Replies

1. 
   KWesenberg | Apr 15, 2009 05:07am | #1

   Matt, not used one of them myself, but one correction. Grizzly is made in Taiwan not China. I have two Grizzly machines in my shop and they are very well made. Good luck with your decision.

1. 
   cmill | Apr 15, 2009 03:02pm | #4

   Many grizzly tools are made in China now. I have several of them.

2. 
   Jimurock | Apr 15, 2009 06:18am | #2

   Been a while since Triton tools were made in Australia.  As far as I know they're all made in China these days.  The original co. was bought out by GMC, purveyors of low end hand tools, who are now in financial trouble.  I own a Triton router which is none the worse for being Chinese, but not the sander.  The sander looks exactly like a number of generic Chinese sanders sold under various housebrands in big box stores.

   Jim

3. 
   derekcohen | Apr 15, 2009 12:48pm | #3

   Matt

   Check on the future availability of the Triton parts. The Australian company has - or is - going into receivership. It will soon be no more - unless someone buys them up.

   Regards from Perth

   Derek

4. 
   Dorsett | Apr 16, 2009 12:27am | #5

   Matt,

   I purchased the Triton last November. My first one, so I have nothing to compare it to.

   Works well. I'm satisfied.

   DC port and channel are well designed.

   Noisy, but I don't know if others are like that.

   I needed a paper shim under the plastic plate that surrounds the spindle, so the template would sit flush with the cast iron deck. Not a big deal.

   Some won't buy the ones with plastic gears. I learned this after the fact. I haven't taken mine apart to find out.

   As Derek says, Triton is in receivership, and will either be sold or liquidated. In this economy my guess is liquidation.

   Let us know what you buy.

5. 
   hdgis1 | Apr 16, 2009 02:18am | #6

   I would say before you buy either one, you check the run out of the spindle. The cheapies aren't exactly known for their tolerances and, IMHO, a spindle sander with run out is absolutely worthless!

   Chris

6. 
   Quickstep | Apr 16, 2009 02:48am | #7

   I hate to take you on a tangent, but last year while looking for a spindle sander, I was sent in the direction of the Ridgid model which also incorporates a belt sander. Somewhat to my surprise, it's worked out pretty well.

   http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100061671&categoryID=527281

    

1. 
   WillGeorge | Apr 16, 2009 12:46pm | #9

   I have the Ridgid that gets used ALOT! It is far from perfect but has served it's 8 of 10 cats life for me... I use it mostly for the drum sanding. I have NO hate for mine but I would say the belt tracking parts could be ALOT better. But then again it has paid for itself many times over....

   Edited 4/16/2009 5:48 am by WillGeorge

2. 
   Dave45 | Apr 17, 2009 05:13pm | #11

   I've had the Ridgid for a couple of years and it's a great tool that gets lots of use. The belt sanding attachment stays on 90+% of the time, but switching over to one of the spindles is quick and easy.I've been on a cleaning binge lately and yesterday I found several of the drums that are used in a drill press. They went into the pile to be given away or trashed. - lol

1. 
   user-166708 | Apr 17, 2009 08:58pm | #12

   I have a grizzly spindle sander and I am very happy with it.

   Bill Hightower

    

7. 
   BruceS | Apr 16, 2009 03:40am | #8

   Triton spindle sander is from China and it is having problems.  I'de say it's on par with YUGO.   The price is right for what you get.  Go for the small Jet !!  It is worth the price, VERY heavy and not a plastic box.

   Work Safe,  Count to 10 when your done for the day !!

   Bruce S. 

    

1. 
   KWesenberg | Apr 17, 2009 03:27am | #10

   I agree, I have the small jet and it's a great machine. All metal and solid. The only problem that I had found was that they put a key in a key way on the shaft to stop the rubber from spinning. I don't remember which one of them had a bump as it rotated and removing the key solved the problem and has never spun on the spindle.

8. 
   woodbum | Apr 18, 2009 04:07pm | #13

   I own a couple of Grizzly machines from Taiwan, not mainland China and am very happy with them. I am very sorry to say that if you don't want to buy anything from a communist country, you might have to do some very intense shopping. In our new "global economy" this is the way it is. I don't like it anymore than stuff made in Pakistan, Malaysia or Indonesia; but when and if we ever quit exporting jobs, we might be able to but American more. We are doing this to ourselves.

1. 
   frenchy | Apr 18, 2009 04:51pm | #14

   woodbum

    

    Well China is a communist country like the boy scouts are members of the German party that started WW2 (They won't let me use the word Nasi here..) 

      It is no longer required to be a member of the communist party to run the country  and in fact about 15% of the politicians have no ties with communism..  In fact last I read members of the communist party we down to under 10% of the population..

     China understand communism doesn't work, however unlike the soviet union she doesn't want a radicle departure with all the striff and grief  Russia had when Russia turned democratic..

     China has a far longer horizon since she's been around for about 5000 years..   Don't expect over night change it's not in the Chinese mindset.. slow cautious moves towards demacracy is the way she intends to proceed..

       However the bigger issue has to do with the strength of the American economy.. our economy is too strong and that makes our labor uncompetitive..  to Return American to it's real strength we need to have some pretty massive inflation so the dollar gets a lot weaker and those jobs that left can afford to come back home..

1. 
   woodbum | Apr 19, 2009 02:56am | #15

   OK

2. 
   matt calnen | Apr 19, 2009 04:27pm | #16

   I'll let you tell that to the Tibetains, and part of the reason that most of our manufacturing jobs are being lost are grossly high tax rates and overpaid union workers.  Polititians don't seem to understand that when they over tax industry that they will leave and then they collect no tax. I'm from Michigan and have seen this firsthand.

1. 
   frenchy | Apr 19, 2009 07:14pm | #17

   I don't see many unions in furniture making yet company after company is closing their doors while wood is shipped to China to make furniture

     How can that be? 

    

     It's not little 10 year olds with a carving knife squatting in the dirt making furniture.  Some of the Chinese furniture factories are state of the art factories..  fully run by computers staffed witha  mere handfull of people while whole logs enter via the train load at one side and finished furniture is in containers heading for the ships to send overseas..

     OR look at Finland where a lot of other furniture coming into America is being made..   Higher labor rates  even more socialized than we are and yet they can sell at prices we can't touch!

      Know why?  I do.  Want to learn? 

1. 
   matt calnen | Apr 20, 2009 12:14am | #18

   If your referring to IKEA, what can I say, people with no taste need furniture to. Its pretty much euro cabinetry with a few added details to make it not look like kitchen cabinets. They made it "hip" and "trendy" and people go for that. I am always open to learn so if you could enlighten me and the rest of the world, I would be most greatful. 

2. 
   frenchy | Apr 20, 2009 04:41pm | #19

   Well you and I agree on the style of Ikea.

     However it sells and that my friend is the real test..  (much as I regret it)

     The reason America is so lagging behind much of the world is our failure to modernize..

    IKEA manages to reduce waste by 10% a year.. think about that.. their equipment and factory are so efficently set up that for decades they have reduced waste by 10%

    That's done by investment in modernization..

    American furniture factory owners haven't done that.. If you go by their places of business they have a parking lot full of cars all of which are expensive people..  Modern factories like the Chinese use automation to a degree Americans simply cannot concieve..

     Bottom line hand labor is too expensive and the market for the product is too limited. 

     Some young family with 2 kids and a massive mortgage cannot afford to spend the $17,000 I paid for my basic bedroom set from Stickley.  So they buy what they can afford and wind up buying Chinese or from Ikea..

     America has the raw materials and America has people willing to work.. however the owners haven't made the required investments in automation to allow Americans to compete with  the world leaders..

    I could make a digressing comment about owners priorities but the simple fact is few factories are owned by the founding fathers who dedicated their lives to making a better product.. Instead it's owned by the heirs of those founding fathers and they are more interested in the cash out than in reinvesting in the company..  They Hire managers to run it because they remember grandpa working 80 hour weeks and missing their baseball games etc..

     To the heirs it's simply money and the more they can get out the faster the happier they are..