View Poll Results: Which Mortiser Would You Choose?

Voters
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  • Rikon

    5 12.20%
  • Powermatic

    34 82.93%
  • Shop Fox

    2 4.88%
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Thread: Mortiser Advice

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Ft. Wayne, IN
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    1,453

    Question Mortiser Advice

    I do hope everyone is having a good week, and I wish you all a great & Happy Thanksgiving. Travel Safe.

    So, on to my question...

    I am considering a benchtop mortiser. I have been doing more mortise & tenon joinery lately. Typically I have either chopped, or drill & chopped them. That has worked well, but as I do more & more I think that a dedicated machine is making more sense.

    I have been eyeing the following machines:

    Rikon 34-260
    $388 + Free Shipping on Amazon

    RIKON Power Tools 34-260.jpg

    Powermatic PM701
    $489.99 + Free Shipping on Amazon

    Powermatic PM701.jpg

    And
    Shop Fox W1671
    $329.99 + Free Shipping on Amazon

    Shop Fox W1671.jpg

    The Rikon has superior workholding and XY adjustment, but it is just 1/2hp
    The Powermatic is... Well, a Powermatic.
    The Shop Fox is priced the same as the Rikon, but is 3/4hp. However, it has no XY and only a vertical hold-down.

    Any advise? Personal experiences? Just want to spout off? I'll take anything I can get.
    "I've cut the dang thing three times and it's STILL too darn short"
    Name withheld to protect the guilty

    Stew Hagerty

  2. #2
    If I had to have a benchtop mortiser, I'd get the Powermatic. You want the beefiest one you can afford.

    My advice is not what you'd like to hear, probably: forgo the benchtop unit altogether and save up for a floor model or a Domino. The Domino is more versatile and with the larger unit, there's really no mortising job it cannot handle. Less layout required than a mortising unit, and gives you the ability to do endgrain mortises for floating tenons. FWIW, I use my Domino for traditional M&T too.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
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    Wake Forest, North Carolina
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    Hi Stew,

    I think Prashun is right about the floor model of the Domino. I personally have a Powermatic floor model and i'm happy with it. I'm not familiar with the machines you're looking at but I suggest you look at the clamping system carefully. A mortiser needs a clamping system that works well.

    Good luck with it.

    PHM

  4. #4
    Hi Stew,
    I just did a ton of looking, studying and shopping on this. I ordered the PM benchtop and PM bits/chisels. JET and PM start a 15% off sale Friday, so if you can decide quickly you'll save money. (My machine ships Friday, as soon as the sale kicks in.)

    The Rikon has nice features - they always pile on desirable options - but I couldn't find enough real reviews to get convinced of it's quality. I think a mortiser takes more abuse than alot of tools and that factored in. (Full disclosure: I have a Rikon bandsaw and like it. But there was a lot of info available to help me understand the pros/cons of that purchase. Not too much on the new mortiser.) FYI, I looked at an X-Y vise and got convinced one can easily modify it to do what the Rikon does for "holding" if I need it. So I didn't get too hung up on not having that feature.

    The JET is an excellent tool and it comes with good chisels. But I decided to spend the extra $100 and go top shelf for the PM. Well, really $200 because I had to buy the chisels too ($132 on sale). I've never owned a PM product and I expect to use this tool a lot, so I wanted a good, durable one.

    You might call Tools Plus and see if they'll cut you a free shipping deal like they did me.

    Drop me a PM if I can help.

    Best of luck!
    Fred
    Last edited by Frederick Skelly; 11-24-2015 at 11:52 AM. Reason: Clarify

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
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    Mandalay Shores, CA
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    I have the Powermatic (fine machine) and a Domino. The domino gets used for smaller M&T. Larger ones are done using mortiser and hand tools (gate project, guitar cabinet). I haven't found the need for a bigger mortiser (the biggest mortises I have made are 1"x5"x4" by combination of mortiser and hand tools).

    The only thing I have noted is the need to pause while the bit / chisel colls when doing a lot of mortising (yes the bit and chisel were sharp, honed and polished).
    Last edited by Shawn Pixley; 11-24-2015 at 12:14 PM.
    Shawn

    "no trees were harmed in the creation of this message, however some electrons were temporarily inconvenienced."

    "I resent having to use my brain to do your thinking"

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Toronto Ontario
    Posts
    11,248
    Hi Stew, 1/2 HP is more than required for a mortise, all it is doing is drilling a hole with an auger bit.

    The consistently hi ranked mortiser is the General International model, which I've owned for about 14 years. It has an excellent vise, is strongly made and works very well.

    Most of my work is in quarter sawn white oak, and the machine works very well.

    The Powermatic model you illustrated has such a poor work holding system I would never buy it. A mortise needs a strong vise to hold the work securely and accurately.

    The Shop Fox you illustrated is made with a couple of round steel posts, hardly rigid enough for the demands of a mortise, you should only buy one with a box frame and dovetail ways.

    Of all you've illustrated, the Rikon is the best, it has a large enough motor, a good hold down vise and a box section frame with cast iron ways. If you can't find a General International buy it.

    On all the machines you will need to hone the chisels inside and out, and perhaps sharpen the auger bit before use.

    Regards, Rod.
    Last edited by Rod Sheridan; 11-24-2015 at 12:08 PM.

  7. #7
    Everyone Ive talked to has high praise for the General. I just didnt want to reach that far.

    Rod, you have had a machine many years and mine's just "on the way". So I don't mean to sound like a know it all here..... Theres no question that the workholding capability of a built in X-Y table is superior to not having it. But to describe the PM as "such a poor workholding system", might be a bit strong. Most of the guys who have the PM generally like them a lot. And, aside from the General, the only benchtops Ive seen that have an X-Y table are the Rikon (unproven, to me anyway) and the Baileigh (which was poorly rated by FWW in a number of categories last year).

    Respectfully,
    Fred

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
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    Lake Gaston, Henrico, NC
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    I wouldn't pay a hundred bucks more for one over another. I have both sizes of the Woodtek, and they both do fine. The larger one works as good as any, and the smaller one is a bit more fiddly to set because you have to use allen wrenches. PM changed the work holding part of their mortise some years back from one with a big clamp. My larger Woodtek has a big clamp. The trouble with the supposedly "better" clamping ability is that it's so strong that it's easy to push the fence back. I expected that's why PM changes theirs to the two rollers. A slide fit is plenty precise enough. I cut hundreds of mortises on one project with my larger one set to a slide fit, and every one came out just fine. If you have a moving table one like a 719, then the big clamp will be fine.

  9. #9
    I have a Jet with a 1/2 hp motor and no built in hold-down. I use clamps for the first hole with the 1/2 chisel. It has a bar that goes over the wood and helps but I can't always use it. I don't need a bigger motor but I could use a built in clamping mechanism. But it could have to hold a lot of force if I go to the bottom with the 1/2 chisel in one motion. I've learned the hard way it is better to go up and down a few times on that first hole where the chisel is trapped. The clamp also keep you firm against the fence which helps with alignment. I would go with the Rikon of the ones you pictured.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Northwestern Connecticut
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    Add me to the list of general fans. Their floor models work great, and the larger bench top model is basically a floor model with no cabinet under it, I've used the tilting bench top model, very decent machine. I like the powermatic floor models, haven't used in the bench top. The rikon looks feature heavy but the devil is in the details....if those ways aren't tight and accurate then all is for not, and I'd rather have a basic machine with a solid table I use with clamps. I'm not saying it isn't, but that's a lot of feature at that price....so go kick the tires before paying.

    I think at 3/8" and below most of the bench tops will make a decent mortise with sharp tooling. The hold down system will add productivity, but I've used just clamps before, takes more time but holds quite well. When you get into the larger mortises, the efficiency of the ratchet determines how much effort it will take to get it done. Some are better than others, better mechanical advantage, and it's hard to perceive the difference until you have bit in wood.
    "A good miter set up is like yoga pants: it makes everyone's butts look good." Prashun Patel

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
    Location
    folsom, california
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    104
    +1 more for holding out for floor model. general and powermatic pretty similar.

    i had a pm 719, now have pm 10. pm 10 can handle much larger pieces of wood, and has superior holddown, but 719 will handle 3/4 bit at least as well except bit gets hotter.

    having x y axis movement is huge improvement on productivity, and with stops for end of board and width of cut, your layout just has to be good on one piece, all other you just have to be sure you are mortising correct face and end. mortising will be so fast, you will use it for everything.

    always tap your workpiece with rubber hammer and tighten hold down a little more before mortising. have your dial calipers handy if you are doing lots of repetitive mortises, tables can creep small amount and cause you grief. but if you are careful, getting mortises within .005 should be routine.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
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    Ft. Wayne, IN
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    I just watched this YouTube Video about the Shop Fox. It actually has tons of features I was not aware of. I especially like the rotating part so that you can do end mortises. I'm also thinking maybe those twin Bars aren't necessarily bad. They look pretty sturdy.
    Hey watch the video and let me know what you think...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7L-UZr-vBY
    "I've cut the dang thing three times and it's STILL too darn short"
    Name withheld to protect the guilty

    Stew Hagerty

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    WNY
    Posts
    9,648
    Build a horizontal router mortiser, like mine, save yourself a bunch of money, and have a machine that has more versatility and is easier and much faster to use. M&T, loose tenons, sliding dovetails, rabbets, raised panels, and more. You can mortise edge grain, end grain, whatever grain w/o problems and they come out beautifully smooth with no need for any cleanup work.

    https://sites.google.com/site/jteneyckwoodworker/current-projects/horizontal-router-mortiser

    John

  14. #14
    FWW reviewed several brands in their July/August 2014 issue. I wouldnt buy based solely on their recommendation, but it was an interesting article. The Shop Fox W1671 did ok, but they found the fence "fair". For comparison, they found the JET's fence to be only "fair" as well.

    Some of the other machines on your list have the same rotating feature.

    Fred
    Last edited by Frederick Skelly; 11-24-2015 at 7:09 PM.

  15. #15
    I've owned the PM for several years and have been very happy with it. I only had one issue - the piece that the handle attaches to fell apart - yes, literally! The internal teeth just crumbled. I got the impression mine was not the only one. I replaced it and no issues since. One thing I wish was better was the fence adjustment. It is very coarse. A little tricky to make fine adjustments.

    Tony

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