Eric. Posted November 20, 2012 Report Share Posted November 20, 2012 The mother-in-law is asking what I want in my stocking this year, and a tenoning jig has been on my list for a while and is about the right price for the gift she'll get me. I know most of them are similar to identical. I was checking out the Delta online and it kinda "looks" nicer than some of the others, but it gets a lot of bad reviews. Can you guys recommend from experience a few brands to go after or stay away from? Any features that one has and not another, fit and finish, etc. Not interested in building this jig, and need to stay in the $100 ballpark. Thanks fellas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted November 20, 2012 Report Share Posted November 20, 2012 There are 2 different delta tenoning jigs: 34-183 and the 34-184. The 34-184 gets consistently good reviews. I bought one used, and it operates just as it should. It was reviewed in a FWW tool issue a while back (2007). It got "best overall" and "readers choice". http://www.deltamachinery.com/accessories/saws/item/34-184?category_id=37 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted November 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 That's the one I was looking at, FP. It's got 3/5 stars out of 30 reviews on Amazon...not so great. I trust your opinion more though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted November 21, 2012 Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 That's the one I was looking at, FP. It's got 3/5 stars out of 30 reviews on Amazon...not so great. I trust your opinion more though... Really? That is terrible. The magazines gave it good reviews. I wonder why the users on amazon did not like it. update I read some of the reviews, and it appears that many people are concerned with the quality of the set screws (stripping) and others with it fitting their table saw top. I'll go and look at mine, and see if it has the same issues (I don't recall it having problems). Let me take a look and get back to you. If you live close, you can take mine for a while to try it out. I cut most of my tenons flat on the TS with a dado stack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted November 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 Thanks man. I'm in St. Louis, so as much as I'd like to road trip it up to your beautiful part of the continent, probably won't happen. If the quality of the set screws is the biggest problem, I'm not really worried about that. I read one review that the jig was warped or something...that'd be no good. I'm gonna guess that the Deltas are made in the same factory as all the rest of them, and they slap nice handles on it and call it different. Maybe I'm wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikepdarr Posted November 21, 2012 Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 I bought this one used on craigslist for $40. It is pretty good. My complaint, as well as others, is the bottom plate is slightly warped. The Delta tech said to take it apart and hit it with a mallet a couple times to adjust. I did that and flattened it out but after awhile it seems to go right back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jfitz Posted November 21, 2012 Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 Whack it with a mallet? Seriously? I have the Delta 34-184 - I got it on a wicked sale at a local Lowes for $60. I don't have a lot of experience with others other than checking them out at WW'ing shows and stores, and the Delta does seem to be 'better' than some of the others. The dial adjustment is nice, and the handle placement works well for me. Like most items like this, there are oftem some small blemishes that need some attention (touch up paint, a little grinding of burrs, etc) but mine seems pretty solid. It definitely does not 'fit' as well in my SS PCS as it did in my older saw - I think it's because the miter slots are a different distance from the blade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted November 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Thought I'd follow up on this.... I went ahead and had the MIL order the Delta despite the inconsistent reviews on Amazon. I had her ship it to my house so I could check it in case it needed to be returned instead of letting it sit under the tree for a month. Got it yesterday and unpacked it. The bare cast iron surfaces were about half covered in cosmoline...the other half was covered in rust. The paint on the rest of it was flaking off all over the place. Cleaned off the goo and put it straight on the TS. Sure enough, the base was warped...significantly...it probably rocked close to an 1/8" from corner to corner. Didn't bother going any further. Packed that piece of crap up and printed out a return slip. Still looking for recommendations if anyone has any. Or I'll just go up to Rockler and buy their overpriced generic version...at least that way I can look before I buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jfitz Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 I don't blame you for being gun-shy at this point, so getting one in person at Rockler or Woodcraft might be your best bet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 Thought I'd follow up on this.... I went ahead and had the MIL order the Delta despite the inconsistent reviews on Amazon. I had her ship it to my house so I could check it in case it needed to be returned instead of letting it sit under the tree for a month. Got it yesterday and unpacked it. The bare cast iron surfaces were about half covered in cosmoline...the other half was covered in rust. The paint on the rest of it was flaking off all over the place. Cleaned off the goo and put it straight on the TS. Sure enough, the base was warped...significantly...it probably rocked close to an 1/8" from corner to corner. Didn't bother going any further. Packed that piece of crap up and printed out a return slip. Still looking for recommendations if anyone has any. Or I'll just go up to Rockler and buy their overpriced generic version...at least that way I can look before I buy. Wow - that sucks. You did the right thing - send 'er back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick218 Posted December 12, 2012 Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 After using this and another jig in school, the quality and accuracy of tenoning jigs for table saws is terrible! I prefer to use a router table or handheld and a jig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted December 12, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2012 Well I found a solution for you, Sean...Rockler. I meant to follow up on this again but I forgot. I went to Woodcraft first because they had theirs on sale ($75). Got one out of the box and set it on one of their table saws...same crap. Flaky paint, rusty iron, warped base. I said thank you and left. Figured they were all that way and I was about to give up, but I hit Rockler on the way home just for kicks. Opened up one of theirs ($89, also on sale) and noticed the first difference right away..."Made in Taiwan," instead of "Made in China" like the other two. HUGE difference. Dead flat base and nice clean machining. Totally intact paint and solid hardware. So I bought it. The instructions were completely worthless, but after some exercise in common sense, I got the thing set up and dialed in. Used it yesterday actually, and the results were dead-on accurate. So there ya go. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted December 13, 2012 Report Share Posted December 13, 2012 Well I found a solution for you, Sean...Rockler. I meant to follow up on this again but I forgot. I went to Woodcraft first because they had theirs on sale ($75). Got one out of the box and set it on one of their table saws...same crap. Flaky paint, rusty iron, warped base. I said thank you and left. Figured they were all that way and I was about to give up, but I hit Rockler on the way home just for kicks. Opened up one of theirs ($89, also on sale) and noticed the first difference right away..."Made in Taiwan," instead of "Made in China" like the other two. HUGE difference. Dead flat base and nice clean machining. Totally intact paint and solid hardware. So I bought it. The instructions were completely worthless, but after some exercise in common sense, I got the thing set up and dialed in. Used it yesterday actually, and the results were dead-on accurate. So there ya go. Nice one! Glad you finally found what you were looking for! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave H Posted December 17, 2012 Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 Here's an article I just recieved http://americanwoodworker.com/blogs/techniques/archive/2009/01/29/Tenoning-Jigs.aspx?utm_source=AWNL&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=AWNL_20121213 looks like they did a comparison test of several jigs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted December 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2012 He must have reviewed an older Rockler jig, because mine has the features that were compared but apparently his didn't. Also he doesn't classify by quality, which was my biggest (and only) problem with the first two I bought. Pretty good article though for info on their capabilities. I've only scratched the surface with mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 I realize this is an old thread, but I'm new here, and have something different to add. I have one of the old Delta 34-171 cast iron tenoning jigs that probably weighs 25 pounds. I've never wanted anything else. I can make a run of parts with it that I can use a micrometer on, and get them all exact. I even use it for running the vertical part of a rabbet cut on 7' long door jambs (never used a prehung door) and they come out perfect with no wobbling of the tall, heavy board. One was on ebay last week for an opening bid of 159, but nobody bid on it. If I need to cut something not straight up, I just fab a wedge the right angle. I think it's a case of where the latest improvement was a step backwards. http://forums.finewoodworking.com/fine-woodworking-knots/general-discussion/identify-part-old-delta-tenon-jig Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 I realize this is an old thread, but I'm new here, and have something different to add. I have one of the old Delta 34-171 cast iron tenoning jigs that probably weighs 25 pounds. I've never wanted anything else. I can make a run of parts with it that I can use a micrometer on, and get them all exact. I even use it for running the vertical part of a rabbet cut on 7' long door jambs (never used a prehung door) and they come out perfect with no wobbling of the tall, heavy board. One was on ebay last week for an opening bid of 159, but nobody bid on it. If I need to cut something not straight up, I just fab a wedge the right angle. I think it's a case of where the latest improvement was a step backwards. http://forums.finewoodworking.com/fine-woodworking-knots/general-discussion/identify-part-old-delta-tenon-jig Cool old jig. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted June 21, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 Yeah the old ones were a different animal I'm sure. The new Delta's are junk, I can assure you. The Rockler one I got was pretty decent. Not sure I'd wanna spend $160 on an antique when I could get a new one for $90. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted June 21, 2013 Report Share Posted June 21, 2013 I said 25 pounds, but that was just a guess. I tried to find the weight online, but only found that the new one weighs that. The old one might weigh 40 pounds. I'm not near the shop, but will check later. I bought it new in the late '70s or early '80s. I had an old (younger then than I am now) carpenter working for me then that had one, and I had to have one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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