My saw arrived on Friday afternoon around lunchtime and the driver pulled the pallet jack up into the driveway and into the garage for me. Everything was nice and neatly shrinkwrapped.
Kudos to Jet for a great packaging job. Heavy heavy duty cardboard box with metal strapping to enclose the saw.
So Saturday I ran the electrical stuff and unpacked the saw, and went as far as I could until my stepson arrived to give me a hand walking the saw off the pallet and onto the mobile base.
Fast forward to today, where I really got into the assembly portion.
Instructions were very straightforward and even though I checked the alignments, most everything was done near perfectly at the factory and the saw came with their alignment tolerances.
I only have to compare to my Ridgid saw, which had tons of bolts and screws to assemble the saw. For this Jet,
I had to mount and adjust the wings, mount and adjust the rails, and mount the extension table. That was a bit of work of course, but there weren’t tons of confusing bags of bolts and screws thank goodness.
I did have to get the riving knife adjusted to my blade, and the fence had to be tweaked square to the table and miter slot.
So at this point was done for the day and only have to mount those little hooks for your fence when you aren’t using it and all the hardware will be done with.
I fired up the saw and cut a piece of 4/4 mahogany that I had planed and jointed.
The saw cuts very smoothly and just hummed along like no wood was going through it at all, but although I couldn’t feel any resistance I could hear the blade slicing the wood and it just kind of glided through.
I know I may have some tweaking to do,but I think I am going to really like this saw. It is very robust in construction and is solid as a rock. It probably has way more power than I will need, but nice to know its there if I do need it.
I’ll have to give it a few months before putting in a review, but so far I am quite pleased.
9 comments so far
Timthemailman
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256 posts in 948 days
#1 posted 425 days ago
Nice looking table saw. Whats the HP ? and I am guessing 220 v. Looks like you are going to have some fun now that your done assembling your saw. Take care. TimTheMailman
KMT
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496 posts in 835 days
#2 posted 425 days ago
Glad to see that your saw arrived safely. It looks good, you should be able to take that off your list for good.
Congrats!
Martin
-- - Martin
Julian
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278 posts in 863 days
#3 posted 425 days ago
Nothing beats the pleasure of a new machine in the shop. Great looking saw. Enjoy.
-- Julian
Cato
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642 posts in 1485 days
#4 posted 425 days ago
Thanks for your comments. It is neat getting a new tool and finding out that everything works okay and no damage!!
Tim- it is a 3hp model and 230V.
Now have to go thru my R4511 and put it up for sale. Takes up too much room where it is now.
kizerpea
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589 posts in 540 days
#5 posted 424 days ago
nice buy…....i want one tooooooo….................
-- IF YOUR NOT MAKING DUST...YOU ARE COLLECTING IT! SOUTH CAROLINA.
MoshupTrail
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268 posts in 653 days
#6 posted 422 days ago
So why the Jet? What was wrong with the 4511? I’m sure you wont have any trouble getting rid of it. Do you think the Jet is that much better? (Certainly it’s got more power)
-- Some problems are best solved with an optimistic approach. Optimism shines a light on alternatives that are otherwise not visible.
Cato
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642 posts in 1485 days
#7 posted 422 days ago
Hey Moshup,
Nothing wrong at all with the 4511. It is a good saw, and for my hobby would suffice for most of what I do right now. I may have to take the top off before I sell it and see what is dragging on the trunnion when I bevel. Suspect sawdust build up as I mostly have ripped wood on that saw.
This was a want purchase. I have eyed the Jet for the past two years and passed each time it went on sale. This year I decided to bite.
Is the Jet that much better? After assembly last weekend and seeing the difference in build and quality, yes it is way better in that aspect, power aside. There is no comparison in construction between the two saws.It is a precision machine that will far outlast my woodworking career.
Did I need it for my hobby? No, I guess I have just wanted a nice cabinet saw and was kind of looking at a couple of grizzly models when the annual Jet sale went on and decided to spend the extra money for the Jet.
Bertha
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13115 posts in 865 days
#8 posted 422 days ago
Man, that’s a nice saw. I’m a JET guy all the way and you won’t see me pointing fingers about this purchase. It takes some stones to buy the cabinet saw you want for no reason other than you want it. I admire a man like that:)
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I’ve got a vintage JET contractor that I absolutely love. If I ever have to part with it, it’ll be for 1) a giant vintage Oliver, 2) a PM2000, or 3) your saw. Very smart purchase.
-- My dad and I built a 65 chev pick up.I killed trannys in that thing for some reason-Hog
Cato
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642 posts in 1485 days
#9 posted 422 days ago
Bertha, it did feel good to scratch that itch!!
Where I live close to the VA, NC state line there are a fair number of Jet table saws found in the shops and everyone seems to be very happy with their saws and the service they receive.
The Jet plant is not that far away in Tenn., so shipping was quick, and apparently support is as well.
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