New Leigh D4R owner...have several questions...

[Dwayne Payne]

I want to know where you got the jig for 357.00. I went to the woodworking show in Houston to buy one, Leigh did not show up.

Dwayne

[Marc Ward]

I want to know where you got the jig for 357.00. I went to the woodworking show in Houston to buy one, Leigh did not show up.

Dwayne

Rockler (this reply is too short?).

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Rockler (this reply is too short?).

ROCKLER?? They actually sold something for less than list?

WOW !!

One of the bad things about this entire industry is that there is no serious competition which results in de facto price fixing.

It's as everyong has a little niche and no one is going to tread on it. ERGO: Company "A" can charge whatever it pleases because Company "B" won't directly compete and if they seem to they are also charging an arm and a leg for bloody little.

I just picked up the Leigh. I've handled the big Porter Cable and the new Akeda (I'd have bought the akeda were not for the short 12" length).

Grizzly is about the only contender for a decent machine at a decent price - and Griz ain't cheap they are merely reasonable. The rest charge way too much for what they offer.

Look at a the two big name Band Saw maker's machines. What is in them that justifies the sticker price? Nothing. Not a thing. The technology is beneath simplistic it's been around forever and it's very easy to do right. Yet the one thing they could do to make them better they won't. They leave the tables small.

Take a look at the rest of the pack. What is it with those companies that they insist on cutting corners ending up with inferior products?

Why is an Austrian or Italian saw pricing in at over $5 Grand? Is it the steller machining and superb use of modern techniology ? No not at all. ( I think it's the wage and labot costs in those countries) They do use good materials but lets face it Cast Iron is the oldest and easiest iron based technology on the planet. ANYONE can do it right. It's almost impossible to screw cast iron up. The rest is machining, bearings, and sheet metal. On the fancy sliders they have taken to Aluminum Extrusions. What is so inherrently precise about an aluminum extrusion? Nothing. Yet it's imposible to machine the bearing race mounts as they are inside the extrusion. It's just cheaper than casting and machining iron.

It's enough to make me mad enough to build a machine tool company.
Except - I too would charge an arm and a leg.

OOPS "Answers"
1) will I get less chipout and/or better cuts if I buy the Whiteside bits (I am "all Whiteside all the time) or are the ones that came with it as good?
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They are probably just fine. However if you are concerned try ‘em on some scrap.

2) If I am making a dovetail chest (like this one) is the front panel (as opposed to the two sides or back) a "pin board" or a "tail board"?
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I submit that the answer lies in whatever pleases you best.

3) If I am making a bookcase, and I want to dovetail the top to the sides, is the top a "pin board" or a "tail board"?
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Same as #2