Review - Grizzly Ultimate 12" Jointer

by Todd Solomon

I recently purchased Grizzly's "Ultimate" 12" jointer. This is part of their higher end line of jointers, and appears to be 90% the same machine as the General International, Bridgewood, Extrema, and some other 12" models. You can get it for substantially less than the General, and somewhat less than the others. They all have slightly different pros and cons. The Grizzly has the highest cutterhead speed at 5900 RPM, but doesn't have the Baldor motor or the 4-knife cutterhead that the Bridgewood has (my other choice, but the wait list was too long for me and shipping was astronomical). They all have the same frame and high quality table adjusting mechanism.

Grizzly delivered it in a bullet-proof crate, and it came less than a week after order, delivered by Fed Ex Freight (very polite, helpful driver).

General fit and finish is very good. Nice heavy duty controls.

The 80" total length tables are flawless, with a near-mirror finish. I could not get a .001" shim under my straight edge over each 39" table- dead flat. They were also adjusted perfectly parallel from the factory- and I mean perfect. Again, less than .001" over my 6' straight edge. The table height mechanism adjusts each table with a large diameter wheel that is easily and precisely moved. Like all Asian castings, time will tell if they will warp, but initial quality is A1.

The fence, on the other hand, is pretty average. It's out-of-flat by about .015", and is twisted. I will contact Grizzly for a regrind or replacement. I don't like the sharp edge that slides on the outfeed table when it is adjusted. I'll fix that with a block of UHMW or something similar.

The knives are all within about .001", according to the dial indicator.

It is very smooth and quiet in operation. I jointed face and edge of a Douglas fir board and a maple board. The finish is impressive, glass smooth with ripples barely noticeable- as good as or better than my Mini Max jointer.

One motivator for this machine is that Byrd makes a helical cutterhead for it for $795, and I will likely upgrade to it in the near future. This is one reason why I wasn't concerned with the 3-knife cutterhead, where the Bridgewood has 4. I just want to wait and hear more from fellow woodworkers before I take the plunge on the helical head.

I really, really like this machine. Aside from the fence (which should be easily remedied), I am completely satisfied and grinning.