I heard mix reviews about the Powermatic 701 bench top mortiser. This weekend I went to the local Woodcraft Store and looked at the Jet JBM 5 and I was clearly UNIMPRESSED! The entire movment was less than desirable in my view.
The fence was tiny so you would need to build a taller auxilliary fence right away and I felt the hold down flimsy.
The Powermatic 701 received better reviews but then I read and heard about problems with the handle breaking.
I cannot afford a stand alone model cost and room are isseus for me but I would be willing to pay extra for the ebst becnhytop.
Suggestions?
Replies
The handle failure on the Powermatic 701 was actually the hub and limited to the first run a few years ago. Of course, the Internet being the hysterical place it is, that means those reports repeat forever regardless of the piece being replaced a long time ago.
I wouldn't worry about the handle - unless you are an animal in the shop!
Tom Hintz
Because there is always more to learn!
I recently purchases the PM701 mortiser. I went with it mostly because it had a slightly more powerful motor than the rest (3/4HP vs 1/2HP). I am building a new workbench which has a lot of through mortises in 3" hard maple. The mortiser worked like a champ
Keep in mind that is does NOT come with a set of bits. I didn't see a problem with that because it seems like everyone buys a new set anyways as the ones that come with most mortisers are not the best quality. The machine is almost completely toolless except for the key to tighten the chuck. Once the bit is squared up to the board and the fence is set, it stays that way. Very solid machine.
All in all, I would highly recommend the PM701. Also, this is the only mortiser that I have ever used.
Josh
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