Originally Posted by
Andrew More
A couple of differences to keep in mind about Jet/Powermatic and Grizzly. First, Jet/Powermatic have 5 year warranties, Grizzly is usually a 1 year warranty. Second, Grizzly is available via catalog only, and you should usually add a couple hundred for freight and lift gate service on larger purchases. Third, sometimes there are subtle differences that go beyond paint.
Just bought a ShopFox 15" planer w1742, which had a list of about $1K less than the Powermatic version, which appears to be identical. However, closing inspection revealed that the cast iron tables on the Powermatic were a couple of inches longer. Talking with the dealer they also pointed out that the usually get a little quicker response time for parts, though both will be able to deliver the part. Having ordered a Grizzly G0490X, I ran into an issue where the planer was listed as in stock, but in fact was back ordered (could be I was just a little late to the party, an another order took the last one in stock). This meant that I ended up having to wait about a month or so to get the planer. With Powermatic/Jet being at the dealer, you should be able to get it that day.
Incidentally I also checking out the Jet 15" planer in my local wood working store, and the current models appear to be bolt for bolt the same as the Grizzly G0890 and G0891.