[OP]
Member
Hi,
I want to buy a 15 inch planer. Both brands from same manufacturer will be on sale over Black Friday. I know this question gets asked often, but is the Powermatic worth the extra $1000.00? I currently own the Powermatic 6 inch extended bed jointer and love it. I know the cutter head and finish is slightly different between the two different brands, but is the extra grand worth it??
Would love to get some feedback.
thanks in advance!
Neil
Contributor
No idea. I only paid $500 for my 18" powermatic.
Bill D
Contributor
I own the Powermatic version. IMHO, no contest between the two. I looked at both in person before making the decision and you can feel/see the difference. Jet isn't junk, but plastic parts and other components to make it more price competitive and distance it away from the Powermatic. The difference in weight alone is over 200lbs. The two crossbars with rollers are outstanding for stacking a pile of wood on top to feed through the planer and the overall build is excellent. It's a tank.
If I recall the motor amperage was 11 (or 10) on the Jet and 15 on the Powermatic and I believe the Powermatic was 4500 RPM compared to 3400 on the Jet. I don't know if this amounts to anything on the wood, but the Powermatic produces a beautiful cut. Someone local told me PM uses Shelix while Jet may not, but when I was looking into that I couldn't find anything to substantiate that claim. One thing I did discover is the head is larger diameter compared (slighly) so I know the head is different anyway.
I'm not sure what you do with Bill's comment except shrug. You'll not find anything comparable for $500 now, so there's that. But do I think it's worth the $1000? With my money yes, but it's your money so you need to decide.
Member
The Powematic is a much heavier machine and more robust design, hence the higher price.
I’d probably buy Grizzly’s SB model before I spent $3100 on the Jet. It’s near the same price but much heavier over 500 lbs and also has a variable feed rate from 10-28 FPM.
https://www.grizzly.com/products/sou...yABEgKnt_D_BwE
Most quality planers are made by similar factories made in Taiwan. They have a lot more in common and use many of the same parts.
Contributor
For what it is worth.
I recently adjusted the bed to cutterhead on a 2yo Powermatic Planer by taking the chain off of the sprockets on two corners and turning the corner post sprocket. This was done due to complaint the planer was not cutting properly. Upon examination found the bed had been raised up into the cutterhead resulting in approximately half the bed being cut into at a taper and half not. I was told no way was this intentionally done by the students, however no one knew when it was done, and it had been at least 6 months ago. I then rotated all the cutters and now the planer is producing a very smooth surface, THAT FINALY IS PARRELL NOT TAPERED. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN PROPERLY SET AT THE FACTORY. However, have had worst experiences with Jet in the past. Neither machine will be perfect out of the box unless the stars and moon are in alignment when it is manufactured. You need to check the machine over once you set it up and adjust it to YOUR satisfaction.
Ron
Contributor
The Grizzly Southbend model mentioned by Robert looks to be a cheaper version of the Powermatic planer. While it may work just fine, be aware that Grizzly/Southbend will make compromises in design or part selection on their products. In the end, you get what you pay for. But like I said, it may work just fine.
The Oliver 15" planer is a much heavier version of the Jet 15" planer at the same cost:
https://olivermachinery.net/15-plane...cal-cutterhead
Contributor
You don't specify but I assume you are comparing PM 15HH and Jet JWP 15BHH. They are quite different machines. There are 3 basic versions of asian 4 post 15" planers.
1)Taiwan made where the tables raise and lower like the PM15HH and G1021 series Grizzly. These have been made since the 80's under a variety of brand names, most parts are the same, and it's a tried and true design.
2)Chinese made similar to above but with different castings like the G0453 Grizzly.
3)Taiwan made fixed table JET JWP 15BHH or Grizzly G0891. I understand these were designed as a lower cost planer and there have been issues but I'm not sure what.
Personally I would only recommend version 1. Not much innovation between the brands since they are made in the same factories. I'm fond of gold paint and just did a complete disassembly and rebuild of a 90's model 15 but used all Grizzly parts because they have a better parts dept. and they were the same. So new I wouldn't pay more or less based on brand or paint color. Differences will be in the cutterhead but that's about it. Most have 48" cast iron tables and extensions. I did see I think South Bend sells a version with a separate variable speed feed motor which would be appealing. As mentioned above check your setup even on a new machine. Get a rotacator for that. And if the head casting is not aligned with the tables like Ron mentioned in an earlier post send the SOB back. Should have been set correctly at the factory. That is a major adjustment, best done with the machine inverted.
Contributor
That "there have been issues" comment is very interesting. There are actually 3 (including Oliver) that use this same design. So, let's look at them:Originally Posted by Russell Hayes
1. Jet JWP 15BHH - 255 lbs - $3199
2. Grizzly G0892 - 302 lbs - $2295
3. Oliver 10014 - 401 lbs - $3199
The Grizzly is somewhat heavier and does not appear to use as many plastic parts as the Jet. The Oliver uses all steel parts (for covers and other) and I would think that is uses a heavier sheet metal cabinet. So, the comment on issues...
If you were to look at Jet's 6x48 belt sanders:
JSG-96 -- 91 lbs -- $999
JSG-6DC -- 215 lbs -- $1599
The cheaper JSG-96 is manufactured with an all-plastic base (that the sander and motor are mounted to). In addition, the cast iron table only has a single mount point. The result is a cast iron table that flexes with any pressure and makes this sander useless for any accurate work. I generally recommend people away from this particular sander.
Based on this, we don't know what other design/material compromises Jet has done on their 15" planer. It is -significantly- lighter in weight compared to the other models on the market with the same design. Just be aware. If you know someone who has direct experience with the Jet, I would talk to them.
Contributor
This is pasted from a post by CaptainKlutz at Lumberjocks forum who appears to quite knowledgeable about asian produced equipment, including traveling to the factories in Taiwan as a manufacturer rep of some sort:
"Until a couple years ago: all 15" four post thickness planers where same delta clone design. They have the same settings, and only real difference was variations in the cutter head. They even have many interchangeable parts. Then Jet/Grizzly introduced a cost reduced fixed table, simplified moving head design (G0890 design). This model had many growing pains initially, including the lack of head lock and less rigid head that can create tapered thickness with excess tension on belts. Most of the inferior design challenges for this new design have been 'fixed' with a damper on opposite side of belt drive. Personally, I would not buy the new design, until it has survived in the market for 10-20% of the 50+ years of the proven Delta 4 post planer design. "
Delta 4 post planer design is what I described as type 1 in my post.
Contributor
I have the Powermatic 15HH. Got it about 2010. I like it. It does well - leaves a good surface, doesn’t snipe, seems to have adequate power, decent dust collection.
Only negative I’ve found with the planer is it has a built in caster set that is not heavy duty enough for the tool. Mine sets on blocks to defeat the casters. I’ll remove them one of these days.
Good luck with the purchase.
PHM
Contributor
I highly recommend the rotacator for fine tuning a planer. I do not buy expensive measuring tools especially for a tool I will only use a few times. For $100+ it hurt but worth it.
Ask a woodworker to "make your bed" and he/she makes a bed.
[OP]
Member
Thanks for all the feedback. The rotacator is to check the height of the infeed and outfeed tables?
Contributor
Correct, but it is a very useful tool beyond Planer use. Highly recommended tool for woodworkers and machinists.
Contributor
The rotacator is good for all kinds of planer adjustments.
Last edited by Gordon Stump; 10-30-2023 at 4:42 PM.
Ask a woodworker to "make your bed" and he/she makes a bed.
Member
The price of a new pm 15hh is higher than a lot of the used scmi s52 machines I see.
Not really apples to apples except for cost.
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