Side by Side Comparison of: Woodstock vs Shop Fox

Great product and great quality tools. Just what I was looking for.

Great purchase experience.

this item is excellenteand the support it's wonderful

worked great

So far these have worked very well with my HF Mortise chisel press. They had a very poor sharpening from the factory. But after only a few minutes on each one I was able to greatly improve the edges substantially.

Great quality, very well made!

a very useful machine for not a big price.Most in this price range will not swivel to allow you to make mortises in the end grain of longer pieces.I have used it daily for the last couple weeks and find it to work very well.

Works great! I like the tool caddy, it makes setting up nicer. Like the rotating base, opens up possibilities. Strong motor, doesn't slow down. Easy to use, and my students were able to learn how to use it pretty quickly. I use an extra clamp to hold material to the fence. A reminder, this thing is heavy, 90 lbs!!

Although the assembly instructions were a little vague it went together and performed great. Certainly didn't lack for power and there was no slowly down the spindle. My first (and onyt,so far) mortising job turned out perfect. I expect to get many years of use from this tool.

I purchased after comparing several machines and pouring over reviews on several sites. I've made hundreds of mortises so far - most of them angled (for wedged, through mortises) and I'm extremely happy with my purchase. Note, the table doesn't angle - I did that with an angled jig on the flat table. I was using a Delta drill press mortising jig, but this is so much better. I would say I'm an intermediate level weekend warrior in terms of woodworking experience and ability. I have one car slot of my three car garage dedicated to this hobby. I have a table saw, small planer, joiner, scroll saw, drill press, and now a mortiser. I mention this just to give you an idea of my perspective on the review.I'm so pleased I got the 3/4 horse motor. No problems with 3/8" through hole mortises in cherry or 1/2" mortises in walnut. I was able to stall the motor a couple of times doing 3/4" angled mortises in 2" thick walnut, but the unit fired right back up and kept at it.Note, the mortise bits have to be sharp! If you buy a brand new bit, expect to sharpen it before use or you will not cut holes and just create a bunch of smoke. There are several web sites available that explain how to sharpen your bits and it makes all the difference. This includes the 1/2" bit shipped with the machine.In walnut, using 3/4 and 1/2 inch mortise chisels, I got some smoke, but was able to control it with a bit of practice in terms of force.When the unit arrived, it was undamaged, but I could definitely see how flimsy the packaging was and how the base could be easily cracked if dropped on that corner. I received the unit delivered in a van by a local delivery company with two people, so that may have contributed to my good luck. One person delivery is asking for trouble as it is a 100lb box.Assembly went well, but I did break one of the pot metal collars holding the handle in place when tightening the set screw. This is where a nylon collar would have been a better design, in my opinion. I used the Shop Fox online customer support process and had a new collar in my hand about a week after submitting the request.I also saw several complaints in the reviews about the partical board table, but I didn't have a problem with this. I expect the table to be sacraficial anyway after heavy use, so why invest a bunch of money in this area? Like someone else commented, just change it to oak if you like, but I'll wait until the first table is worn. The rest of the machine is a heavy beast.The hold down worked well, although it would have been nice if it had a knob to adjust it instead of the allen head screw. I may modify it to add a knob as it seemed like I was constantly having to fumble with finding the T-wrench to loosen and tighten it. It also doesn't have a stop fence micro-adjust - not a good one anyway, but once I got it set, it stayed in place.So all in all, I gave it 5 stars - even with the minor issues. It exceeded my expectations for the money I paid, support was good, and I would buy it again.

I purchased this machine after receiving orders for several pieces of mission furniture. I grew tired of trying to cut mortises with my router. I have made several hundred mortises in white oak, cherry and white maple. I am very pleased with the machine.Pros:1. Arrived on time and undamaged.2. Setup and adjustment took only a couple of hours.3. Hold down is exceptional. I have had NO racking problems4. Plenty of power, it doesn't even groan a bit on 3/4 inch mortise 2 inches deep in white oak.5. Dual rods work very smooth.6. Easy to adjust handle, I can always set it for best stroke.Cons:1. Fiber board cutting base is a little cheap. I replaced it with solid red oak.2. The supplied chisel bit was so-so. I purchased a set from lee-valley (the ones from Japan) and they work exceptionally well.3. I would like a micro adjustment on the depth control rod.No question I would buy this machine again. Great value.

This Shop Fox Heavy Duty Mortising Machine is good value. Set-up is straight forward, and it makes square holes, what can I say? I am impressed with the overall quality of the unit. I like the heavy steel columns that support it. I was very happy to find a unit that can handle up to 8 inch tall material without having to swing it to a table edge, which this one has the capability of doing also. I had been looking for a mortise attachment for my drill press, but after using this on my oak project, I am convinced that the drill press would not have held up. I am very happy about my purchase. The price can't be beat for what it does.

I brought for my harborfreight tool. But only two barely fit. Although I am not happy, I reviewed based on quality.

These tool work great and the size it right on. The only thing I miss was to check the neck diameter. My tool holder was set at 1/2in and the neck on these are 3/4in. I had to make changes to my holder to use this tool.

descent set for the price if you are an occasional user.If they get hot they lose their edge quickly.In this price range i rate them as satisfactory.

Have only used the 3/8 chisel but it performed well and appears to have held its edge.

Get the job done. I just couldn't bring myself to buying the only other much more expensive option. If your like me, and saving a few buck on something you will only use from time to time will do, don't hesitate.

These work absolutly fine. Pay attention to shaft diameter. These WILL NOT fit into a Jet mortise attachment for your drill press(originally purchased for). As luck would have it, I found a dedicated mortise machine at my local Ollies(a discount store), and they fit exactly. Not sure if they will stand the test of time but so far they have worked very well(even the harder materials such as white & red oak). And the price was right, much lower then name brands, I am a home owner, and just a "wood butcher hobbiest", so take the reveiw as you will Im not a pro just frugal(cheap) with limited assets. But Im happy with it.

This is a heavy, solid machine with lots of cast iron. It works well, despite a minor problem. The depth stop rod was either slightly bent or its mounting hole was not located properly. After I cut a mortise, the top of the rod bumped against a the machine and I could not raise the chisel out of the hole. Bending the top of the rod slightly solved this problem. Yes, the paint job is not the best, but it is OK. I tried to contact the seller (Factory Authorized Outlet) re shipping and price, but they never replie (not a customer oriented seller, I guess). The manual is generally good about assembly, but leaves out some info that a mortising machine novice might want to know, such as how to attach the head of the machine to its base). The 1/2 chisel that comes with it is not the best, but it provides an opportunity for the buyer to practice using the machine. We'll all need to eventually purchase a set of chisels anyway. It is a good, nicely designed machine despite minor frustrations.

The Shot Fox mortising machine is fast and powerful enough for my needs, but what came in the box did not resemble the images in the instruction manual. I ended up with two leftover pieces after using the exploded diagram in the back of the manual as assembly instructions. Hopefully, the machine doesn't require those leftover parts...

To be clear .. I haven't used this machine yet, but is Is mounted and ready to go. This review is a heads-up for Grizzly and future buyers.My machine was manufactured in April 2011, purchased April 2012. 3/4 HP, 3/4" collet capacity, dual non-adjustable column supports, gas spring, the ability to rotate the machine and price being the major factors considered.Packing was excellent .. arrived in a few days via freight (Fedex Freight only visits here on Tuesdays) along with Grizzly 6" Jointer. Firstly .. be very careful unpacking .. the aluminum fins at the bottom of the motor are virtually un-deburred and may be very sharp. I'll probably use a wire-wheel on a drill motor to mitigate that, when I get time. Such a simple thing should have been done at the motor factory .. there is No excuse, just lack of care and QC.Secondly, albeit minor, still a PITA and unnecessary .. two of the three hold-down rods had miniscule burrs at the ends, preventing insertion. The burrs were generated while machine chamfering the ends. Again, easy enough to mitigate on the 1" belt sander, and again, just lack of care and QC.So far, only one design complaint associated with a major feature .. the gas spring. Depending on the heigth of workpiece, there are three positions for attaching the spring, two on the back, and one on the side. For use in the lowest position, you must remove the position-two ball. Indeed, while this may seem a minor inconvenience, a part that small will certainly be one of the first lost.Here is the biggie. The stop rod was binding quite severely against the column cap due to two factors. The 10mm hole(s) were not machined parallel with the columns .. out by a few degress, and there was alot of debris inside which seemed to be bound around the hole down inside. I verified this using an 8mm diameter Whistler wireless borescope-cam .. and was amazed at the crap I saw down there. The hexagonal stop-rod was only rotatable with great difficulty. Not having an extra long 10mm drill, I used a 3/8" drill, and mitigated the crap collection inside as best I could. I took the column cap off and ground clearance for the stop-rod to pass by with nomimal friction. This is Clearly a lack of due care, and Quality Control, especially considering that this machine has been manufactured for almost ten years.Perhaps I got a Lemon, but Grizzly is a Big Time player, and hopefully will rap some knuckels with their supplier for this machine. The jointer has been flawless .. a different review coming.All in all, minus the discrepancies noted above, for features and value, I would recommend this machine. I have bits from 1/4" up through 3/4" in place .. just wondering what using a 3/4" mortising bit at 3,450 rpm will be like .. probably a real screamer .. but that's on me.

Minimal use thus far but no problems. Shipped without damage, assembled easily, worked as expected. As with any mechanical tool, experience will help. A DVD on tips and tricks would be nice. Planned projects to come.

I originally purchased this mortiser because of reading previous reviews about how much better it is than other brands of this size and type, (the 3/4hp vs. 1/2hp and the ability of the head to swivel around so larger pieces could be mortised), and I have to say I am well pleased with it. Compared to other machines I have used of lesser horsepower this one is a breeze to use and I haven't even sharpened the chisel yet. The setup is easy because of the access doors on both sides.However, the only reason I don't give it 5 stars is because of the same reason given in other reviews. SHIPPING. The package of the first one (UPS) I received was beat up and when I opened the box I noticed the mortiser base was cracked all the way across and thru and thru. When I saw this I immediately got online and went through the return process (about 11:00 am) which was simple and, to Amazon's credit, I received another mortiser the next day. Nice customer service.All in all a great machine for the money (so far) if they could just make the packaging a little better I would have given it a solid 5 stars.

When I received this machine from UPS the base was broken in two, and the guard on top of the motor was bent in so far that the motor wouldn't turn. This machine should have sent by truck as it is obviously too heavy (approx 100 lbs.) for UPS so more than likely it was dropped along the way. I called Shop Fox and they promptly sent me replacement parts. After I replaced the broken parts I made a couple of test mortars. So far this is all I have done so the rating on this machine could go up or down in future updates. I am not rating the shipping, I am rating the machine. However, you may consider buying this from your local woodworking store, even though it may cost more just to avoid the hassle.

These are not for a high end woodworker, that's for sure. But they will get you a mortise in anything but real hard wood. A lot of it is what tool you are using to mount these. They are larger in diameter than my Craftsman drill press holder so I had to drill that out to accommodate the 3/4" collar. Something to consider. If you can't drill out your holder on a lathe for dead on accuracy, don't.

Nice looking set. Can't seem to be able to keep the bits between the lines. I have secured the wood pieces however the bits still seem to wander somewhat. Any suggestions?

Not bad for price, BUT need a lot of sharpening. If you only need a couple buy the individual CMT ones as they are much sharper out of the box.

Not very sharp from the factory. After sharpening, they seem to cut ok. We'll see how well the edges hold up after time.

They don't seem to be as sharp as the set of chisels that came with the mortising jig. Good enough for the price.

Chisel itself is sturdy and might work properly but no chance to use it since my standard drill press can not use such a long mortise chisel because there are TWO reasons why...1st one is that once I attach the chisel to drill press, I have no space between chisel and drill press table and I can barely have only thin wood to drill which absolutely doesn't make any sense.Second of all, as long as the drill press is NOT a special one which is fit to mortise chisel, the square shank of chisel will be spinning and can't not make a square hole but only normal drill hole.I hope the description at Amazon was supposed to be more accurate and mentioned about special drill press is a MUST to use this product.

I haven't had a chance to use it yet because I am going to have to make at least one modification to assemble it--the elongated circular holes in the clutch, in which the hand lever is supposed to fit, are too small. I will have to file the edges in order to enlarge the holes on both the bottom and the top of the clutch to get the handle to go through. I have perused other reviews to see if anyone else had had this problem, but so far I haven't found this exact issue. I ended up with a duplicate set of parts since box 2 of the 2-box shipment didn't arrive the first time and Amazon sent another. I reopened the box, which I had already prepared to ship back to Amazon, and tried the clutch in that box with the handle I had--same problem. Poor quality control.Day 2 Update. I slightly enlarged the hole in the clutch using a Dremel tool grinding stone attachment on my drill press and was able to get the handle through. I have not been able to get the gas spring on to the ball end junctions because of the force required to compress the spring even slightly to line it up. I am 5' 10" and in great shape, but I am going to need my husband to help me when he gets back from a business trip. It is a challenge to compress and hold the spring while also attaching it to the machine. I am curious to see the ergonomics of the mortiser and going to be able to compress the spring with a push of the handle--it was so hard to compress even a quarter inch by hand that I thought the thing was defective.Another annoying issue--the machine is supposed to come with TWO chisel bushings to accept both 5/8" and 3/4" shank chisels, but mine only came with the 5/8" bushing, so I can't even use the 3/4" shank chisel that was included! I was curious as to whether this was just a packing mistake, so I RE-opened the box of parts I had ready to ship back to Amazon and found that it, too, only contained the 5/8" bushing. I have some 5/8" shank chisels I use with my Delta drill press, but, come on. If the company is trying to save a few pennies, at least include the bushing that fits the chisel that comes with the mortise!. I am going to have to call the company today.

Base casting damaged at factory prior to shipping. Left rear corner foot broken off, piece not in the box. Box shows no sign of rough handling.All other pieces seem to be fine.

I gave this piece of crap an ok rating beacuse it actually functions resonably well so far. The metal cast adjustment handles are poor quality and have stripped out, had to purchase metric bolts to replace them and have to use a wrench or socket. With a little more attention to quality this could be a good tool.

I wanted a mortiser that could standup to a lot of usage; based on reviews and power specs, decided on the Shop Fox. Unfortunately, after ordering it, I've never been able to actually use it. The machine is heavy; just as the specs say. Packaging and machine are right at 90 lbs. When the 1st machine arrived, it sat for a week before I could spend time opening and attempting to setup. What I found was the cast iron base was broken in half, and the cowl over the engine fins was dented so much the motor would not have turned over if I had plugged it in. Amazon was quick to send another unit, but when it arrived (Christmas Eve no less), the packaging was in worse shape than the 1st one. Needless to say, the case iron base was broken in multiple pieces. After two tries, I informed Amazon to just take the unit back and cancel the order. For sure, the packaging is not designed to sustain substantial jostling; it is fairly thin styrofoam, certainly not rigid or thick enough. The cardboard carton is not very sturdy either. Again, this is 90 lbs. of equipment. From what I saw of the mortiser, I would say it is well built, appears to be well designed. I rated this a 3 star just for the interaction experience with Amazon. Wish I could actually use it.

Tool life very poor

Very crude finish

I wish it would of said you needed the chisel holder. If your drill press doesn't have it, you are better off buying the complete set.

I am a novice (but enthusiastic) wood worker. I have a very high quality drill press and thought these would be great. Shame on me for not know that they require some sort of a mortising attachment for the drill press to be used. This was an expensive lesson for me.

This set has a 3/4 inch shoulder on the square bit and does not fit the Delta Mortising Attachments.The 1/4 inch bit was slightly bent and it is fragile enough already so I sent the whole set back.I am going to order the Delta Set. Might not be any better quality but they will fit.

The design is probably okay, but I'm not sure as I didn't get past assembly. As I assembled the machine, the pour quality of construction became apparent. Several plastic components and some key parts were bent or out of alignment.

The handle that you push down on mounts through a pot metal round piece. After 3 cuts, the pot metal crystallized like glass and shattered, making the unit unusable. Liked it up to then.

After two test holes the teeth on the hand lever clutch started to break off. At this point there is only one tooth left on the clutch. If they will replace this part I think I have a pretty good machine on my hands. But at this point I am very disappointed with the quality.

1. The assembly instructions assumed the machine came attached to the cast iron base. They came in different boxes, and I had to figure out how they went together. The instructions were written in 2002, last revised in 2007. Presumably the pieces used to be delivered together.2. The chuck and the holder for the chisel both work very poorly. The chisel routinely pulls out of the holder when I lift it out of the wood, the drill bit not uncommonly comes out of the chuck, even after I have tightened both as tightly as I can.3. Other parts of the machine seem very poorly made.4. The machine works to cut square holes in softwood. I had a great deal of trouble trying to use it in hardwood.(Later addition)I discovered that the problem with the chisel holder was that the hole for the set screw wasn't drilled quite all the way through, so the set screw wasn't actually pressing on the chisel and didn't hold it. I removed the chisel, turned the set screw with considerable force, and forced it through--at which point a couple of small bits of metal dropped out, presumably pieces that had been blocking the hole.I then found that I couldn't get the chisel all the way in, because there was now a bump inside the socket it fitted into, just above the set screw holder. I used my dremel and a miniature drum sander to sand that down, at which point the chisel holder finally worked.I had a phone conversation with technical support and was told that in order to get the chuck to hold the drill bit properly I should tighten the chuck, rotate it a third of the way around to the next hole, tighten again, repeat. That seems to work--but suggests that the chuck is not very well made.I was also told that my unit had shipped with the old instruction manual and the current one mentioned the need to assemble the machine and base, which used to be shipped already assembled. But it turned out, when I checked with him, that there were still other things missing from the current version of instructions.At this point, the machine is usable and useful, but only after I repaired it and followed instructions to compensate for the weakness of the chuck. And I am now able to use the 1/2" chisel in hardwood. So I have raised my rating from one star to two.

disappointing quality. the drill bit tip broke after just a few small mortises, even keeping it beeswaxed to so to not get the bit to hot.

These chisels do not perform well. The mortise is rounded instead of squared off. I returned the set to Amazon for a full refund.

Doesn't fit jet jbm -5

Not very impressed. I shouldn't have expected much for this price. You get some bits that look kool but don't even come close to working. I wanted to do switch plate covers and should have spent all of this money on the one size that I need. Now I wasted this money and still have to buy one that works. I should have known better!!

These have not worked out for me at all...

This product was tagged on to the Delta Mortising Attachment for the Delta 14-040 Drill Press as having the ability to be used in the attachement, WRONG. The shank is 3/4" and the Delta Mortising Attachment takes a 5/8" shank. Not good!

Piece of junk, expect all of the knobs to break. Alot of play so dont expect accuracy.

Absolute garbage. Pieces broke on day one that were not machined as strong as this company said they were. Needs a better design with micro adjuster as well. Not as convenient as they make it sound. Overall - very poorly built and designed.

The machine was packaged poorley and arrived broken. I returned it for a new one, and it also came dammaged. It was repairable so i didnt bother to return it again. I sent the first machine back to amazon via the pickup they aranged and recieved a confirmation of them recieving the product. then recently recieved a e-mail stating i have only a few days to return the first machine or i will be charged for it. I havnt seen any way to contact them about this matter either via E-mail or phone #. product is a nice product but the service is a little dissorganized.

Bought this model simply for price, 3/4 HP and reviews that it was a good model. Got it two hours ago and it is already packed up for return. When it arrived the box was practically falling off of it. It was poorly packaged and looked like it endured a gruelling journey straight from China. Opened the box to find greasy lubricant saturating everything. Got all the pieces cleaned up and pulled the mortiser out to find that the fan cover was dented a 1/2" in and 4" inches across and with some force because it was embedded in the fan itself 3/16". Did not even get to hear it run, want my money back.