To "new" Oliver jointer owners/buyers

[Dan Racette]

I have the "new" oliver 10" jointer. got it as a blemished model for $1600. It is normally over $2k.

I see that grizzly has the G0455 now. Looks identical to me and it priced at the $1600 price point new.

could be worth a looksie!!!

dan

[Dev Emch]

Dan...
Good Snag. Looking forward to intial test ride reports.

But you know me, I cann't resist a good pun...

With this gloat, should us old oliver guys be GREEN with envy or BLUE with sorrow.:rolleyes:

[Keith Foster]

...should us old oliver guys be GREEN with envy or BLUE with sorrow.:rolleyes:You left out RED with embarrasement...:p




Disclaimer: The above posting is intended in fun and in no way, well - maybe a little... in no way shape or form identifies the posters opinions on anything except color selections.

[Dev Emch]

You left out RED with embarrasement...:p




Disclaimer: The above posting is intended in fun and in no way, well - maybe a little... in no way shape or form identifies the posters opinions on anything except color selections.

Who makes a red jointer? Boy would that be hard on the eyes!

[Jim DeMarco]

Dan,

So how do you like the "new" Oliver. I have been torn as of recent.... it all started with I need more than a 6" jointer. At first, it was a no-brainer, DJ-20. Then I thought, well for almost the same money I can get another 2" of capacity. My concern was/is I do not know a thing about the machine, who builds it, what its actual Asian origin is, parts, support, etc. I did hear rumor a few months ago about the Grizzly, and made the assumption then that they would be the 'same' machine. Of course now I wonder where to draw the line.... The bed is a good size, but is it a bit heavy to be a wedge bed design, maybe I need the 12" Grizzly pro??? Bigger is always better, isn't it. But the cost justification may be difficult to swallow.
I was also originally thinking a spiral head with indexed carbide, but I heard another rumor that the finish quality is not that good compared to a straight knife???

So please let me know what you think about your new machine.... I can make it to Grizzly before they close today... hmmm... ha ha

[Shiraz Balolia]

Dan,
I was also originally thinking a spiral head with indexed carbide, but I heard another rumor that the finish quality is not that good compared to a straight knife???


I can personally attest to it that the spiral cutterhead is better than the straight knives, specially when doing figured woods. To some "figured" means seeing nice grain pattern in Oak. I am talking about stuff like curly maple, quilted woods etc.. that are prone to tear out. Spiral's the ticket for those types. Plus the "re-setting" of the knives is a breeze, there isn't any. They are indexed - clean out the pocket and turn the carbide insert. If you run a nail through, you just turn the inserts affected. Less than a 2 min job.

[Dev Emch]

I can personally attest to it that the spiral cutterhead is better than the straight knives, specially when doing figured woods. To some "figured" means seeing nice grain pattern in Oak. I am talking about stuff like curly maple, quilted woods etc.. that are prone to tear out. Spiral's the ticket for those types. Plus the "re-setting" of the knives is a breeze, there isn't any. They are indexed - clean out the pocket and turn the carbide insert. If you run a nail through, you just turn the inserts affected. Less than a 2 min job.

Yah, like I have said, PAGEN GRAIN! CROTCH & BURL, ETC. For more info on some of these heads, give the folks at Bryd a call or talk to an green oliver owner who owns the ITCH head.

[Dan Racette]

Jim,

I frankly have had to deal with some issues unrelated to the jointer itself (service issues). They were all fixed, some by myself some by customer service.

I have seen john M. DJ-20 w/shelix, and I can tell you it is a nice machine.

The jointer isn't "super" quality when it comes to fit and finish, but one nice thing that I see so far, is it is heavy. good long table (84"). Lots of iron. My table was flat according to my starret straight edge, so that, of course made me happy. Plenty of power and heft. Otherwise, it is a jointer, like any other jointer, changing knives is yucky. If I did it all over again, I would probably go with the grizz 10" over the oliver. If I had the timeline that I wished I'd had, I'd wait until I could refurb an older jointer, or afford a combo mini-max with tersa/terminus heads.

I think I would recommend staying away from the sub $1000 price point on any jointer over 8". I rabbet with my jointer, so carbide heads were out, straight knives only, if I had my druthers I'd have that Old Oliver ITCH head or the newman "quiet cut", but both are simply unattainable right now. I also like HSS so I can work the edge myself, and add a back bevel.

Grizzly big 10" (looks like a great value)
Refurb (if I go refurb, I would want 14" min)
mini-max. love my mini-max bandsaw! ($$)

Let me know what you decide to do yourself, I would love to hear.

[Jim DeMarco]

Dan, the griz is looking favorable. Largest factor being service, I can be at Grizzly's front door in a touch over 3.5 hours. I would be willing to bet a good chunck of change that the Oliver (the blue one, sorry Dev) is about a clone of the griz, or visa versa. Still undecided on straight or spiral, but I figure a 3.5 hour drive and they will be more than happy to demo the difference. Although I really like the 'looks' of the extream 12" as a 'hobby' shop it is more than difficult to justify the extra $2k.
So since tomorrow is a holiday for me.... maybe I will take a little drive?

[Jim DeMarco]

Well I pretty much decided the new Grizzly 10" with a spiral head. So I made the 3 hour drive to Muncey PA today... guess what!!
NOT AVALIBLE UNTIL JUNE!!
Tried to swallow my dissapointment, and decided I was not wasting a trip, so I will buy the 12". I could not see an additional 1000 for a spiral head, I figue for that $$ I can buy a BYRD. So I am now going to buy the 12" Grizzly... guess what.... OUT OF STOCK. I must admit, at this point I am a little dissapointed, but I ask if I can buy the floor model. They agree to sell me the floor model, and despite its being 5 years old, it is "brand new" and warranty, etc will be honored from time of purchase. I ask if they are willing to deal a bit on price, since it does have a few minor scratches, etc.... Sure, shouldn't be a problem I am told. They had me at the cashiers counter in minutes, and already had a fork truck retrieving the machine. BUT... GUESS WHAT... no deal on price, paid the fill $3k for a five year old machine, but I am again assured it is brand new. Cash out, take recipt, go to dock to pick it up. Now I paid my bill at 4:08pm, and in recieving by 4:10 pm. At first they could not find the machine... but it had gone back to service to be chaecked out... cool!
I began to get aggrivated at quarter after 5, all three of the fork truck drivers had checked with me, and all were concerned that I was still there. FINALLY someone came out and told me it was back in service, and they were checking, cleaning, and setting knives. Be about 20 min I am told.
At 6:00 I finally saw the machine, it was loaded in minutes, and again the truck drivers were great. The rest of the folks that dealt with me today... not so great. I just hope this is one spectacular machine... But, overall I am very dissapointed with the "LACK" of customer service. Especially when you read my previous comment in which my decision of machine choice was largely based on customer service!
I am still tempted to call and complain, but I think I will get the machine set up and test it out first.
To the select few (the fork truck drivers, and the cashier that checked me out) thank you all for your help, concern, and patiance. For the salesman and "big boss" whom I did not meet, but was told slapped my discount away.... thank you for NOTHING.

[Shiraz Balolia]

[quote=Jim DeMarco]
I am still tempted to call and complain.
quote]

Jim, you have been heard.
I will take care of it in the morning. In the meantime I will PM you tomorrow after I have had a chance to speak with my people in PA . Don't worry, you will get that floor model discount that you were expecting and did not get. I apologize for the mixup and understand your frustration.

To others, it is always a good idea to call ahead when driving to a showroom to pick up a machine, specially a new model. I'll post an actual due date on the 10" jointers tomorrow as the June date is wrong.

[Keith Weber]

Jim,

I rabbet with my jointer, so carbide heads were out, straight knives only,...

I just wanted to clarify the comment above that Dan made. Does that mean that you cannot rabbet with the spiral heads? If so, why is that? I've got my mind made up for now on the Grizzly 10" jointer. I'd like to be able to joint the very occasional 12" board by removing the guard, jointing the first 10", then running the opposite face through the planer with the jointed face resting (read tacked to) on a 10" plywood sled. Would this operation still be possible with the spiral blades?

Also, while we've got Shiraz's attention. Do you happen to know what the weight of the jointer could be knocked down to after removing the base, motors, fence, etc? I have to be able to carry this thing down a set of stairs to the basement. I got my G1023L down by taking it apart, but the weight of that jointer scares me!

Thanks!

Keith

[Jay T. Marlin]

Well I pretty much decided the new Grizzly 10" with a spiral head. So I made the 3 hour drive to Muncey PA today... guess what!!
NOT AVALIBLE UNTIL JUNE!!
Tried to swallow my dissapointment, and decided I was not wasting a trip, so I will buy the 12". I could not see an additional 1000 for a spiral head, I figue for that $$ I can buy a BYRD. So I am now going to buy the 12" Grizzly... guess what.... OUT OF STOCK.

You should have just gotten the G9953ZX. :D

I recently bought one for my home shop. In fact, I'm going to go play with it right now. Brb.

[Dan Racette]

That is one nice looking unit you got there. Got any proof? ;) ;)

[Byron Trantham]

Who makes a red jointer? Boy would that be hard on the eyes!

Dev,
Red; did you say red?:D

[Shiraz Balolia]

Well I pretty much decided the new Grizzly 10" with a spiral head. So I made the 3 hour drive to Muncey PA today... guess what!!
NOT AVALIBLE UNTIL JUNE!!
Tried to swallow my dissapointment, and decided I was not wasting a trip, so I will buy the 12". I could not see an additional 1000 for a spiral head, I figue for that $$ I can buy a BYRD. So I am now going to buy the 12" Grizzly... guess what.... OUT OF STOCK. I must admit, at this point I am a little dissapointed, but I ask if I can buy the floor model. They agree to sell me the floor model, and despite its being 5 years old, it is "brand new" and warranty, etc will be honored from time of purchase. I ask if they are willing to deal a bit on price, since it does have a few minor scratches, etc.... Sure, shouldn't be a problem I am told. They had me at the cashiers counter in minutes, and already had a fork truck retrieving the machine. BUT... GUESS WHAT... no deal on price, paid the fill $3k for a five year old machine, but I am again assured it is brand new. Cash out, take recipt, go to dock to pick it up. Now I paid my bill at 4:08pm, and in recieving by 4:10 pm. At first they could not find the machine... but it had gone back to service to be chaecked out... cool!
I began to get aggrivated at quarter after 5, all three of the fork truck drivers had checked with me, and all were concerned that I was still there. FINALLY someone came out and told me it was back in service, and they were checking, cleaning, and setting knives. Be about 20 min I am told.
At 6:00 I finally saw the machine, it was loaded in minutes, and again the truck drivers were great. The rest of the folks that dealt with me today... not so great. I just hope this is one spectacular machine... But, overall I am very dissapointed with the "LACK" of customer service. Especially when you read my previous comment in which my decision of machine choice was largely based on customer service!
I am still tempted to call and complain, but I think I will get the machine set up and test it out first.
To the select few (the fork truck drivers, and the cashier that checked me out) thank you all for your help, concern, and patiance. For the salesman and "big boss" whom I did not meet, but was told slapped my discount away.... thank you for NOTHING.

Jim - got to the bottom of the issue:

1) We had a run on the 12" jointers in December and so were temporarily out. There are a few more arriving this week in PA.
2) The delivery dates on the new 10" jointers are as follows -
G0455 10" Jointer with regular cutterhead, End of February
G0480 10" Jointer with Spiral cutterhead, End of March
3) On the showroom machines, we install the jointer knives upside down for obvious reasons, so they had to be reset on the floor model that you got.
4) You made a good choice on the 12" jointer as I have the same machine, except with the spiral cutterhead. I will PM you soon.

Thank you for the order and our apologies for the mixup yesterday.

[Dan Racette]

Well, I think the lower price and shiraz's response speak for themselves!

Dan

Check the classifieds for mine soon, I guess!!! hahaha

[Jim DeMarco]

Shiraz,
I can not thank you enough for both looking into, and taking care of this for me. I was a little upset still when I wrote the initial post, had a three hour drive to stew. You have re-validated my initial statement, BUY the Grizzly, because the service is local....
Thank you again, now do you think there is any chance you can get my boss to let me go home so I can fire that big a** machine up?

I will be sure to post an update once I get it up and running.