Bench top Mortiser

[Richard Brown]

Today I am looking for advise. I am looking at buying a Bench Top Mortiser and would like to hear from a few have one. It will not have a lot of use a lot, maybe a dozen times a year. Ease of installing bits/chisels, which one is easiest? It will be used on hardwoods building tables and ect.

Thanks in advance for any information.

Dick

[Mike Heidrick]

I own the 701 powermatic and it is good.

[Cary Falk]

I have the Steel City. I haven't used it a whole lot but I don't have any complaints.

[Michael Faurot]

I own a Delta and its worked well for me. I think all of the bench top models are about equally tedious to get the bits/chisels installed. Not hard--but not as fast as chucking up a bit in a drill press.

You'll want to invest in a sharpening kit or abrasive cones for the chisels. My experience has been the chisels aren't typically good to go out of the box, but instead need to be honed first.

And here's a tip for setting up those chisels:
97091

[glenn bradley]

I recently went through this exercise and ended up with the Mortise Pal. The special package included the MP, Whiteside "precision" (whatever that means) bushing and centering pin and a bonus doweling template. Works beyond expectation up to 2" wide. For benchtop units, most long term owners reported that high quality chisels were a must. At nearly $100 each this put the cost of this solution a bit high (no pun intended). I really, really wanted a mortiser but after a lot of study and feedback from the good folks here and elsewhere I changed gears. The MP seems expensive for what it is, but its really not when compared to other solutions. Just my experience . . .

[Neal Clayton]

i have a pm 701 as well, and am not too pleased with it. for light use that will have to be cleaned up with a chisel anyways it's ok, but it's not nearly accurate enough for doors other such things that require precision.

i also went with a router jig in lieu of the small mortiser.

grizzly sells a full size horizontal mortiser with a proper sliding table for less than 1000, so if you found one of those used that would be a much better option, imo. my stepbrother has one, i've made some transoms with it, and it's plenty accurate for precise work. it's a much better option for only a couple hundred dollars more.

[Don Bullock]

I have the Steel City. I haven't used it a whole lot but I don't have any complaints.

I'm with Cary. If the I can set up my Steel City mortiser, anyone can. In fact it's all set up for my current table project. All I need is some time to put it to use. ;):D

[Eric Larsen]

All y'all with your silly chisels.

A REAL mortiser uses a chain saw to hollow out the mortise.

http://www.toolking.com/ZoomImage.aspx?productID=114fdce2-998f-4308-8b95-2aeb4a4abdb4


PS -- Let's see someone make a Queen Anne highboy with THAT. :D

[glenn bradley]

PS -- Let's see someone make a Queen Anne highboy with THAT. :D

I could UN-make one with that; does that count? :D:D:D

[Rod Sheridan]

I've owned the General International 75-050 machine for about 7 years.

It has made thousands of mortices in white oak without complaint.

It is accurate, easy to set up and the long lever gives good advantage when cutting mortices in hard woods.

Regards, Rod.

[BOB OLINGER]

Hi Richard,

I've been going through the same motions. I plan to build quite a few plantation shutters and the recomended jointery is mortise and tennon. I've about settled on the Shop Fox. It runs at a higher RPM (which I understand is OK), has 3/4 HP motor (most others 1/2 HP), cost about $296 after freight (about $50 more than several others). Let me know how you come out. I plan to pull the trigger within a week

[Pete Clifford]

I've owned the General International 75-050 machine for about 7 years.

It has made thousands of mortices in white oak without complaint.

It is accurate, easy to set up and the long lever gives good advantage when cutting mortices in hard woods.

Regards, Rod.
Richard, here in Canada my choices were significantly more limited than yours i.e. no Grizzly, no ShopFox, no Powermatic in my local area.

I have the tilting head version of this mortiser, the General International 75-050T. As Rod notes, it's accurate and the long lever is nice to have. However, it was significantly more expensive than the other equivalent bench-top mortisers on the market i.e. about $100 more than the Delta or SC.

If I had not bought the GI, I would have bought the Steel City mortiser. Well built, excellent warranty and company reputation, and well priced. For non-industrial use, most of these will serve the home craftsman well.

[Joe Vincent]

I own a Delta and its worked well for me. I think all of the bench top models are about equally tedious to get the bits/chisels installed. Not hard--but not as fast as chucking up a bit in a drill press.

You'll want to invest in a sharpening kit or abrasive cones for the chisels. My experience has been the chisels aren't typically good to go out of the box, but instead need to be honed first.

And here's a tip for setting up those chisels:
97091

The point about sharpening the chisels is important.

[Roger Everett]

I can fully back up what Rod and Pete said, I have the same as Pete , the 75-0505T tilting head. I think I paid about 3 1/2 for it. Three things that made up my mind were - it's a larger machine than most others. has a long handle, for a strong pull - it has dovetailed ( adjustable ) slide , instead of the round tube many have - and right before I bought it FWW did an article and rated it #1.
Roger

[Brandon Shew]

I have the tilting head version of this mortiser, the General International 75-050T. As Rod notes, it's accurate and the long lever is nice to have. However, it was significantly more expensive than the other equivalent bench-top mortisers on the market i.e. about $100 more than the Delta or SC.

If I had not bought the GI, I would have bought the Steel City mortiser. Well built, excellent warranty and company reputation, and well priced. For non-industrial use, most of these will serve the home craftsman well.

I agree completely. I have the General Int. as well. I looked long and hard at the Jet and SC and probably would have gotten the SC, but the tilting head on the GI makes it a lot more flexible. The GI is well made and worth the extra $100.

[Thomas Williams]

I have been using the Shopfox for about 3 years now. For a bench top machine, it has worked very well. I would buy the same one today. Set up is easy and the table/fence were square out of the box. Bit changes are no problem either. I have used a Jet and the older Delta but never had to do the set up, so I can not make a comparison to the other brands available.
As others have said, sharp bits are important to a good working mortiser.