Have a Craftsman 6x48/9" combo. Quickly ditched the disc portion and used the belt portion for light production work on aluminum after adding a 1 hp TEFC motor. Still in use after 30 years. Had to replace the moveable belt wheel as it wobbled itself right out of the bearings. Added a fence angled to the belt as a pseudo edge sanding attachment.
Last edited by Ole Anderson; 02-14-2022 at 3:20 AM.
Thanks to all for sharing your experiences and advice. Wish I could say it steered me in one direction but it did not. I was kinda hoping there would be more positives on the Jet because I like the fact that it has a 4" port with a blast gate that steers the suction to the belt or disc. Belt change looked the easiest to. Have to agree with the fact that reviews were not that good on Amazon and maybe the quality has slipped. Like the profile of the Rikon for less space but the dc ports are so small. Maybe I could make some mods to that. Did look at the grizzly G1014Z but was not thrilled with 2 different sized ports. Anyhoo, I really do appreciate all the replies. I guess the search, and research continues. Thanks again and you all have a great day
I bought a Shop Fox W1712 this fall. My supplier hadn't instituted the price increase yet so it was a good price at 725. It does have a couple off size ports but I came off the DC pipe at 4" to a 4x2 1/2x2 1/2 Y. Did need one or two of those rubber pipe connectors to get to the goofy sizes on the machine. It does a good job at dust collection. I'm happy with it other than you do need to take the tables off to change the paper, but I never change it unless I wear it out.
I didn't get to real all the posts but I saw one about changing the belt on the Jet and the tracking.
I don't have experience with the Jet but it's easy to change the belt on my Rikon 6x48 belt / 10" disk sander. If the belt is positioned horizontally loosen the clamp with a 6mm hex key and tilt it up a little. Then I just have to remove the rest/table (two knurled thumb screws and two plastic knobs) and release the quick tensioning lever on the front (the side with the disk). The belt slides out the front. Changing belts takes less than a minute.
Also, I have zero problem with the sanding belt tracking. If it drifts a bit to one side I give the adjustment knob a slight turn and it centers and stays there during use. To remember which way to turn the adjustment knob without experimenting, I wrote the direction on the belt table with a sharpie.
I use the belt quite a bit (in the horizontal mode only) but use the disk sander more.
I have the dust port connected to my 5hp ClearVue cyclone. I think it does a fairly good job collecting dust, at least after a small modification: I used a piece of aluminum tape to cover the gap behind the belt table. I've considered cutting a second port underneath some day.
Thanks again for all the replies. Really appreciate them. The Rikon seems to be leading the pack but still searching. Was wondering if anyone had any dealings with Bucktool? They have a 6x48 that looks interesting. Bucktool BD61000. Reviews aren't to bad but not many. Just curious. Have a great day
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