Trend M&T jig - Anyone try it yet?

[Bestest Handsander]

Has anyone used the Trend Mortise and Tenon Jig advertised in the latest issue of FWW? It looks like it functions like the Leigh FMT but at half the price. Now that's tempting.

[Bay Area Dave]

do you by ANY CHANCE work for Trend?? :)

seems like if something costs 1/2 the price of the market leader, it most likely has some shortcomings. Not that I'd know specifically; just a general comment about marketing strategy.

dave

Bestest Handsander wrote:

[Bestest Handsander]

No, no affiliation. As for your comment... obviously there will be differences. Hence my question in the original post!

[MJ Wallace]

Yeah, I would also be interested. Someone had a similar device a couple of years ago but it never took off.

Trend has been selling this jig in the UK for quite sometime, so perhaps if our friends across the "pond" can respond?

Also, be interested in the other tenon jigs - Wood Rat, Tenon Maker, etc. Anyone find something that great?

MJ Wallace

[Bestest Handsander]

I have a friend who uses the Wood Rat (actually his is the Little Rat). He liked it so much he bought a second one to cut down on changeover time. I have to admit the dovetails he cuts on the thing with the skinny Wood Rat bits look more hand-cut than any machine-cut dovetails I've ever seen. The downside for m&t is the round mortise/square tenon situation. The upside is the piece lays horizontally, so it can handle long pieces like bed rails. The big advantage I see with the Wood Rat is how many different things you can do with it without having to by all sorts of accessories.

FWW latest issue reviews some m&t machines (but not the Trend).

HTH

[Brian Henderson]

You pay a lot for the name, not just the product. You will always pay more for a Sony TV than another brand because Sony's name sells TVs. They aren't necessarily any better than anyone else's, people just pay for name recognition. A lot of the high-end TV manufacturers sell the exact same TVs under generic names (or store names, Sears used to carry Panasonic and Fisher electronics with their name on the front) for a much lower price.

Just because it costs 1/2 as much doesn't mean it's lacking anything.

[Greg G.]

But it doesn't mean it isn't either... Caveat Emptor.

Greg G.

[MJ Wallace]

Yeah, just as I sent out my message, I got the latest FWW. Tho, it is interesting that it is a REVIEW of what these things are, not a real REVIEW of their capabilities viz-a-viz each other. It seems that none of them are "the tool", tho, I have used the MultiRouter in a class and can tell you it is one great tool. If I had the dough, I'd buy it in a flash, but to buy a tool that cost MORE then my first new (not used) car, is kinda tough with SWMBO right now.

TenonMaker and WoodRat were sort of "reviewed" on WoorkShopDemos.com (I think I got the URL right). Not much in a review, but just how to use it and the problems the reviewer had in setting it up or the joy of using it. Valuable info, still tho.

MJ Wallace

[Brian Henderson]

Tis true, but the original poster said he didn't have a clue about it, but sure didn't have a problem portraying it as a piece of junk.

[Bestest Handsander]