Delta or Dewalt RAS?

[Don Sundberg]

Which RAS would you choose? Delta/Rockwell or Dewalt? Looking at 14-16" 3-7.5 hp saws on Craigslist. 3 phase is not a problem.

Just looking at opinions. We have an original saw at work that is all clapped out. You can move the bottom of the blade 1/2" side to side it's so loose. Do the Red Star / Rockwell ones have a better track record?

Thanks,

Don

[Bill Neely]

They're all good saws. I don't think any of the A series Red Stars will take dado stacks without the original adaptor which are virtually non-existent. Sounds like at the very minimum someone should adjust the carriage bearings on your saw at work.

[Don Sundberg]

So if you had the choice of a 16" Dewalt or Delta for basically the same price, which would you choose?

[Bill Neely]

I've never had a Delta/Rockwell/Red Star RAS, I've had several Dewalts but I think I'd base my decision on the condition of the saw versus cost.

[Rick Potter]

Both are great machines.

One consideration would be about preferences you may have for a top or front adjuster for height, or front vs rear knobs to tighten the fence. For example, I do a lot of dadoing on mine, and move the fence frequently to get a zero clearance dado slot, so I would prefer the knobs in the front.

[Mike Olson]

I went with Delta because the rails that the motor rides along are easily replaced or just turned a 1/4 turn to give it a new surface to ride on. "i'm also partial to the turret arm" I don't know what the Dewalts have though.

[Justin Ludwig]

If its for work and a production setting, look at OMGA. I picked up a '95 model (4hp) at auction for $300 and it's paid for itself 5x over in a year and half. They're just harder to find.

[jack duren]

I'm familiar with the turret arms of the Delta 12" and up and they are accurate...

[Erik Manchester]

Don,

I have a 14" turreted Delta RAS (33-083) in the shop that I use for breaking down stock and it is rock solid. These saws sold for $7K when new in the 80's and were not aimed at home users as they were made to work hard.

As Mike pointed out, the head bearings ride on drill rods that are easily replaced which is something that cannot be easily (or cheaply) done on those RAS where the bearings ride on cast iron.

The turret allows repeated accurate bevels to be made and the 5 hp motor has no problem sawing through 4" of stock.

I have not had any personal experience with the older Dewalt RAS for comparison but I am very pleased with my Delta.

[Bill ThompsonNM]

Don, I have a 14" turreted Delta RAS (33-083) in the shop that I use for breaking down stock and it is rock solid. These saws sold for $7K when new in the 80's and were not aimed at home users as they were made to work hard. As Mike pointed out, the head bearings ride on drill rods that are easily replaced which is something that cannot be easily (or cheaply) done on those RAS where the bearings ride on cast iron. The turret allows repeated accurate bevels to be made and the 5 hp motor has no problem sawing through 4" of stock. I have not had any personal experience with the older Dewalt RAS for comparison but I am very pleased with my Delta.

I'll second thst. Love my 14 inch Delta RAS!

[Mike Schuch]

I learned woodworking on my fathers 10" Delta turretarm RAS. When I bought my first house which was fire damaged I got a great deal on a old Craftsman that I used extansively to restore that house.. A couple years later I upgraded to a 12" Dewalt. A couple years after that I upgraded to a 16" Redstar 50A 7.5hp RAS. I have been using the Redstar for 20 years now and haven't found a need to upgrade. I smile every time I turn my 50A on! A unique feature of the 50A Redstar is the table slides in and out. This was done to set ripping depth because there is no wrist rotation on the 50A motor. I really appreciate the sliding table on my 50A.

My Dewalt 12" was pretty well abused. I was not impressed with the column angle indexing mechanism on the Dewalt. I like the turret indexing mechanism on my Redstar much better. I really believe it is a matter of simple maintenance of these tools. An abused negelected tool won't do its job well no matter who the manucacture is.

I did aquire a 5hp Walker Turner geared head RAS a few years ago. It spent 4 months on Craigs list and Ifinally felt so sorry for it I bought it for $50. It restored to a very nice saw. I put a metap top on it and use it for cutting metal. It is not as nice as my Redstar though. The Walker Turner also has a 3/4" shaft which would be a disadvantage for a woodworking saw and mounting a dado blade.

A good Dewalt or Delta/Rockwell/Redstar will be a great tool and great addition to a workshop where the users are comfortable with working on RAS's. If you stumble across a Unipoint RAS grab it and never look back!

[Jeff Duncan]

I have a 16" 7-1/2 hp DeWalt that is waiting for a refurb. It's built like a tank but the wear in the cast iron arm is a real concern. The old ones have more wear closer to the back from having done a million short cuts, then as you approach the front they have less wear and so it's a bit tricky to have them really dialed in. If the Delta has a replaceable system I'd consider that an advantage. I priced out getting mine ground and it was pretty pricey.

Then again if you have an Original saw already it may be less expensive to spend a couple hours replacing the bearings and whatever other maintenance may be needed and getting her back on track

good luck,
JeffD

[Mike Hollingsworth]

As Mike pointed out, the head bearings ride on drill rods that are easily replaced which is something that cannot be easily (or cheaply) done on those RAS where the bearings ride on cast iron.

I'll point out though, that the rods on the earlier saws are not replaceable.
I have the 12". Due to the short length of the arm, it's limited on the size of the cut. Since you have 3 phase, go for a 14".