Opinions/question on G0604X 6" jointer

[dan sherman]

I plan to purchase a jointer shortly, and I have pretty much settled on the grizzly G0604X (http://www.grizzly.com/products/6-Parallelogram-Jointer/G0604X)
For several reasons:
it’s in my price range <$800
it & runs on 110v (I’m a renter and will be for the foreseeable future so I can’t go rewiring the garage)
I have limited spaceDoes anyone have a G0604X, if so how do you like it? Can anyone share the height of the machine floor/fence, or floor/on-off switch?

I need to be able to role the machine under a high bench to save space. From the owners manual it looks like the on/off switch could be relocated, but obviously the fence can’t be modified.

Thanks,
-Dan

[dan sherman]

bump

anyone have the G0604, it's the same jointer with a 1HP motor?

[keith ouellette]

I have the go490 which is the 8" para and so far I like it. The tables are pretty flat. There is a short dip in one spot only about .003 deep on the infeed and I think there is one around the same spot on the outfeed. Once you get used to the bearing it is easy to set the tables in the same plane. It does have a pretty hard start up and has a little more vibration than I would like but i think that can be solved by a better belt. I haven't ordered my new belt yet.
Mine is last years so the newer ones may be better. I can't see doing much better for the price.

[Art Mann]

I don't see any benefit to a parallelogram type jointer. In theory, it would be easier to adjust the tables to be coplaner, but in reality, most people never have to adjust theirs anyway. At most you might have to work on that once a decade. The other question I would have is the benefit of a 1 1/2 hp motor. My jointer has a 1 hp motor and I have never wished for more power, even flattening 6" wide hardwoods. The feed rate is limited more by a desire to get a good finish than the loading of the motor. I am pretty sure that jointer is an excellent piece, but if you could locate a nice 1 1/2 or 1 3/4 hp 8" jointer that would run on 120V, I think that would be money better spent. That is just my opinion, which may be worth every bit you paid fot it.

[dan sherman]

I am pretty sure that jointer is an excellent piece, but if you could locate a nice 1 1/2 or 1 3/4 hp 8" jointer that would run on 120V, I think that would be money better spent. That is just my opinion, which may be worth every bit you paid fot it.

All the new 1 1/2 hp 8" models are out of my price range (Delta), and the used ones I have seen local have been really abused. I went to look at one, and it looked like it had been used as an anvil.

[keith ouellette]

I don't see any benefit to a parallelogram type jointer. In theory, it would be easier to adjust the tables to be coplaner, but in reality, most people never have to adjust theirs anyway. At most you might have to work on that once a decade. The other question I would have is the benefit of a 1 1/2 hp motor. My jointer has a 1 hp motor and I have never wished for more power, even flattening 6" wide hardwoods. The feed rate is limited more by a desire to get a good finish than the loading of the motor. I am pretty sure that jointer is an excellent piece, but if you could locate a nice 1 1/2 or 1 3/4 hp 8" jointer that would run on 120V, I think that would be money better spent. That is just my opinion, which may be worth every bit you paid fot it.

I have had three jointers and all three came with the tables out of wack. One was from laguna. Only my parallelogram tables could be set right. I think it helps make up for manufacturing problems.

[Tom Esh]

I picked up (I'm only 2hrs from the Muncie facility) a new G0604X on sale last summer and I'm very happy with it. Tables and head/cutters were dead on right out of the box. That switch pedestal might be problematic if you're planning to park it under a bench as it's about 48". Floor-to-top of fence is 38, but the fence tilt lever brings it up to about 41 with the fence at its 90 deg position. I don't recall if the caster pedal was down for those measurements (and it's too cold to go back out there and check :)) so add another inch to be safe.
The only issue I've had was minor - a noise which turned out to be the outside surface of the belt slapping the head pulley guard (harmlessly) for a few revs due to the motor startup torque. It's the first Grizzly machine I've owned but based on this experience they'll get first look on more of my business. The mobility base works great - solid steel wheels and side panels that mount with machine screws into real threads instead of the expected sheet metal screws.
BTW this is my first post here on SMC but I've been lurking/learning awhile. For sure I'd have made some truly awful tool decisions without this resource, so today I decided it's about time to return the favor - coughed up both some dough and (hopefully helpful) discourse.

[Stuart Gardner]

This is my first Grizzly tool. I just got it delivered a couple of days ago. Assembly went pretty well. It took several hours, but I had no real problems. Although, at one point I was lying underneath trying to line up the mounting holes to the base by persuading the jointer with a rubber mallet (gently, just to move it 1/8" at a time to get the holes to line up) and I almost tipped the thing over. Be careful, these things are top heavy.

My only real complaint so far is the shipping. It's like they don't care about their cargo. The jointer box, besides looking like it had been handled by drunken gorillas, got skewered by a forklift fork. Fortunately the tine went in below the machine, so no damage occurred. But the base unit, in a different box, had a crushed corner, which is a structural component required to hold up the jointer. I was worried about it buckling under the load of the jointer, but tested it with heavy weight. It seemed fine, so I put my body shop skills to work and straightened it out with a hammer and scrap piece of wood.

I haven't used it yet. I just got it put together and had to go out of town for a few days, but this is giving me a little more time to read the manual about final adjustments so I can fine tune it before my first use. I'll put on another post in a few days about my experiences with that. The machine seems to be very well made, with beefy components that have excellent fit and finish. I think it's going to be a real pleasure to use.

[Stuart Gardner]

Well - I've had my jointer for several months now, I've run a fair amount of lumber through it. Mostly edge jointing, a little face jointing. The outfeed table was a couple thousandths high, and that was a little hard to diagnose, but once I set it right everything was dead perfect. Setting up the fence was a bit of a struggle as well, and I'm still not sure I have it quite right, but it works well enough.

Overall I'm quite pleased with my purchase and wish I'd gotten a jointer a long time ago. It's so nice to be able to work back and forth between the table saw, jointer, and planer to get my stock nice and square. Sure comes in handy when making projects. But the bottom line for this thread is I'm glad I bought the Grizzly and would buy it again. Don't know about the parallelogram feature. I really haven't explored it since the setup is so good. But I imagine it will come in handy someday. Those tables have to be parallel in every dimension for your stock to come out right.

[glenn bradley]

I have had three jointers and all three came with the tables out of wack. One was from laguna. Only my parallelogram tables could be set right. I think it helps make up for manufacturing problems.

Another vote for p-beds. Beyond the obvious, they also maintain a consistent gap at the cutterhead. It's true that the beds on mine are almost never changed in height but when you do . . . I'll never go back. JMHO.

P.s. my Grizzly G0490X beds were so perfectly aligned out of the box, it took me awhile to accept it and continue assembly ;-)

P.p.s. put a strip of UHMW along the bottom foot of the fence. Lot's easier to adjust and no surface scratches.

[John Hedges]

If you are going with a 6" unit, I would recommend the General or PM machines. I had a General as my first machine and it was extremely well made and ran very smooth. A real pleasure to use. I wish my GO490 was half as well made or ran nearly as smooth as the General did.

[dan sherman]

I picked up a G0604X about a month ago, and I love the thing. It took about two hours to set up and adjust, It's the quietest woodworking tool in my shop.

[Stuart Gardner]

I've had my jointer for more than two years now, use it pretty frequently, and still happy I bought a Grizzly. Like someone else said, it's the quietest machine in my shop. My only regret is that I didn't get an 8" machine. Most of the rough lumber I buy is in the six inch range, with more than a few being slightly wider than six inches. For normal wookworking, I think most people buy boards in this width range, and face jointing them to their full width would be nice. A six inch machine does handle 90% or more of what I need to do, but for a few extra dollars I think that could have been raised to 99% with an 8" width.