In my first post for this thread I included a picture of what was supposed to be a Jet JDP-12 but is actually a Jet JDP-15M. I have attached the correct picture of a Jet JDP-12 to this reply.
Last evening, after work, I went to my local Woodcraft store for a close-up, hands-on look at the Jet JDP-12. For the most part, I had already decided on the Jet, and the up-close inspection was going to be just a formality. To my surprise however, the Jet had a lot of problems, more than I was willing to overlook.
The fit and finish is what you would expect for a sub $300 press, but not what I’m used to from Jet. In particular, the castings were terrible, the table and base plate surfaces - although machine ground - were extremely course. The body had casting slag everywhere and the entire machine was covered in a mixture of yellow-ish paint and grease (more than normal for a new machine). The rack and pinion table adjuster was so far out of mesh that each full, downward crank (counter clock-wise) would result in the table “pausing” then dead-weight dropping about a ½ of an inch. Additionally, after cranking the table lock handle to its tightest position, the table still rotated on the column sleeve horizontally (left to right) and racked vertically. I was sure that either the table assembly itself, or the gear rack was the wrong item, perhaps from another model or brand (inadvertently installed on this model), the Woodcraft associate assured me that was not the case.
This drill utilizes a variable speed pulley system to accomplish the “on the fly” RPM adjustment. It consists of front and rear pulleys that are spring-loaded and can essentially change their diameter by compressing or expanding. Because of this, the pulleys do not provide a smooth, continuous surface for the belt to travel on, but rather an interlocked series of metal fingers. When running the machine with the top cover open, I was able to see a small, but continuous stream of belt shavings being nic’d away at every revolution of the “fingered pulleys”. This explained why the top enclosure was full of black, rubbery dust. I verified that the pulleys were in perfect, planar alignment, so it’s possible that since this is a new “demo” machine, that dust was a normal artifact of a new belt being broken in.
Another problem – at least for me – was the plastic lid. I had read in some reviews that the plastic lid was very thin and susceptible to cracking, and after close inspection I agree. I’m used to seeing plastic enclosures and covers on modern tools, but this lid was extremely thin and seemed brittle. Unlike other JET tools, the main body casting and the lid were an off-yellow color, not the pearl white color of the rest of their line.
Another oddity was the electronic RPM display. It was mounted on the plastic face assembly – crooked. The thing is, it’s not screwed in place, nor stuck into place with adhesive, instead it does fit perfectly into a plastic opening – made just to accommodate its rectangular shape, no wiggle room. The plastic opening was cast into the plastic assembly – crooked. The face assembly was otherwise mounted securely and square.
The sales associate told me that the three chrome handles used for rotating the quill were too thin and had been breaking off under normal use for other customers. He also added that all the red handle-knob caps would have to be glued in place after they fall out. (3 caps on the rotator and 1 on the variable speed handle).
The final issue for me was the table. It uses a t-slot system and has no through holes other than the center which isn’t a huge problem, but troublesome nonetheless if you want to mount a drill press table.
Overall, I was so unimpressed I decided to pass. Please note that I’m not trying to provide a review of a product that I never got to actually try out in real life. Instead I wanted to share my experience with this model and point out that although some of my issues with this press are trivial; others are deal-breakers regardless of the price. And I have no doubt that there are plenty of people who own this machine and are perfectly happy with it, and may not be as picky as me, or may have a much better unit than the one on display at my local store.
So round two tonight, I’m going to take a look at the aforementioned Craftsman 21914, a 12” bench-top Delta and a floor standing Porter Cable. Where I live there is a Rockler store, a Woodcraft store, a Sears tool center, and a Lowes all within a ¼ of a mile of each other.
and 6" holes saws. all on a bench model.
