Customer Reviews

DELTA 37-380 Professional 8-Inch 1-1/2-Horsepower Jointer, 120/240-Volt 1-Phase

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a well designed, solid jointer, but Delta's pathetic quality control is aggravating. The 3 welds attaching the motor to the base were insufficient and in the case of one broken upon arrival. This was not difficult to fix but when you pay this much for a product you expect that it will be in working order. If you can afford the General 8" model that is made in Canada (not China) go for it. If you stick with Delta expect flaws in workmanship and poor customer support.

The unit arrived with with the fence having post production chips, and a crushed and unusable outfeed tightening screw...happily promised-not-yet-received (10 days). Carefully following the installation instructions, I found both tables immobile. I suspected the gibs were too tight, but instructions clearly and specifically say not to modify them.

Delta tech support confirmed that the gibs had to be released a bit and took the date code saying they would pass on the info that they were tighter than specs.

All all, the tool is more than good, but with all the consolidation in the power tool business I worry at the seeming increase in casting and general, if mostly minor, quality problems with Delta (see my review of the tenoning jig); and wonder if the lowest-common-denominator effect is at work here.

...P>The jointer was very well packaged and would likely suvive an around the world trip with no problems. Steel tubing embedded in the styrofoam packaging ensured this.

Setup took about 4 hours, most of it spent cleaning protective grease and inspecting parts. It was an easy process requiring the assistance of at least one other fit person to place the jointer on its stand. I'd recommend four total people do this lifting to do it safely and easily. Only one issue was found. The pulley on the motor was found to have excessive runout, and Delta quickly shipped me another under warranty.

Tha machine works beautifully once assembled and aligned. Only minor adjustments were needed, and the knives were set perfectly out of the box. I have no dust collection connected to this unit yet, and it creates massive piles of chips.

As a test, I face jointed an 8" piece of Walnut with some figure at one end and the machine created a perfectly flat, smooth surface in two passes. Edge jointing went very well also with the massive infeed and fence system.

I am very glad I decided on this machine. It compares favorably price-wise with Jet models, and much cheaper than Powermatic. The American made motor is very quiet and powerful.

Overall a great machine, and I gave it a 4, but the bent pulley is all that kept it from being a five.

exelent piece of machinery!! As for the fence it is about .0001" off, No big deal. I did have to replace the ram for the fence, The grove in it was not cut long enough to let you get a full 8" cut, Only about 7 3/4". I called delta, They sent a out a replacment, No hassle at all! It came in about a week. Work's great! now.

I picked up the unit at the truck terminal because their forklift could load it on a pickup which can be backed up to the shop door. No shipping damage whatsoever that I could see. The mobile base was a big help. We set up the base cabinet and mobile base first and then took everything except the jointer out of the long box. We slit the box sides and were able to turn the jointer on its side to clean it up and get rid of the styrofoam. Using cardboard, we slid it from the truck bed onto the base to save on lifting. Uh oh, the motor was supposed to be mounted at the factory;It was not and hard to get to as well. The manual and pics say to adjust the belt tension with the motor mounts--not true. The frame bars are moved, not the motor mounts. Never could get the spring on the guard to tension and will ask for a replacement for that. Just a simple adjustment to square the fence at 90 deg to the table. The tables were in perfect alignment as were the knives. I had a scrap piece of alder bowed on 2 sides. The jointer took almost all of the bow out before I decided to cut a few inches off the ends. All 4 sides are smooth as glass. Even though the beast is made in China, it's very good quality compared to some of my other machines made there. I'm very happy with it and would have given 5 stars if the motor had been installed and the manual written correctly. Yes, I read the manual and think that it should be written correctly and the pictures, too. The machine is very stable on the mobile base which is really a heavy duty model. I did buy mine from ToolCrib via phone because I had some questions which were answered okay. This is a much better place to write reviews rather than trying to search for them on the various woodworking forums. It's oh so much easier to find the reviews here than other places. Hope y'all will help us out with your review as well. Thanks!
Update: I got a replacement spring for the guard assembly in less than 24 hrs. from Delta. Now that's service!

If you talk to anyone with a six inch jointer, they will most likely tell you: a) they don't know how they got along without it, and b) they wish they had a 8 inch machine. I do woodworking solely as a hobby, but was considering Deltas top of the line DJ20 8" jointer when they released this wedge bed unit in the fall of 1999. Although not cheap, it should fit the budget of many serious woodworkers looking for a larger 8" jointer. The benefit of the lager machine is not only the ability to face joint boards wider than 6", but the long tables as well. The motor and stand are built here in the USA while the top unit is assembled in China. I was concerned about its Chinese origin at first but haven't had any problems thus far (expect to have a couple of strong friends help you lift the upper unit onto the base, it's H-E-A-V-Y). It has a huge rack and pinion fence (slightly larger than the DJ20 even) and I really like the location of the on/off switch on a raised pedestal. The outfeed table is locked in position by a smallish looking screw but seems to hold its adjustment just fine (that's my only dislike about the machine). The cutterhead has a jackscrew knife adjustment like any other top of the line jointer. Some people don't like lever adjustments for the infeed table, but I can easily and quickly set mine in increments of 1/64 " and prefer the convenience of a lever over a wheel (the outfeed table is adjusted by a wheel for precise alignment with the blades). A bit of advice: The fence guide rail sticks out quite a bit, and can be a bit of a hazard when rolling the machine around on a mobile base. The cap from the leg of an old ironing board fits over it perfectly and offers a little bit of protection. I was even able to get a brand new cap at a very well stocked hardware where I live (Turner Hardware in Dallas). If you desire an 8" machine, this one is well worth the money. If money is no object, look at the DJ20...

My jointer arrived in tact and in great shape. I also ordered the mobile base, but it was delayed for another week. Once it arrived, I was able to put everything together. Assembly went smoothly, with no missing parts or defects. I rewired the motor for 220, and this machine runs smoothly and surprisingly quietly. My first cuts turned out amazingly smooth and square. The mobile base makes it very easy to roll this 400 pound tool around my garage with hardly any effort.

Would look at JET in the 6 inch class. This is the tool though if you want a solid 20 year jointer to handle big boards. Scary powerful. Like all Delta tools, quiet is not its strong point, but smooth results and good square setup is easy.

I have had my DJ-380 for about 8 months and have nothing but praise for it.
It was packed well and arrived in great condition. I did feel as though I had pulled a double shift at the local Jiffy Lube by the time I removed all the grease and oil from the machine.
Assembly was straight forward and easy.
I never had to contact Delta on this machine, however, when I did contact them in the past, I always found them very helpful and prompt.
The dust collection system could use some improvment - only gets rid of about half the chips.
Adjustments are easy and precise and the location on the off/on switch is great.
I would recommend this machine in a heartbeat.

If you have a Delta bench jointer (as I did) then this machine is a HUGE step up. I have had this machine for about 2 months now and I don't know how I ever got along without it. It is scary powerful and not very loud at all. It takes up quite a bit of room in my garage workshop, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Set-up was easy and took me about 1 hour. Just a tip, get someone to help you take it out of the box and lift the table onto the base as it is very, VERY heavy. One complaint though. The fence came out of square. What I mean is that the fence wasn't ground perfectlt flat. I'm sure it's nothing that a professional grinder couldn't fix though and I don't think it is worth the hassle of sending it back and waiting for a replacement. All in all this machine (and the Delta company for that matter) is excellent.