John Miliunas
06-17-2003, 9:45 PM
This is a followup to a post I originated a little over a week ago. It's regarding the Grizzly G1182HW, 6" jointer. My original mini-review was just a bit less than "glowing", due to some issues with the blades. In short, the machine appeared to come to me in really nice shape, but the final cuts left a couple nick marks in the wood, though I was meticulous in the setup and selection of test pieces. In the final inspection, after a prompt from one of our own SMC members, I noted that the leading edge of the out-feed table could very well have had metallic burrs on it, which could easily have caused the nicks in the original knives. I eventually took some emery cloth to the area and, for the time being, shifted one of the knives over a smidgen.
Upon initial communication with Grizz Tech Support, I was informed that the knives most probably got a nick(s) in them due to the condition/type of material I originally fed through the jointer and they would not be covered under warranty. Ultimately, Bill Crofutt came to the rescue. (Note to self: Never assume the first line of communication with a vendor is the "final word".) The Grizzly followup from that point was kinda' funny unto itself. I got replacement blades within two days. I was thrilled, popped the box open and noted that, "...there's something strange about these blades." True enough: They were for an 8" jointer! Back to the email. Promptly, I got a reply from both, Bill and his assistant who had mistakenly sent out the wrong blades. Apologies from both, a new shipment confirmation of the right blades and I think Matt (Bill's assistant) is still digging the Hemlock slivers out from under his fingernails.:D (Sorry, inside joke.)
At any rate, I received the correct set of replacement blades USPS, Priority Service yesterday. HSS, no less! And, Bill suggested I just keep the 8"ers until I upgrade to the bigger jointer. Now, in MY book, *REAL* Customer Service would have said, "No, we're not sending you a set of 6" blades. Instead, we'll send you the jointer to match the knives we sent last time!" :D :D (Hey, one can dream, right?!) BTW, jointer + new HSS blades=finish as smooth as a baby's behind!
Bottom line: Original contact with Grizz was A-1. The product shipped quickly and was handled beautifully by their shipper. The driver of the shipping company went above and beyond to accommodate the unloading of said unit. The machine was packaged very nicely and came out without a scratch on it. The owner's manual is OK, albeit the assembly instructions themselves a bit to be desired. Mounting/aligning the motor is a royal PITA, but do-able. Enough Cosmoline for two of these machines, but surfaces looked beautiful. General flatness of the tables and fence, given my crude measuring devices, all appear to be good. General fit and finish good, albeit one may want to take a closer look at the business end of the table/knife areas. After the sale support: A couple "speed bumps" along the way, but excellent recovery! In the final analysis, the folks at Grizzly have converted me from a skeptical bystander to an active customer! No, I'm not saying I will buy all my tools from them, but they have now joined my "short list" and, as a matter of fact, there's at the very least, one (possibly as many as 3!) more major tool purchase that will almost certainly go to them. All in all, a happy camper! :D :D :cool:
Upon initial communication with Grizz Tech Support, I was informed that the knives most probably got a nick(s) in them due to the condition/type of material I originally fed through the jointer and they would not be covered under warranty. Ultimately, Bill Crofutt came to the rescue. (Note to self: Never assume the first line of communication with a vendor is the "final word".) The Grizzly followup from that point was kinda' funny unto itself. I got replacement blades within two days. I was thrilled, popped the box open and noted that, "...there's something strange about these blades." True enough: They were for an 8" jointer! Back to the email. Promptly, I got a reply from both, Bill and his assistant who had mistakenly sent out the wrong blades. Apologies from both, a new shipment confirmation of the right blades and I think Matt (Bill's assistant) is still digging the Hemlock slivers out from under his fingernails.:D (Sorry, inside joke.)
At any rate, I received the correct set of replacement blades USPS, Priority Service yesterday. HSS, no less! And, Bill suggested I just keep the 8"ers until I upgrade to the bigger jointer. Now, in MY book, *REAL* Customer Service would have said, "No, we're not sending you a set of 6" blades. Instead, we'll send you the jointer to match the knives we sent last time!" :D :D (Hey, one can dream, right?!) BTW, jointer + new HSS blades=finish as smooth as a baby's behind!
Bottom line: Original contact with Grizz was A-1. The product shipped quickly and was handled beautifully by their shipper. The driver of the shipping company went above and beyond to accommodate the unloading of said unit. The machine was packaged very nicely and came out without a scratch on it. The owner's manual is OK, albeit the assembly instructions themselves a bit to be desired. Mounting/aligning the motor is a royal PITA, but do-able. Enough Cosmoline for two of these machines, but surfaces looked beautiful. General flatness of the tables and fence, given my crude measuring devices, all appear to be good. General fit and finish good, albeit one may want to take a closer look at the business end of the table/knife areas. After the sale support: A couple "speed bumps" along the way, but excellent recovery! In the final analysis, the folks at Grizzly have converted me from a skeptical bystander to an active customer! No, I'm not saying I will buy all my tools from them, but they have now joined my "short list" and, as a matter of fact, there's at the very least, one (possibly as many as 3!) more major tool purchase that will almost certainly go to them. All in all, a happy camper! :D :D :cool: