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Thread: Delta DJ20 Fence Flatness?

  1. 09-21-2010, 9:43 PM #1
    Ned Ladner
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    Delta DJ20 Fence Flatness?

    Does anyone know what the flatness tolerance is for the Delta DJ20 jointer. How about specifications from other DJ20 parallelogram jointer clones?
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  3. 09-21-2010, 10:13 PM #2
    michael case
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    The DJ jointer clone is the Grizzly G0490. The G0490 has superb tables and fence. They are within a couple to three thousandths. Grizzly has made a very impressive showing with this jointer. These Grizz jointers are famous for their flatness and I don't doubt are flatter than the Deltas. How much is your DJ 20 out of true and where?
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  4. 09-23-2010, 9:19 AM #3
    Ned Ladner
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    Delta DJ20 Fence Flatness?

    Just wanted to bump this post to the top one more time to see of anyone can answer. Thanks in advance for your input.

    Does anyone know what the flatness tolerance is for the Delta DJ20 jointer. How about specifications from other DJ20 parallelogram jointer clones?
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  5. 09-23-2010, 9:33 AM #4
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    Dan Friedrichs
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    Ned, I had a DJ-20 once, and thought I read in the manual that the tolerance was 0.008". I might be confused and/or making that up, though.

    That said, a 0.008" dip on the infeed would be entirely different than, say, a 0.005" dip that was a few inches long after the cutterhead. Are you having some problem that you think is related to table/fence flatness?
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  6. 09-23-2010, 10:04 AM #5
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    glenn bradley
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    What does Delta say? A call might help. An email will be answered in a couple weeks in my experience. My G0490X had a .006" dip IIRC. It was cheerfully replaced with one that I think I found a .003" spot on. Certainly acceptable to me. YMMV.

    You will hear people comment that a dip in the fence on a jointer is not a problem. I'm not sure how they use their jointers but I need my tables flat and my fence reliable at 90 as well as other angles. An untrue fence surface while running a 22.5* edge on a 24" long piece is definitely a problem. What are the symptoms of your problem?
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


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  7. 09-23-2010, 10:17 AM #6
    Rick Pettit
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    I have a dj20 and I have the manual for it. Do you have the manual? I don't know if the tolerances are listed. I am at work now and can't look for you. I had trouble with the outfeed table on mine. There are no adjustments for this so I had to shim the table.
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  8. 09-23-2010, 11:06 AM #7
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    Dan Friedrichs
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rick Pettit View Post
    I had trouble with the outfeed table on mine. There are no adjustments for this so I had to shim the table.
    Isn't the outfeed sitting on eccentric bushings?
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  9. 09-23-2010, 2:23 PM #8
    Ned Ladner
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Friedrichs View Post
    Ned, I had a DJ-20 once, and thought I read in the manual that the tolerance was 0.008". I might be confused and/or making that up, though.

    That said, a 0.008" dip on the infeed would be entirely different than, say, a 0.005" dip that was a few inches long after the cutterhead. Are you having some problem that you think is related to table/fence flatness?
    I've found documentation stating .008" on the tables but nothing for the fence. My fence has a .015" dip. Not sure if that's an issue or not.
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  10. 09-23-2010, 2:26 PM #9
    Josiah Bartlett
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    Most jointer fences tend to have terrible tolerances. Twist is much worse than bow or simple flatness issues, though. One way to get around it is to face the fence with a stable piece of wood and then joint the fence (the wooden face, of course).
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  11. 09-23-2010, 2:28 PM #10
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    Pete Bradley
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    What problem are you seeing? For edge jointing a few thousandths in the fence will not be measurable at the finished edge.
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  12. 09-23-2010, 2:40 PM #11
    David Weaver
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    I have a buddy with a DJ-20, a taiwanese one, probably 6 or 8 years old.

    Its tables are .002 out of flat (they are VERY flat), but the fence casting has a twist in it, enough so that if it's square at the front, it's not at the back, and if it's square at the back, it isn't at the front. I've heard him lament the cost of a new casting, and he basically gets free machining services, but he hasn't done anything about it yet. twist over its length is probably measured in hudredths and not thousandths.

    The tables are parallel to a 48 inch starrett straight edge, so it isn't the tables.
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  13. 09-23-2010, 4:00 PM #12
    Barry Richardson
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    I have a DJ20 at home and I use one at work as well. They both have a twist in the fence, they must not put as much care into them, I just kinda deal with it...
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  14. 09-23-2010, 4:32 PM #13
    Rick Pettit
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    You know I see the same thing when I look at the jointer but the manual does not explain how to adjust the bushings and after an hour of trying to figure it out myself I found it easier to just shim the whole outfeed table. Tell me how to adjust the eccentric bushings please.
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  15. 09-23-2010, 7:44 PM #14
    Frederick Rowe
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    Rick - Try this link.

    http://www.happywoodworking.com/DJ20adjustments.html

    Here's the original manual - photos are better.

    http://www.woodwrecker.com/woodworki...elta37-350.pdf
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  16. 09-23-2010, 9:07 PM #15
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    David Eisan
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    Hello there,

    Since I manage a tool store, let me pipe up here.

    How does the tool work? That is the only metric that matters.

    When you edge joint two boards and put them side by each, is there a gap?

    Put away your metal working tools and test the machine as intended.

    Boy do I wish I could speak that plainly to my own customers....

    David - Tool Guy
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