Jet JJ-6HHDX Jointer

patlaw

Mike
Corporate Member
Wood Magazine just rated the Jet JJ-6HHDX jointer as the Top Tool. Apologies to Jet owners, but I never considered Jet to be a top-of-the-line tool. Would you put credibility in Wood's testing? Does anyone here have this model? I may be in the market for one if and when I get past the cold and flu season.
 

Bill Clemmons

Bill
Corporate Member
Mike, I became leery of the magazine ratings of tools some years ago. There always seemed to be a large ad for the very tool they were rating high. Maybe they rated the tool first, then asked the manufacturer if they wanted to place an ad. Or maybe the ad was placed to get the tool rated high. I don't know. I admit I'm a bit of a skeptic, but that's just the way my mind works some times.

I much prefer the opinions of my fellow NCWW members.
 

Dee2

Board of Directors, Vice President
Gene
Staff member
Corporate Member
Maybe next time you renew, change your profile to reflect a higher income. If enough subscribers have higher income, perhaps Wood will start reviewing higher quality machines. Still, they're gonna chase those advertiser $$
 

patlaw

Mike
Corporate Member
I never list my income on magazine subscriptions.

So what jointers should I consider? It has to be helical, at least 6". I have 230 volts available.
 

Bas

Recovering tool addict
Bas
Corporate Member
Apologies to Jet owners, but I never considered Jet to be a top-of-the-line tool. Would you put credibility in Wood's testing? Does anyone here have this model?
I do not have this model, but I have the JET JP1-2HH (jointer/ planer with helical head) and I would consider it a top tool. I agree with you that JET typically finishes in the middle of the pack behind Laguna, Powermatic, etc., they may have built themselves a winner here.

But yes, always be critical of reviews. Other than commercial incentives, everybody values different things in a tool. If possible, look at 3-4 different sources.

Personally, I'd look at an 8" Grizzly, which tends to be the best value for money, not necessarily the best tool.
 

Melinapex

Mark
Corporate Member
I have a couple of jet machines, couple of grizzly's - one is the 8" jointer, and a few deltas. The grizzly is a great value but has given me some trouble. The good news is you can get parts from them and the techs are pretty helpful - at least for me. I have a helical jet planer and consider it the best machine I own. Powermatic owns jet and when I looked at them I could not see any difference.
For me, I would probably buy the best jet jointer I could afford. That's what I did with the planer. Or do like Bas and get the combo machine. My thinking is if I can get the wood flat and straight half the battle is won. If you cannot, then nothing is going to fit or look right.
 

Martin Roper

Martin
Senior User
I do not have this model, but I have the JET JP1-2HH (jointer/ planer with helical head) and I would consider it a top tool. I agree with you that JET typically finishes in the middle of the pack behind Laguna, Powermatic, etc., they may have built themselves a winner here.

But yes, always be critical of reviews. Other than commercial incentives, everybody values different things in a tool. If possible, look at 3-4 different sources.

Personally, I'd look at an 8" Grizzly, which tends to be the best value for money, not necessarily the best tool.

I have this machine and it's a beast. I have yet to use it in earnest, but just playing with it I get the sense that this is a very, very nice machine.

I've also had the Jet 14" bandsaw for 16 years and it's done everything I've asked of it. My limited experience with Jet has been very positive.
 

peteb301

Pete
Corporate Member
Have had this Jointer for a few years and it works like a charm and produces a very smooth edge on any wood I tried, especially figured maple.
Low maintenance, no need to bother with knife settings, when individual knifes get dull , rotate them to three other sides, I have yet to do that.
Very satisfied with this machine - it replaced an old brand X with the three knifes that always needed sharpening.
 

chris_goris

Chris
Senior User
Looks like on amazon you can get that Jet for $1349 free shipping or the powermatic version for just an additonal $90.... Ill take the PM thanks. And yes Im aware its the same company.
 

cyclopentadiene

Update your profile with your name
User
Honestly, I am not convinced there are that many differences in most tools. Manufacturing moved from the US to China many years ago. I have only been to two different areas in China but from what i have observed is they have Megafactories with thousands of employees. The factories i have visited work 12 hour shifts 6 days per week. The company provides dormitories for the employees with all food provided etc. Employees come in from the small outlying areas and work 6-8 months while sending all the money home to support their families. Hence you have constant turnover. Major cities have a specialty and all factories in a particular arra make the same type product. Based on what I have observed there all products aee essentially the same. It is all about inexpensive labor and lowering raw material cost. EU, JP and USA (rare) tools are still the best in the world. I will use the disclaimer that I. have been there to look at electronic based products. I have also visited some packaging producers. The Chinese packaging is elaborate and their printing is extremely high quality. I would rate their packaging among the best in the world
 

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