New tools

Re: New tools

Brian Anderson

I have a Grizzly Mill. That is a metal cutting Mill.

It performs well. I used it for my home gun smith shop.

Think of it as a sort of giant overarm router.

Re: New tools

Dick Coers

I used to like them. They weren't great machines, but okay and got the job done after a little reworking. Then they shipped me an unusable band saw, and that ended that. I took offense to being their quality control and machine repair service. Won't touch one today.

Re: New tools

Larry Clinton At Frankfort, (Central) Indiana

I have had very good luck with the Grizzly machines I have purchased. I had a 6" joiner for several years, worked very well, and the fence was accurate. I sold it to a friend, and purchased a Grizzly 8" joiner with the Grizzly spiral head about 10 years ago, again I have zero complaints. I also have a Grizzly 3 hp Cyclone dust collector system, I had minor issues with the motor capacitor, but Grizzly quickly sent parts and corrected the issue, again no complaints.

I have had as much problems with Powermatic, and a 20" planer (I believe it is a "Shop Craft") sold by Wilke machine co. The motor had to be replaced on that unit. My Powermatic Woodworker Drill Press Arbor won't stay in the unit. and the fit and finish is well below the Grizzly units I own.

I have looked at Delta, Powermatic, General and other import offerings at woodworking shows. In my opinion these machines were not of the quality of the Grizzly I own and have seen. As most of the current woodworking equipment is imported I think that Grizzly has a better handle on quality than them. Grizzly also has a much better stock of repair parts, and in my opinion better customer service.

I don't think any of the current Asian offerings are up to the quality of the older equipment made in the US. However as almost all the current equipment offered at home shop prices is imported, I think Grizzly tops the list of equipment I would purchase today. Obviously the Grizzly equipment doesn't compare to the industrial shop grade equipment on the market but the prices of the industrial grade is 2 to 4 times higher and out of the reach of most home shops.

Re: New tools

Paul Blackwell

I have or have had a Grizzly 6 inch jointer, 8 inch jointer, oscillating spindle sander, belt and disk sander combo and two dust collectors. When I downsized for a basement shop, I sold my 8 inch jointer and dust collector for smaller replacements. This over a period of maybe 15 years. None of the machines have needed repairs or parts. I have found Grizzly customer service to be excellent. As an aside, I have purchased brass wood screws of all sizes from Grizzly and found them to be of excellent quality.

Re: New tools

JL

I have used a number of the Grizzly pieces of equipment.

Their G1023 cabinet saws work well and IMO are a good buy.

Their hybrid of a few years ago, not so much. The fence "bites" and does not work well.

I've used two of their band saws. IMO - the Rikon brand is a better buy.

I've used their radial drill press. If I was looking for a bench top or small press, I would buy this one.

YMMV

Re: New tools

C John Hebert

!00% in agreement. My whole shop was Grizzly, and had very little problems at all. I needed a switch for my 1023, and had it in 3 day's. Just as good as any US company. I needed a chuck key once for my old delta...when it finally came in, it was stamped...made in China.

Re: New tools

jesse cloud

I've had mixed results with grizzly. I have a buddy who has a grizzly planer with a helix style head and he loves it. I saw a combo planer/jointer that had lots of issues, but with a couple of days of tuning, calibrating, and cursing it rose to mediocrity. I had a scroll saw that was the worst tool I ever saw outside of Harbor Freight.

You might get better feedback if you mentioned a specific tool model and asked for

input from owners.

Re: New tools

Larry

Grizzly did have a program where if you told them the model number of the tool you wanted to buy, they would put in touch with sum one who had one to get there feed back . Don't know if they still do that.

Re: New tools

drlarrye

Be very careful you check everything out on a Grizzly tool before you buy it. Years ago I bought a dust collector that was advertised as convertable 120v/240v. The paperwork that came with it makes that claim also. Years later I got into a situation that I needed to convert it from 240v to 120v and when I opened it up I found that it was only a 240v motor. When I contacted Grizzly they very nicely told me that they must've changed the motor before changing their ads or their enclosed documentation but I was SOL on them doing anything. I'm sure their company motto is "Let the buyer beware".