Which cabinet saw should I keep? Pics

[Steve Mathews]

I'm new to woodworking and recently purchased a Delta cabinet saw. Shortly afterwards I came across another cabinet saw made by Jet that I couldn't resist buying. My dilemma is which one should I keep? The Delta is a Platinum Edition with a Biesemeyer fence. The Jet is a Model #JTAS-10-1 with an Xacta fence. Both have a 3hp, single phase motor, extension table and are right tilt. Other than color and badging they look about the same. The fit and finish of the Jet seems a little better by my novice eyes. The Jet fence and extension table came in the original boxes and were never used. Here are pics of the two saws.
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[Mark Wooden]

Keep the USA made Delta; although the company itself has gone down the tubes recently, the Unisaw is the better machine.

[Jesse Busenitz]

Yeah keep the uni

[ed vitanovec]

The Delta Unisaw

[Scott Hearn]

Easy. USA iron over Chinese? Keep the delta. It likely has a far better built motor if nothing else. Swap fences if you want.

[Carroll Courtney]

If your looking for an easy sale then that would be the Uni,lots of people wants them.Jet,well that may take longer to sell.But,if I had both and wanted the best for myself then like others that would be the Uni,heck the fence by its self cost ya around 400.But I'm sure there's a Jet fan someplace,good luck with your decision.Both looks good,I can see why you jump on them----Carroll

[David Kumm]

Likely the Uni although I'm not sure they were all USA at that point but resale is better. Check condition and measure runout and check the tables and motor. Condition trumps model for that comparison. Dave

[Mark Carlson]

Keep both, use jet as the outfeed table and for dado blades:) I'm only half kidding.

[scott vroom]

Sell 'em both and get a Grizzly :p

[John Vernier]

Since everyone is favoring the Delta I will just muddy the waters a little and say that I worked in a shop which had an older Jet of, I believe, that same model and similar vintage (based on paint color), and it was a solid and reliable user, well made and precise enough for joinery cutting. Currently I'm using an older Unisaw so I like those too, but the Jet is nothing to sniff at.

[Jim Andrew]

They are both good saws, but I prefer left tilt, so I would sell both and look for a left tilting saw. Better yet, get you a sliding table saw.

[scott spencer]

In this case, I'd keep the Unisaw.

[Steve Mathews]

Keep both, use jet as the outfeed table and for dado blades:) I'm only half kidding.
That's not a bad idea except for the space it would take up.

I had a chance to take a closer look at both saws this afternoon and there's little left to doubt that one is a copy of the other with a few exceptions. The cast iron extensions on the Jet are a little wider and the top seems to have a slightly smoother surface. Although the motors look the same they have different mounts. I'm sure that's done to muddy up the waters if replacement is necessary. The Jet top flanges where bolts pass through are slightly thicker but the size and number of bolts are less. The fence rails are slightly thicker on the Unisaw. The Jet has a 4" dust collection port as standard. The Unisaw has a large rectangular opening that needs to be converted to a dust port. What were they thinking? The Jet has a workable latch for the motor cover. The one on the Unisaw is an embarrassment. I see no difference in the Xacta or Biesemeyer fences. Just some observations.

Maybe another good reason to keep one saw over the other is parts availability. Would Unisaw parts be more available in the future?

[Mike Cutler]

Keep both, use jet as the outfeed table and for dado blades:) I'm only half kidding.

I'm not kidding about it. ;).
Everyone comes up with some type of an outfeed system, and for the money, it's hard to build something better than that Jet.
I have two table saws that sit at 90 degrees to each other, with a shaper in between the two. One is generally set for ripping and the other crosscutting. It's very nice to not be changing blades, or resetting jigs and fixtures during a project. When not in use the three are covered with 3/4" plywood,making a very big, stable, bench for non-woodworking stuff.

Unless you need to recover some $$$$ for other stuff, keep them both. You won't regret it.

[Nick Stokes]

I would definitely keep Both. You have to have an out feed anyway. Might as well Keep a Dado on one.

[Myk Rian]

Both saws are right tilt? Seems a little bit strange.

[julian abram]

Keep the Delta.

[Von Bickley]

I would definitely keep Both. You have to have an out feed anyway. Might as well Keep a Dado on one.

I like that idea......

[Steve Mathews]

Keep both saws is beginning to gain traction. I just checked both tops and the slots are the same distance apart. There would be a gap between saws of course. Should it be filled in with a wood strip or just left open?

[William C Rogers]

I had a Jet similar vintage. IMO it was every bit as good as a Uni. My neighbor had a Uni and he had problems with that saw motor. Start capacitor, cooling fan. It took two months for the fan. Looking at his saw and mine there was no much difference. The Jet is not Chinese junk by any means. I bought a Sawstop, posted the Jet here for $550, no takers. Put it in CL for $650 and sold it in less than three hours. the Jet is in a lower price range, but still a great saw. I think you win no matter what route you take.

[Mark Wooden]

Keeping both is a great idea if you have the space, best solution yet.
Delta Unisaws have been around since 1939, have been virtually unchanged during that time, and have always been made here in the USA. Used and serviced properly, you should never really need parts beyond bearings and belts. While the finish of the saws wasn't all spit and polish, they are accurate.

The Jet saws are pretty good for off shore machines- why shouldn't they be, they're a direct clone of the Unisaw, been around since the 60's(?). The smoothness of the table was eye candy for the masses, they were ground to a finer mattison type finish while the Delta's were rotary (blanchard type) ground and a bit coarser-which I prefer personally. I have seen and used Jet machines that had warped tables and high/low spots, crooked castings etc..Same with Grizzly. I was told that it was the result of a faster manufacturing process; cast iron doesn't like to be hurried.

Keep them both. Put a 5hp motor on the Jet and a powerfeed, use it to rip, groove and dado. Tune up the Uni and use it for joinery. Awesome set-up.

[Jim Matthews]

Put both saws up for sale, at the same time with a 15% premium over your purchase price.

Use the proceeds to buy a proper stack of blades.

[Jim Becker]

The cabinet saw I had before buying my slider was a Jet. (a hair newer than that blue one and a left-tilt, too) It was a fine saw and I sold it for what I originally paid for it 6 years earlier.

[Peter Aeschliman]

Maybe another good reason to keep one saw over the other is parts availability. Would Unisaw parts be more available in the future?

To the contrary, if you do a bit of searching on this forum, you'll read about lots of Delta customers finding it essentially impossible to find parts. Ownership has recently changed hands and it seems that they dont really support replacement parts.

That's a point in favor of the Jet.

[mark kosse]

Since everyone is favoring the Delta I will just muddy the waters a little and say that I worked in a shop which had an older Jet of, I believe, that same model and similar vintage (based on paint color), and it was a solid and reliable user, well made and precise enough for joinery cutting. Currently I'm using an older Unisaw so I like those too, but the Jet is nothing to sniff at.

The jet is nothing to sniff at because like some other companies, they borrowed from the delta design. I needed a new unisaw arbor bracket and the jet would fit it. I didn't buy on principle. No ones parts should be that close. No wonder delta sucks as a company now.

[Curt Harms]

To the contrary, if you do a bit of searching on this forum, you'll read about lots of Delta customers finding it essentially impossible to find parts. Ownership has recently changed hands and it seems that they dont really support replacement parts.

That's a point in favor of the Jet.

True about Delta as a parts source. I'll bet there's lots more used Unisaw parts available though and they didn't change that much through the years. I wonder if one could get, for example a new trunnion casting for the blue Jet?

[Steve Mathews]

I'm trying hard to justify keeping both saws but the combined width of both will eat up a good amount of space in my barn. Doubling of the depth is OK but an overall width of about 10 ft. might prove to be cumbersome. Getting back to the original question, what makes the Unisaw motor better?

[Nick Stokes]

If you don't want both, then what you do is set them both up for a couple weeks. See which one gets used more. You will probably decide on your own.

[Kevin Womer]

The Delta is the better saw, the Jet is probably on par with a Grizzly. I have owned/still own some of the following: Delta, Jet, Steel City and Grizzly machines.

[Von Bickley]

You could sell both of them and get a good left-tilt saw.....

[Cary Falk]

You could sell both of them and get a good left-tilt saw.....

with a riving knife.

[Steve Mathews]

I'll make do with what I have for now. I have a lot to learn before I'm able to take advantage of a more advanced machine.

[David Kumm]

You could sell both of them and get a good left-tilt saw.....

Or just move the Beisemeyer tube farther to the left. Dave

[John Stankus]

If you have the room build two small projects, one on one saw, one on the other. And see which one YOU like better


John

[Peter Aeschliman]

I'll make do with what I have for now. I have a lot to learn before I'm able to take advantage of a more advanced machine.

Steve, to be sure, the saws you have are about as advanced as table saws get. A riving knife is not an added complexity for the user- in fact it's more convenient than a splitter and far safer since it can stay on the saw for pretty much all cuts. Left tilt is no more complex or advanced than a right tilt saw, the blade just tilts in another direction. But it's safer for some cuts, because you want to tilt the blade AWAY from the fence in order to avoid pinching the workpiece and causing kickback. On a right tilt saw, you can put the fence on the left side of the blade, but you're usually limited to pretty narrow cuts.

So, depending on your budget, I agree that you should sell these saws and get a newer one that tilts left and has a riving knife. If you bought both saws but only have the budget to keep one, then you may not have the choice.

But it's not a decision about complexity. Only european style sliding table saws are more complex and have a learning curve.

[Harold Weaver]

Keep the Unisaw. Parts? If that is a right tilt Unisaw, the insides of that saw have changed very little since its debut in 1939. Parts are plentiful if you look in the right places. I had one of those blue Jet saws some years ago until I got into OWWM. Bought a 1968 Unisaw and restored it and sold the Jet immediately. Have since sold the Unisaw and bought and restored a 1972 Powermatic 66 and will never part with it. In IMHO, the 66 is the best 10" saw ever made, but the Unisaw is no slouch. It's a great machine. Both are miles ahead of a Jet. Just my 2 cents worth......