Delta Rants

[Karl S]

I keep seeing all of these posts about how unhappy people are with Delta Products, but they never seem to learn not to buy them. I am of the opinion that if you have an inferior product and you put it on sale at the box stores or amazon that people are going to scramble to buy it, because they want Cheap First Quality products,  and when they aren't happy with it they send it off to be repaired and wait forever to get it back. Then they can complain to everyone that they were taken advantage of. I guess I am of a different breed, I got bitten once and Never went back nor will I ever go back. People are sure strange animals, and I guess they will never understand. The words" Cheap"and "Great" don't go together !

 Rant Over !

Merry Christmas.

[dgman]

Delta used to produce some great products. I own an American made Delta Unisaw, bought new about twenty years ago. It is the best power tool I own. I also own a Delta 6” jointer which is the second best tool I own. Delta has been sold, bought and sold again so many times that it is no longer the same company it once was. At this point, I don’t think Delta produces any tools themselves, they just contract out like so many other companies. I remember reading an article in Wood Magazine many years ago. It talked about how different tool companies have their tools made at the same factories as other tool companies. It showed pictures of manufacturing lines with tools rolling off, with different colors and labels, but the same tools. The article also talked about quality control was up to the tool company. Some tool companies have better quality requirements than others. They even have their own quality control personnel on site, others don’t. Obviously, Delta no longer has good quality control. The name used to mean you were getting a quality tool, no longer is this true!

[Karl S]

Dan, You are totally correct, My question though is "WHY" don't people see this before they get stung??

 I just think sometime they want someone to feel sorry for them? How many times does one have to touch a Hot plate before they realize that it's HOT!

[OCtoolguy]

There are many answers to your question. But, I think everybody wants to get the best deal they can on a "NAME" brand product. As Dan said, Delta used to be a respectable brand name. I too had a Delta Unisaw and a Delta drill press. They were both great tools. I also had a Delta 14" band saw that I bought before the Laguna came out. Anyway, I digress. Folks come here to get an answer to their questions as to which scroll saw to buy. We, as a group, try to give good advice. Once again, the Dewalt name used to be a great name but it has gone downhill. We suggest that the newbies buy the best they can afford. If that means a $100 saw, well, they will get what they paid for. I've heard that many folks have dropped out of the hobby because of the frustration of a cheap saw. When I came into the hobby, I read a ton and asked a lot of questions. I couldn't afford $500 for a new Dewalt but that was the saw that was suggested at that time. I found a good used one on C/L. From that point on, I just kept experimenting and buying/selling as I went. I now have 2 great saws but I still would not have laid out the big bucks for either one. With the Delta, it seems to be a crapshoot as to whether you will get a good saw or a problem saw. Depends mostly on who is putting it together, what day of the week and who inspects it prior to shipping. It's the same with most everything you buy today. We need to get manufacturing back into this country. Vote intelligently!!

 

[Karl S]

Just saying you get what you pay for .

[new2woodwrk]

I  have a Delta table saw cost me $500 4 years ago - best $500 tool I've bought so far! It survived Hurricane Micheal and me LOL

I have 2 Delta scroll saws cost me $275 each - 1 4 years old, survived Hurricane Michael and again ... Me The other the wife now uses and she loves

Nothing wrong with Delta products from my seat- they are the best available at their price point IMO and on my budget it is what I can afford.

I would buy another Delta tool without thinking twice about it.

You do get what you pay for and so far I've paid for and received quality tools at a reasonable price!

Not sure what you people are complaining about - if you don't like the tool, don't buy it

[dgman]

Amending my reply above, I also have Delta 12” bench top drill press. I have had it about twenty years also. Have never had any issue with it. In fact it still has the original belt.

 

[kmmcrafts]

Old Delta tools were some good tools, and once was a respected name. I wouldn't be too afraid of a new delta scroll saw simply because they are basically the same saw as a DeWalt.. I also think the tools are still decent tools, however the customer support is what lacks the most.. and by that I mean parts availability.. They seem to think there tools should be throw away and the person buys a new tool instead of repairing the old..

The best scroll saw in my book is the ones that support old equipment for several years, one that has parts readily available to order through their dealers and distributors... and the only ones I know of that sells parts for old equipment and have easy online ordering of the said parts is Hawk, and  Hegner.. That said though.. you may have to wait for the parts to be made on those older saws.. but they are willing to actually "Make Them" instead of saying sorry just buy a new saw... Now other saw brands have parts available online such as Seyco and excalibur.. But the old saws from the 80's and 90s they can no longer help you with parts.. and that is where Hawk and Hegner stand above the others in my opinion..

Now for me, Hawk shines above Hegners because the whole saw is just machined.. no casting done.. and I have enough machinist friends and family that if I ever was to need a part for a old saw and couldn't for some reason be able to get the part from Hawk.. I could have a friend machine the said part if it came to that.. The other benefit is it's a American company and a American saw.. Built to last.. I also like to support the American companies as best I can..

[OzarkSawdust]

But most of you are sighting Delta tools bought several years ago. I'm looking for a better table saw than I have and see this Delta 725T2...a few of the reviews like it, saying it's a great and accurate saw. Then a few of the reviews say it's junk, even smokes around the drive belt, and have trouble getting service. What do you believe??? At $600 at Lowe's it's attractive. All of the saws I've looked at so far from Delta to Saw Stop and Powermatic are either built it Taiwan or China! I would think Taiwan may be better made...but who knows!

[kmmcrafts]

3 hours ago, octoolguy said:

 We need to get manufacturing back into this country. Vote intelligently!!

 

I agree 100%  BUT I'll also say we need to shop intelligently too.. This means rather than shopping China made stuff at HF.. maybe seek out American made stuff... 

[Scrappile]

I have had only one Delta tool and that is a Planer... I had no complaints with it... Did a lot of work for me and did it well.  I just replaced it with a DeWalt 734.  If I get as good of service out of it,,, as I did the Delta, I will be very happy... My Delta was getting old... Lots of lumber ran through it when I was building boats... Had a little problem with it a while back and on a whim I purchased the DeWalt on sale.   I will eventually try to fix the Delta and sell it.  I have heard stories of poor repair, lack of parts for Delta,,, enough so I will not purchase any other Delta product... which is no big deal, I am old enough I probably won't be purchasing any new tools from anyone....I do have a Steel City table saw, which was made from ex-Delta employees.... It is an awesome saw... Not sure where I will get parts for it if I ever need any... Steel City went out of business.

 

Well I lied... I have two Delta tools, the planer and a Delta midi Lathe.... It has been a good little lathe,,, no complaints with it... It now houses my Mac Mops to sand fret work with.... and it does that well also..  Going to have to replace the bearing one of these days... but to me that is normal wear...

Edited December 25, 2020 by Scrappile

[kmmcrafts]

14 minutes ago, OzarkSawdust said:

But most of you are sighting Delta tools bought several years ago. I'm looking for a better table saw than I have and see this Delta 725T2...a few of the reviews like it, saying it's a great and accurate saw. Then a few of the reviews say it's junk, even smokes around the drive belt, and have trouble getting service. What do you believe??? At $600 at Lowe's it's attractive. All of the saws I've looked at so far from Delta to Saw Stop and Powermatic are either built it Taiwan or China! I would think Taiwan may be better made...but who knows!

The bigger issue with Delta is parts.. Not IF you need parts.. but when you need parts.. they may not be available anymore.. Delta in the recent years could care less if the saw is only a year old.. they don't support the parts.. Service IMO is going to vary depending on the management of the service center.. but they are only as good as the parts availability can take them too.. These service centers aren't like me.. I cross reference parts and do extensive searching to find what I need to repair something.. But these "Delta" service centers are going to look up the "Delta" part number and it says OBSOLETE.. they will say they can't help you.. even though the part many times is used across many " other" brands and tools..

I have a 2010 ish Delta jointer.. has variable speed for the motor.. but I never used it however the thing started running slow.. no matter where the dial was it didn't change... would have been fine if it were stuck on high, LOL.. The part no longer available.. but crossing the part over I found that Porter Cable used the same part as did a few others.. I wasn't going to pay $150 for the part though so I just rewired it to run full speed.. My point is.. a service center would have said to put it in the landfill.. I do most my own repairs so I'm not too worried about service centers.. but parts availability would be a plus in buying something.. and Delta seems to lack very badly in that aspect.. Just know.. if you buy it.. you might be throwing it away when it comes time to need a part.. and sometimes those parts aren't even available on brand new equipment.. even a week old.. the plus is you could return it.. a year old you might be out of luck though.  

[OzarkSawdust]

You got that right Kevin. In one comparison I saw, mid-range table saws, it compared 11 saws (2 Saw Stop models) and gave a bunch of data on each. In the "Country" column - Delta, Jet, Laguna, Powermatic, and the 2 Saw Stops were made in Taiwan. While the Grizzly, Harvey, Ridgid, Rikon, and Shop Fox were all made in China. So if you need a part for most major brands you better hope it's in stock at a US service center. Otherwise you're trying to get it from overseas! Is there a new American made table saw in the $800 - $2000  range?

[Scrappile]

Is there an American made power tools anymore??  Where ever they are made it is up to the company having them made, to provide quality control...   They do not have to accept the un-acceptable.  

[new2woodwrk]

IMO every item today is considered disposable.

That is the world we have accepted and live in.

We've accepted it by purchasing items that fail in short time and purchasing another, often the same item/mfg!

Tools are no different.

Here are 2 lists of the only tools still made in America;

https://www.protoolreviews.com/what-tools-are-made-in-the-usa/

https://www.usalovelist.com/american-made-tools/

I personally would not buy a B&D or Craftsman power tool having very bad experiences with both - talk about no parts and disposable!

Dewalt is sometimes made in the U.S. but with outsourced materials! Which is why some machines are ok, and others not so much

Is there an American made Table Saw in the $800-$2000 NO there is not!

You take risk on quality when you buy ANYTHING these days. It's just how it is and what we as consumers have accepted.

You can NOT buy everything American, in fact very little can be said to be  "Made in U.S." these days - I wish we could.

Thanks to politicians taking our mfging and sending it elsewhere there is little of hope for "MADE IN AMERICA" to be a lasting and returnable commodity.

Ok, see what you've done now LOL *off my soap box*

[ScollSaw Slasher]

I know it's easy to rant and rave at politicians, corporations, etc etc, but it still comes down to the fact that one can make a product, ship it ten thousand miles and still come in at less then "made in America". It's called unfettered capitalism. Now do we close our ports or impose draconian tariffs? Please don't tell me about how quality control was so good in the U.S. One forgets about the crap cars that were being produced in Detroit in the "70's" which led the Japanese, Koreans, and Europeans to make such inroads to the American market. Or the steel industry that fell way behind in the latest technology to produce steel. And the list goes on and on. But the country still has thrived by moving to different productions of wealth with the advent of computer technology, boutique industries, etc etc. Is it a perfect solution? No. But I'll still take it over any other nation in the world. Now to the original topic. My Delta 694 scroll saw and table saw are still going strong. Happy holidays

[Dan]

I actually think this is a legitimate complaint and I believe Delta will address it. Hopefully sooner than later. 

As for why people keep buying them, if you look at the reviews online, most have 4.0 to 4.5 stars. Home Depot 4.5, Lowes 4.2 - 4.2, Menards 4.5, Wood Magazine 4.0. One site suggests it is a good saw for the price even though they address the issue of the knocking.

I don't knock people for buying it (as it appears to be an easy fix) but I do think they should provide negative feedback as most companies will review these. If they continue to get 3, 4, and 5 stars, the company will continue to sell them as is.

[ike]

when My Delta scroll saw broke down It was sonly a little over 1 year old so rather than me dtearing it down to see if I could fic it i let them do it, not realizing that it would take 5 1/2 months to get the parts to the repairshop.  When I called Delta to see what the problem with getting parts they said maybee I should go out and buy a new saw That is service for you !! I did like the saw it ran sweet for the 1st year then That was it. My father in law had an old Delta Drill press thatwasprobably 40 years old and it was still running good But I will never buy another Delta any thing, and I will not recomend one to anybody.

IKE

 

[LarryEA]

I have two DELTA saws and the only problem I have had was my fault.

Blew a fuse on one in my rush to get a piece cut.

Ya'll may be right on todays Delta since mine are 10 and 20 years old.

But if I were to buy another saw it probably would again be a Delta.

[jerry1939]

I owned a 40-694. Bought it new, used it 5 years, retired & gave it to a son.  Some of you are welcome to scream at this, but I've worked with & repaired machines most of my life.  Took the brand new machine out of the box, plugged it in to make sure it was OK, and took it apart & greased everything.  Only thing I replaced was the adjusting screw on the lower clamp.  Blue loc-tite wouldn't hold it, so I went to the hardware store, bought a longer one & added a lock nut.

For the complaints about the lack of parts, TAKE IT TO A DEWALT SHOP !!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Geez.

jerry

[Woodmaster1]

I own several Delta products a 8 year old Unisaw 5hp, 18-900 drill press, 13" planer and the 40-694 scrollsaw. The only thing I have had to replace was the planer blades. I have not had any issues with the machines. I wouldn't trade my Unisaw for any Tablesaw on the market. My machines see heavy use because being retired I am in the shop almost everyday.

[OCtoolguy]

On 12/24/2020 at 6:10 PM, kmmcrafts said:

I agree 100%  BUT I'll also say we need to shop intelligently too.. This means rather than shopping China made stuff at HF.. maybe seek out American made stuff... 

That's all fine Kevin but go buy a tv or microwave made in the U.S. That is what Trump has been trying to get accomplished. Bring the manufacturing back to this country. With that said, I wish that the Japanese or Koreans would take up the manufacture of power tools. I was selling Snap-On Tools back when the first Makita cordless drills hit the market. Expensive but great. Makita was the best name in woodworking tools for a long time. But eventually other manufactures came out with their stuff and the whole cycle started again. In order to sell their stuff, they had to make them less costly. Then the quality went to Hell.

 I remember how they forced Detroit to build better cars. We now all drive cars that are great. The junk that was coming out of Detroit back in the 70's and 80's was just that. Junk.

 

Edited December 29, 2020 by octoolguy

[Scrappile]

It is all about the profit margin......

[John B]

I suppose that given the price and the number sold,vs the number of negative reviews,it's worth the risk to some.

 

[tomsteve]

one thing i have witnessed, and read here, is brand loyalty. delta made great tools at one time yet not all of their tools were the best. same applies today. if i were to purchase a new benchtop planer it would be the dewalt 735 but i wouldnt buy a dewalt sawsall as milwaukee makes a better one,imo.

as for the delta TS mentioned- i would stay away from any table saw that is either direct drive or has the motor under the table. belt drive with motor hanging off the back is the way to go.

delta has had a bad reputation for service for some time now. although my contractorTS is delta( about a 2005 model) i dont think id purchase anything NEW with delta on it. 

 

as for made in the USA power tools-mainly woodworking- northfield tools. theyre still old school but not quite weekend warrior/hobbiest stuff.

http://www.northfieldwoodworking.com/

 

as far as made in the usa tools in general- thats tough. idk if these are all made in the USA or some just assembled in USA

https://www.stillmadeinusa.com/tools.html