jet versus rojek

[johnnyb]

i am considering buying a quality p/t in the very near future and am considering the rojek msp310 or the jet jpt 310. i like the rojek as it seems sturdier and has fixed tables, although the fence looks shoddy and i dont fancy setting the four knife head. the jet seems a decent machine and axminster are throwing in a dust extractor which i would immediatly sell to recoup money, the fence also looks shoddy on the jet, and the lifting tables seem "less accurate" other than the above points the prices seem comparable, as do the weights. the minimax is probably a far superior machine but much pricier. what do the forum think would be the best and most robust option.(or any other options)

 

[Waka]

I can't speak for the Rojek, but I can certainly give you my opinion of the Jet 310.

I've had mine for a couple of years now and find it a really good machine. I did post recently about the plug on the machine and how I modified mine becasue it kept coming loose, but that is the only problem I've had.

I have used this machine extensively over the 2 years and am very happy with it. It has three blades and these are very easy to set up.

I know in the past some members have complained about the fence being suspect, personnally I've not experienced this. All in all I think its a good machine for the money, very heavy and robust.

Let us know what you choose.

 

[johnnyb]

will do. glad to hear your happy as it may save me a few hundred! what was said about the fence on the jet as they both look pretty poor tbh. but if its good enough then thats all you can ask i suppose. wouldnt you think a sturdy cast iron fence and yolk would be standard on these machines especially the rojek as the beds are fixed. how much extra would that cost? ps are the feed rollers rubber on the jet?

 

[johnnyb]

have just read all the gripes about the jet fence. the rojek is the same style apparently even flimsier!! why is their such a large gap around £1500 in decent planers. i too would like to deal with axminster BUT how can i commit this money to two machines that have crap fences? maybe the reason axminster are giving this dust extractor away are to anticipate the drop in sales from the post or to clear old stock before the new fences come in. im not paranoid am i? they realise that a post with such strong negative views will hit this machine. dewalt had an identical problem with dw746 fence. they resolved this after many machines were returned by machining the face of the aluminium face and it is a superb solution. if the machines werent returned would they have done anything......of course not. hit em in the pocket and get a result. american woodworkers would not tolerate this sloppy manufacturing and are savvy enough to check this on a machine half to a third the cost of the jet. if jet dont introduce a new fence arrangement i will be amazed. ps jetman what is the tolerance on the rojek?

 

[wizer]

Johnny I am having this EXACT same dilema at the moment. I am after a good P/T and the Jet is very high on my list. I have seen the JPT-310 working in the flesh and am seriously impressed with it. I, also, have not encountered the Rojek so can't comment on that. I will say that the Jet's fence has been re-vamped since the earlier complaints on this forum. Even the old one certainly does not look flimsy to me. I have seen it produce perfectly acceptable results.

My issue with the 12" Jet is I feel it is a little over priced. I know axi have a good deal on it at the moment with the free extractor, but tbh I don't want the extractor. I may be forced to go with the smaller 10" version.

Good luck with what you decide.

 

[Waka]

Johnny/WiZeR

recently (couple of months) someone on the forum bought the Jet 310 from Axminster on e-bay, I thnink it came in at about £800 or so. The only difference was that it dident come with the usual 1 year gaureentee.

The certainly might be worth thinking about.

Johnny, The infeed roller on the Jet is rubber coated.

 

[SP]

I have had the Jet 310 for about a year now and am very pleased with it. Very high quality, solid and well made. reccomend it wholeheartedly.

By the way it's the outfeed roller that is rubber coated, the infeed is serrated.

 

[Nick.]

Hello all

Johnny, the fence on the Jet now has a thicker extrusion and a machined face to it. If you'd like to see one in the flesh a ten minute drive away, I was in Kraftkabin yesterday in London Rd, Stoke and they have one in the showroom (still boxed, so check they have built it up before travelling) - If you speak to Chris or Ray there on 01782 416102, they are great guys and will help you out.

Ref. the question on tolerances for the Rojek fence, sorry I don’t have that information – will try and find out though.

Wizer – your comment about not wanting the extactor, have you tried speaking to a local Jet dealer?, most of my accounts would be happy to do a deal without the extractor, as they could then sell the extractor separately to offset the discount they could give you.

Hope this helps,
Best regards
Nick

 

[wizer]

Thanks Nick I will have to approach a local dealer to see what sort of deal could be done. Not ready to buy for about a month yet though

 

[Waka]

I have had the Jet 310 for about a year now and am very pleased with it. Very high quality, solid and well made. reccomend it wholeheartedly.

By the way it's the outfeed roller that is rubber coated, the infeed is serrated.

Shows how much attention I take when the tables up.

 

[PlaneMike]

I haven't used the Rojek but they look pretty substantial beasts.

I have the Jet310 and am well pleased with it. Very solid build, nice flat CI tables, tables flip up quickly and in 1 piece and parallel - taking up very little room (very important for me). I've seen some P/T's that need each table handled separately, that swing very widely taking up lots of space and requiring fences to be de-mounted entirely - far too awkward and time-consuming for me !!

I'm perfectly happy with rubber infeed rollers (learned this from my previous HMS260) and was concerned when I read somewhere that taking a very fine cut with a serrated infeed roller (like the Jet has) could leave an imprint in the finish but in practice I've only ever seen this on the Jet if I take almost no cut at all (<.0.1mm)

I'm happy with my choice - the Jet gives me a good finish and the 12" width I need and in use feels like a well-made and solid piece of kit.

Mike

 

[ivan]

I'm generally pleased with my 310 too. The fence looks worse than it is; at least it's quite rigid. It can be improved by some judicious use of plastic shimstock. Unfortunately I have the original "bent fence" which needs modification (or resetting according to the height of the stuff offered up for planing) A bit of a pig but the planer was sold at an attractive price!

Tables and fence lifting together for thicknessing changeover is very convenient.

Perhaps Jetman will be able to negotiate an upgrade to the new thicker extrusion at a very attractive price, for us early adopters. The original is not really fit for purpose as supplied.

 

[Nick.]

Hi Ivan, I'm on the case & will post back with a price.

In fairness I'd beg to differ that the original one was any worse than most other ali fences on the market? 'Not fit for purpose' implies it was banana shaped or something which really wasn't the case.

The original fence design in my view was no worse than 97% of the other ali fences on the market - I can assure you there was no flood of issues about it - the reason for the upgrade was directly as a result of the high profile comments on here, and the fact we were willing to acknowledge a potential to improve a design.

Some of the comments in that thread were 'subjective' to say the least.

I will post back here by wednesday with a 'super discount upgrade price' for you though

Cheers
Nick

 

[Waka]

Nick

really good to see that notice is taken form forum members on minor defects with products.

I posted recently the problem I had with the power lead on my 310, where the plug had come loose and during operation kept dropping thereby cutting power to the machine. I got over this by installing a junction box on the machine and wiring the power lead into this, thus eleviating the problem.

Could I suggest that a modification in future would be to go down this route.

By the way I have the earlier fence and find it spot on.

 

[Nick.]

Hi Waka, I saw your earlier thread, and I have already mentioned your comments, although again in fairness yours is the only case we have come across with this issue?

That's not to say it isn't an issue, but when the blue power socket connects, there is almost like a a 'double click' when you push it in, so it fits tightly - I can only assume yours had either worn down or was the wrong dimensions to start with? The machines I have used would need someone treading on the cable to pull it out?

Thanks for your feedback on the earlier fence too - appreciated - and also pm me your address for a free set of blades or some goodies if you like, as anyone with a Jet machine as their avatar is fully deserving of the occasional freebie

Cheers
Nick

 

[SP]

Jetman

I have a JPT310 and will put it as my avatar aswell if I can have some freebies. :lol:

Stephen :roll:

 

[Nick.]

Jetman

I have a JPT310 and will put it as my avatar aswell if I can have some freebies. :lol:

Stephen :roll:

:rofl: hahahaa - knew I should have put a disclaimer on it

Stephen, do it as an avatar and you have a free set of blades 8) (chances are the admin/mods will see this as advertising so I will get it in the neck - Hello admin/mods too )

All further entries are closed btw :beer:

Cheers all

Nick

 

[WellsWood]

Hi Nick, I shall change my avatar immediately also - can I have Wizers DC if he doesn't want it when he buys the 310 :wink: :lol:

Honestly, I sometimes feel rather guilty about starting that oft cited, and frequently misinterpreted thread about the fence on the 310.

FWIW, and particularly in the interest of getting this thread back on subject, I looked closely at the Rojek when shopping for my PT. Considering it was dearer by a couple of hundred quid or so (more like 300 now) I didn't see anything that made it more attractive than the Jet. Ironically the fence was the one aspect (apart from the brilliant way the tables open) where I felt the Rojek really lagged behind. Now I have to say I haven't used the Rojek nor have I taken an engineers square to it's fence, so I don't know how accurate an extrusion it is, but the design of the support /tilt mechanism left me cold. It just didn't look man enough for the job.

I love my JPT310, it's a great machine and fits the available space in my workshop, and my requirements, like a glove. That doesn't mean I couldn't shoot holes in it all day long, because I could. But the lessons I learnt from the many responses here to my original thread, and the help I received from Nick and Axminster, taught me 2 things:

1. to judge machines on the results they produce - and the ease with which one can produce those results. I could spend hours with a straightedge and feeler guages finding a thou out here and there, but the point is I can produce great results with a minimum of hassle.

2. to be realistic about how many niggles can be "fixed" before the price point changes. As has been said, the fence issues I originally raised have been attended to with a new extrusion - note that this had no effect on the price - I don't know another manufacturer who would go even this far!

For me the Jet is far and away the best machine in it's class and price bracket. It does have it's little imperfections - all machines do, but to iron them all out would probably put it up there in the "well over £1500" bracket with the Rojek which, I'm sure, has a few imperfections of it's own.

With that in mind I don't think it's overpriced at all, and with the free DC1100 deal that's on at the moment it's an absolute steal IMO. I only wish that deal had been on when I bought mine, it would have saved many many hours of agonised chin scratching :roll: .

 

[Martin Brown]

Even an entry from me?

Hahaha

Martin

 

[johnnyb]

jetmans response has certainly had the desired effect on me anyhow!
i will definitely buy the jet and may keep the dex too if its not to large and sell my old one. any manufacturer that responds so positively and quicklyto criticism has to be commended i think the jet would be a worry free purchase now. the only other jet product i have is the whetstone grinder which is simply excellent for the price. copied from a great design and even areas improved.