contractor table saw

[allen thunem]

I am in the market for a smaller table saw. Had a delta unisaw years ago but got out of doing flat work to focus on lathe work.
Have decided it would be nice to have another table saw to do incidental woodworking with. I am looking for suggestions and experiences others have had with some of the contractor fold up type saws that are available.
I am not a fan of the delta or porter cable products any longer since they were taken over by black & decker.

[Dean Baumgartner2]

I have a Ryobi BT3000 I got on craigslist about 9 years ago for a couple hundred. Used it for several years after a divorce when I didn't have a shop with 220v for my cabinet saw. Very credible saw and surprisingly able to cut most anything. Sliding table with a built in miter guide. It's on a stand with wheels on one side so it can be moved around easily. I'm sure it could go on a fold up stand if you wanted as well.

[Lee Schierer]

Watch for an older Craftsman table saw with the cast iron top. They are good reliable saws that if they are aligned properly and fitted with a good bade will do most any woodworking you want to do and are very reasonably priced.

[Bruce Wrenn]

The old Delta 10" contractor's saw is what I use, even though I have a Uni sitting in corner of shop. Restored CS many years ago. One day maybe the Uni will be put into service.

[Jim Becker]

A "contractors' style" saw or one of the so-called "hybrids" would likely satisfy the stated need economically. The latter is a little better when it comes to dust control since they typically have a more closed cabinet style similar to a cabinet saw, but with the workings of a contractors' style saw.

[Mike Kees]

3rd vote for a used saw. I would look for a delta contractors saw,with a decent fence. There is nothing that you can not do with one of these. It may be slightly slower than a cabinet saw but they are a lot cheaper. I have an extra one taking up room in my shop that I would sell cheap if you don't mind driving to Alberta to pick it up...Mike.

[John K Jordan]

I am in the market for a smaller table saw. Had a delta unisaw years ago but got out of doing flat work to focus on lathe work.
Have decided it would be nice to have another table saw to do incidental woodworking with. I am looking for suggestions and experiences others have had with some of the contractor fold up type saws that are available.
I am not a fan of the delta or porter cable products any longer since they were taken over by black & decker.

If it is for occasional use almost any of the portable saws should work fine. A friend of mine made a crosscut sled for his and uses it for precision work. I kept the one I bought at HD when I built my shop even though I have a PM cabinet saw now. It is great for taking outside the shop for projects around the farm and for friends, and where the sawdust can blow in the wind.

[Charles Lent]

If you once owned a Unisaw, you will not be happy with anything less than a good contractor saw or hybrid saw with at least a 1 1/2 hp induction motor and a good quality fence. You will not be happy with any saw that uses a universal (brush type) motor or a saw with sloppy miter gauge slots so frequent on the new versions of so called "contractor saws".

I once owned a Ryobi BT3000 (before buying my Unisaw). Although quite flexible in it's design, it just isn't made well enough for long term accuracy, and it's motor is a brush type universal motor "screamer". It also doesn't even come with a miter gauge slot, so many jigs and fixtures will need to be modified or made special to use with it. I made a miter slot add-on for mine, but I was never happy with the saw's accuracy, lack of good miter slot, or it's screaming motor. The new DeWalt contractor saws that I've used also have the brush type motors and are screamers too, and their miter gauge slots are significantly over size. I wasn't happy with the fence accuracy of the DeWalt that I used either. Maybe the Bosch and other similar saws are better, but I have no experience with them.

An old Delta Contractor Saw with a Unifence or Biesmeier fence or even the Delta T2 fence will do just about everything that your Unisaw could do every bit as accurately, except for containing the sawdust as well as the full cabinet of the Unisaw and hybrid saws do. The miter gauge slots are the proper standard 3/8 X 3/4" size and the induction motor on these Delta saws is specially wound to produce 1.5 hp on 120 vac so it can be used on a standard 15 amp 120 volt circuit or changed over for use on a 240 volt circuit where it will produce a full 2 hp. I bought a Delta 34-444 contractor saw and cleaned it up for my son's shop. This saw has proven to be a very good and accurate saw, every bit as capable and accurate as my Unisaw. My only complaint with it is that there is very little that you can do to it to contain the sawdust, but there is an after market saw dust bag that can be added to catch the sawdust that falls out of the bottom of the saw, but the rest goes wherever it chooses to.

Charley

[Justin Laney]

As a builder/woodworker, I have a shop set up and duplicate portable versions of most tools and equipment. For site work I've been very happy with my Bosch 1000 10" contractor saw. The accessory side and outfeed supports are great, and you can make accessory tables for your router and the PC portable spindle sander that fit in the opened table. I've used other brands, namely newer DeWalts and older Makitas, and always felt the Bosch to be stronger, more accurate, and easier to fine-tune. Nothing as strong or accurate as a good cabinet or hybrid saw, but I've gotten very good finish carpentry woodworking results in the field.
In my shop, I recently changed over to the Grizzly 10" hybrid, (from a 30yr old hybrid), and am very happy with it. I added the long rails and heavy duty fence to it, so in total it cost about a grand compared to $600 for the portable Bosch. I'm not a production cabinet maker, so I get by just fine with this 2hp saw. It's accurate and powerful, has decent dust collection, and can take my full dado blade set-up, a full-size crosscut sled, a tenon jig... Things you can't with a portable saw.
So if you need a dual purpose saw for both job-site work and furniture/cabinet projects, I'd recommend the Bosch. (I'm on my second one, having use the first for nearly 15 good productive years). If it's strictly a shop saw, you'll probably be happier with something bigger and stronger.

[lee cox]

I had a Rockwell/Delta Contractor table saw and enjoyed it while I had it. I upgraded the fence to a Delta T2 fence. Now that I own a Unisaw I can't imagine going back to a contractor table saw. I never could tuned my contractor saw as precisely as my Unisaw. The Unisaw has a smoother cut. While I had my contractor saw I never knew any difference but now I am spoiled. It may be a hard road back.

[Bruce Wrenn]

the induction motor on these Delta saws is specially wound to produce 1.5 hp on 120 vac so it can be used on a standard 15 amp 120 volt circuit or changed over for use on a 240 volt circuit where it will produce a full 2 hp.

Charley

One of the world's greatest LIES! Delta down rated motor so it could be used on a 15 amp plug, as not many shops have 20 amp recept's. There is nothing special about the windings, just two 120 volt windings that can be either wired in series (240V), or parallel
(120V.)

[Charles Lent]

One of the world's greatest LIES! Delta down rated motor so it could be used on a 15 amp plug, as not many shops have 20 amp recept's. There is nothing special about the windings, just two 120 volt windings that can be either wired in series (240V), or parallel
(120V.)

That's not true. The motor on a Delta Contractor Saw is not made the same as most 120/240 volt motors. The motor windings are tapped differently than the typical 120/240 motors. It's not the usual series/parallel dual voltage design.

Charley