Accessories

Could it be a hit-and-miss item?
I was really concerned about purchasing this jointer because of the high amount of negative reviews. However, with my limited space and budget, I didn't have much of a choice. I went ahead and bought it and I have been pleasantly surprised!
The jointer set up in a manner of minutes. The fence is not the best thing that I have ever seen, but it only took me about three minutes to get it square. I only plan on jointing ninety degree edges, so the fence issues don't really bother me. I like the control knobs and switches. The product feels like higher quality that the $197 that I spent (sorry Amazon, not purchased here...). I am wondering if it's kind of luck-of-the-draw item...see what you are going to get when you open the box.
I think that if you are looking for a small price and a space saver, you will be happy with this jointer!

Awesome Benchtop Jointer
This is the second Delta benchtop jointer I've owned and I love it. It takes up little more space than a briefcase and yet does a great job. A certain amount of care is necessary when jointing long pieces, due to the short table length, but anyone buying this item will know that going in. It is a well engineered and solidly constructed piece of equipment that does a great job.

Jointer
This jointer is a gift for someone, have opened it up to check it and plug it in to make sure that the motor runs ,But have not did any work
with it , but at this time and what I have seen it looks good.
Thank You.

Not too bad for a little guy...
It's small and it's cheap, which is great if you like small cheap things. It takes a long time to get the fence square, and ultimately you may have to settle for "square enough," because it's virtually impossible to get it perfectly square due to limited adjustment options. That said, it works pretty well for a small, two-knife jointer - and has more power than I expected. The tables are too short to make this jointer useful for much more than box-making or similar small projects. But if you are in the market for a small jointer for that purpose, I'd say it's not too bad.

the Delta JT 160 portable jointer is a great value
I also bought this despite reading bad reviews, but I don't mind tinkering to get top performance out of a tool. Here's the surprise - very little tinkering needed. It actually is a well designed and powerful machine, and a value at the price.

The fence that shipped is extruded aluminum, solid enough and very easy to adjust. I have had no difficulties getting it to stay at the desired angles. I use a Swanson speed square for right angles and a sliding t-bevel for the odd angle. It stays in place and is strong enough for the milling of cabinet members. It is true that the lock handles are plastic. I expect them to break some day when I'm in a hurry.

The issue of the dust port was easily solved. I cut a cover plate for the rectangular opening out of transparant plastic (so that I can see if shavings are accumulating). I popped the round plugs out and put the nozzle of my wall-mount dust collector in one of the holes. The shavings are evacuated very well now.

The noise level is acceptably low. I wish they had carbide knife blade replacements. The high speed steel blades mar too easily for my taste.

Last note: This is a small portable jointer and not really what you want for, say, planing doors or large lumber. But for the type of work I do it is a joy.

I am a residential remodeler who builds custom cabinetry and built-ins.