Bench top Mortisers

John, I looked at these a while back and found some factory reconditioned models for a substantial discount. A quick search now came up empty though. Just an option you may want to consider.

-- God bless, Candy

Have a look at the woodwhisperers site he did a comparative review on about 3 machines from memory

His video is very detailed and well presented, typical !! Worth a look !!

-- Regards Rob

I have the PM. It’s a nice machine and I thought priced fairly. The chisels strike me as expensive though. Since I got my domino, the machine has sat idle, not used once.

Thanks all. Solid feedback.
Candy, I have been keeping an eye out for used but never thought of recon. Thanks for the tip.

Definitly going to have to look up the wood whisperer vid. I agree, he usuall has good info.

I noticed that about the PM chisels. I suppose a guy could run other chisels though?

-- In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.

I own a Jet Mortiser. It cuts nice, clean holes and is very easy to use. My complaint is the fence system. Not just on the Jet, but almost all of the less expensive models for hobbyists.

I suggest adding an x y vise, like I have in this photo. Makes using a mortiser a real pleasure to use, especially if most of your work is face frames. It is not expensive but it does take a little of your time to build.

-- Brad, Texas, https://www.youtube.com/user/tonkatoytruck/feed

Brad, that is trick! That opens up the options quite a bit!

-- In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.

I, also, have a Jet. If you lived closer I would give you a real deal on it and the chisels. :) IMO the hold down leaves a LOT to be desired. I have replaced it with a MortisePal which I really like. It is accurate, fast and easy. I make a lot of mortises as well.

-- Art

I use forstner bits to drill overlapping holes and then use mu chisels to square it off. Its not too quick but its faster than my hand tool methods.

-- "If you wait for it to rain, It will"

I have the Craftsman version. Only Craftsman WW tool I own. I know I got it on a sale, can’t recall how much I paid. But not much. It does what it is supposed to. The chisels are questionable, but I really don’t use it too often. So it has been fine given the investment.

Solo…just how far away are you Art?

That’s one of my current methods as well giser. I find it to be faster than other methods, but still slow for those time when you have to crank out a bunch.

I didnt know craftsman made one Shane. Will have to look at that. Thx

-- In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.

I have the Delta, and I use it on every project. The hold down leaves something to be desired, but it will make accurate mortises, and tons of them. I have broken a few parts on it, but parts were available.
I make arts and crafts furniture with real through tenons, so a Domino or doweling jig wouldn’t work for me. Honestly I can’t imagine woodworking without one.
If I bought another benchtop I would consider the Powermatic, the General, or the Woodriver. The roller wheels look helpful with holding the workpiece against the fence (the Delta does not have this feature).

-- Willie, Washington "If You Choose Not To Decide, You Still Have Made a Choice" - Rush

Thanks PintoD. You hit a couple of my concerns on the head. First the hold down. The one on my drillress attachment leaves plenty to be desired. And secondly I also do just enough through tenons that a domino wouldn’t work. I have a doweleing jig, but as you point out, it doesn’t help with a lot of joints.

-- In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.

When I have to do several I sometimes use the forstner bits then use a mortiser chisel and a malet instead of the regular chisels.

-- "If you wait for it to rain, It will"

I also recently purchased the Delta. It works great, but as mentioned the hold-down is a little hard to use. If you get it tight enough to hold the wood, you can’t slide the wood for the next plunge. If you leave it loose, the chisel tries to pull the wood up off the table when you pull it up. I think the models with the sliding table/hold-down would definitely work better, but they are much more expensive in most cases. I’m happy with it, especially for the price.

I’ve tossed around the idea of a mortiser if I start making more furniture, and it really seems like unless you’ve got the cash and space for a standalone one, getting a used Delta/Jet/Woodriver and modding it with an X-Y table a la timbertailor is the way to go.

-- ian | "You can't stop what's coming. It ain't all waiting on you. That's vanity."