IIRC, since 2002, both Jet and Powermatic are owned by the same company (WMH Tool Group). I haven't looked deeply, but I would not be surprised to find that they are identical machines with, as you heard from the company, only the cutterhead being different… (Powermatic states a Byrd Shelix head w/74 inserts, the Jet doesn't specify brand and has 68 inserts). The main machines probably come out of the same assembly line in the same factory, have the same gearbox and motor size, and both have 5 year warranties.

Cheers,
Brad

 

Sounds like they are the same machine with different cutterheads. Can you buy a Jet with upgraded helix head?

FYI, Jet/PM was sold a couple years ago to a company that chops up bankruptcies.

 

Hello Brian,
I bought the Powermatic in November 2014 and made the same comparison to the Jet. Then, PM was offering 15% discount. The major differences I saw was cast iron feed tables for the PM vs rollers on the Jet. The shop I bought it from told me they were functionally the same machine and I do not recall any mention of a cutterhead difference, although he could have told me that. I know PM offers a 5 year warranty but I don't know if Jet is the same, (although I just re-read Brad's post and he says they do, but I decide not to edit my post anyway) but if you do your own repairs that's less significant. (and I also saw the JET pictured with either cast iron or roller feed tables).
Not trying to be sarcastic but $400 bus a lot of lumber and regardless of which one you get you'll be pleased with its performance. Enjoy,
Marc

 

You are exactly right Marc about that buying a lot of lumber. That's one of my hesitations to buy the Powermatic.
My largest hold up on the Jet is that I do not like the power switches on Jets 8" jointer. I'm going to upgrade my jointer next so that's another consideration.

 

Where in AR are you? There are a couple of 18" powermatic beasts for $2K or less on CL right now in that general area

Cheers,
Brad

 

I'm in central Arkansas. I couldn't unload a pm180 if it was given to me. Lol. Those are heavy bastards.

 

It's been a tough sell for me to upgrade for 2" additional width capacity. I put a Shelix head in the 735 instead. If I get a bigger planer, I would go for a 20".

 

I can t make the math work to justify buying a Grizzly

If you look closely I you'll see some remarkable similarity in the castings. Many Grizzly, Jet and PM machines have identical castings because they are made in the same foundry in Taiwan. There will be minor diffs in handles, switches, motors etc. My 20" Grizzly planer is identical to a PM and I don't know how it could perform that much better.

I m in central Arkansas. I couldn t unload a pm180 if it was given to me. Lol. Those are heavy bastards.

- Brian

Trucks, trailers and engine hoists can be rented. It all depends on whether the bucks you will save are worth the time and effort.

 

If you look closely I you ll see some remarkable similarity in the castings. Many Grizzly, Jet and PM machines have identical castings because they are made in the same foundry in Taiwan. There will be minor diffs in handles, switches, motors etc. My 20" Grizzly planer is identical to a PM and I don t know how it could perform that much better.

I'm also curious as to why the math on the Grizzly doesn't work. Mr. Google tells me that a 15" grizzly with a spiral head (74 inserts) costs $1850 before any discounts that you might be able to finagle. There are a few differences in specs (max feed rate and max stock thickness are higher on the grizz) but overall they are very similar machines. They are probably made in the same factory and I've heard just as many great reviews about the griz as the PM or the Jet.

That being said, I am always a proponent of getting a used truly industrial-grade machine and spending a bit of time and money getting it to run like new again (PM160, SCMI, Delta RC63, etc). You would save some cash and end up with a machine that would outlast the options being discussed.

 

I'm interested in seeing how this pans out for you as many others are. I'm going to look at a little older JET 20" planer later this week. My only concern is it only has a 3hp motor which should be fine for most of what I'm interested in doing, but I know if I tried to plow off even 1/16" from an 18" wide red oak plank, it likely wouldn't work out too well.

 

Completely ignoring the footprint that a PM180 would have, I still would not want a 1,200lb machine in a shop my size (26X28). I do not move equipment around often, but most everything does have a shop-built mobile base for the times that I do. Plus most of them will undoubtedly come three phase. Although I have restored several machines, I do not have time to work on anything to that extent right now. I have some deadlines that have to be met, so a week or two to restore an older machine isn't in my cards unfortunately. That's particularly sad given that I acquired the knife sharpening attachment for a PM180 earlier this year on accident. My closest fellow woodworker just finished a full restoration on a PM100. His machine is what really made me realize how much I was lacking in my shop. Never good when I feel the need to load up lumber just to use his equipment.

A lot of these machines are made Taiwan, some of them even in the same factory. However, my research would indicate that each component has tolerances assigned by the branding company. Because Powermatic would have tighter tolerances, it essentially would be made with the best components in a batch. That doesn't mean a Grizzly component is going to break by any means, but it does keep them from being the exact same machine. I can honestly say my Grizzly jointer (before broken by a moving company) was a great machine.

Grizzly's downfall is their freight charges. Once you add all of their charges that would be necessary to actually get it in the shop, the 453zw ends up being around $2,100. Sales and Coupons are not readily available, and they do not offer any discounts over the phone (I tried to make this decision a lot easier). Driving there saves no money because taxes eat up any savings that would be possible plus other expenses. I'm very comfortable paying the extra $250 to step up to a more branded company. Resale alone I believe justifies that expense.

Pinto - My upgrade to the 15" is for more than just the extra capacity. I use a lot of rough cut, sometimes wide, lumber. The Dewalt 735 is a great machine, but it often lacks the power I need to plane a 12" wide board. Depending on the species, it doesn't always even like it at 1/64th.

 

Seems like the Byrd head (versus copies) would be worth more…though $400 is a whole lot just for that difference. I have nothing to offer other than to say I can understand the quandary and wish you the best with your decision.

 

In my experience, pm has a better warranty than jet. Pm machines usually have better specs, machining is usually better, they have more usable features. Oh, and they have gold paint..lol
Though, in this case, it sounds like they are much closer machines.
Beside the cutter head, are you sure the motor is the same? I know of a couple machine lines where the better product line has a industrial continuous duty motor versus the lower line has a less industrial intermittent use type motor even though they are the same hp.
Just some thoughts…

 

It would be interesting to see if there's a difference in the motors between the two, I'll have to look at the motor on the JET I'm looking at tonight to see what it is. I do suspect very few motors on any of these machines would have a duty rating of anything less than continuous as defined on the motor name plate as "cont." behind the "duty" line item.

 

I'm a Jet guy and have a couple of their machines and been happy with them. However, between the two planers the PM looks to be the a slightly better machine comparing the specs though I'm just a hobbyist and very happy with my DW735.
The digital on the Powermatic is a nice touch. I put one my planer and it changed the whole ballgame in the way that I plane boards.

 

I'm planning on purchasing the Powermatic 15HH first thing in the morning. I'll post a good review with pictures when it arrives.

My shop is already about half Powermatic, so no need to try to change it up now.

 

Congrats…no doubt you will love it.

 

I understand that the two are made in the same factory.
It seems there may be better electrical in the PM.
I have a friend who has both jet and PM lathes, and the jet has some sort of short in the power switch.
I have read other post that mention some switch problems with jet tools.
With that said, I just bought a jet 16X42 lathe when they ran the 15% off sale last black friday.
With the lathes, the price difference was almost $2000. I like the jet lathe, and with such a large price difference, I figure I'll address a switch issue if it brakes.
This sale has Jet at 15%, and PM at 10% off. Seems like the switch back and forth on this. Not sure if 5% is worth the wait, but the next sale PM will most likely be 15% off.

 

Nice Brian! Thats an awesome looking planer! Should make short work out of milling your rough cut stock.

 

Just checked Amazon this morning and the vendors there have JET machines at 15% too and some with free shipping as well. That brings the total for the JWP208 that I've been considering to $1994.09 + tax. making my decision on a used one for $1250 even harder. If you're lucky enough to live in a state where Amazon doesn't yet collect tax you get to save even that much more.

 

With the lathes, the price difference was almost $2000. I like the jet lathe, and with such a large price difference, I figure I'll address a switch issue if it brakes.

Switches are cheap and easy to fix - and $2000 sure would buy a bunch of them

Cheers,
Brad

 

I m planning on purchasing the Powermatic 15HH first thing in the morning. I ll post a good review with pictures when it arrives.

My shop is already about half Powermatic, so no need to try to change it up now.

- Brian

Nice! I'm jealous.

 

I went with Amazon to get the PM15HH just because I've had great customer service for everything else through them. Tentative delivery is March 15th. Can't wait.

 

Congrats!

 

Southern-tool.com is where I got my table saw. Free shipping, freight, and lifgatet service, no tax. They also gave me a free blade.