The saw came pre-wired 110 which is how I'm using it. I was able to trip the built in circuit breaker by ripping a wet pressure treated 4x4, but how often are you going to do that?

I would highly recommend this to any homeowner and to all serious woodworkers.