About Table Saws

[Nick Stokes]

Based on lookin at your work and what you do, I think you might be a perfect candidate for that new nova drill press. Seriously.

[Paul K. Johnson]

Based on lookin at your work and what you do, I think you might be a perfect candidate for that new nova drill press. Seriously.

I'm pretty for sure that's what I'm going to get but I can only afford one tool right now and the table saw is a much higher priority. That also gives some time for reviews of the Nova to start popping up. I'm really hoping it's a quality tool.

I've looked at all the drill presses marketed to wood-workers and as far as I can tell they're mostly junk - even the "top of the line" Powermatic got some really bad reviews. I don't want to pay more for bells and whistles. I want a solid, tight drill press that works, doesn't rattle me numb, runs at speeds I need and has no slop.

Even using a backer board, the amount of slop in most quills makes the drill bit burst through the backside at the end instead of cutting the wood with the bit properly. That's because all the slop in the quill is taken up when pushing down but when there's no more resistance from the part being drilled because it's almost drilled through, the weight and pressure push through the backside. The softer the material the worse it is.

I currently have two model-builders drill press and a Craftsman floor model and they all do that because they all have a ton of slop in the rack and pinion.

[andy bessette]

...I don't want to spend a lot of time refurbishing them, hunting down parts, cleaning off rust, etc. And like I said previously, I like having a warranty.

What sort of refurbishing, hunting down parts, cleaning off rust, etc, would you expect to do on a quality used saw? And when was the last time you heard of someone making a warranty claim on a table saw?

[Paul K. Johnson]

What sort of refurbishing, hunting down parts, cleaning off rust, etc, would you expect to do on a quality used saw? And when was the last time you heard of someone making a warranty claim on a table saw?

Here's the list of problems with used equipment. Some are obviously surmountable, others not so much.

1) I don't own a truck and the only friend I have with a truck lives an hour away.
2) I have no way to lift a heavy saw into or out of a truck.
3) 95% of the used saws I've seen listed are contractor saws.
4) Every cabinet saw I've seen listed that looks good is three or more states away.
5) The saws I've seen within 100 miles are rust buckets.

Maybe you can tell me where I should be looking. I've searched eBay listings and Craigslist. I don't even know another person in real life who does any woodworking or has a table saw.

I have no idea what other people have done with their warranties but I use mine (with the exception of my drill press which I very much regret).

[Chris Hachet]

Here's the list of problems with used equipment. Some are obviously surmountable, others not so much.

1) I don't own a truck and the only friend I have with a truck lives an hour away.
2) I have no way to lift a heavy saw into or out of a truck.
3) 95% of the used saws I've seen listed are contractor saws.
4) Every cabinet saw I've seen listed that looks good is three or more states away.
5) The saws I've seen within 100 miles are rust buckets.

Maybe you can tell me where I should be looking. I've searched eBay listings and Craigslist. I don't even know another person in real life who does any woodworking or has a table saw.

I have no idea what other people have done with their warranties but I use mine (with the exception of my drill press which I very much regret).

Again, there is no shame in buying new. Especially if you are in business. I am a hobbyist woodworker but I do things for neighbors and friends, and sometimes charge a modest amount. It would be much better for business if I had a shiny new 1023 Griz or the like vs a 1973 Unisaw in the center of the shop. The other thing to think about is next year or year after I am going to completely tear down my Unsiaw and rebuild it. That will be time it is out of commission. Money obviously lost for a business.

[tom lucas]

I have a Grizzly 1023RWL, left tilting. I just sold my router table and bought an extension for the left side. The Grizzly comes with a router table hole, but no way to put in a lift, and it's on the right side of the saw (might be useful as a fixed router dado setup or something). However, I went with the Excalibur router table extension because it comes with support legs. I elected to use the Milescraft DustRouter instead of a box. It works great with the incra lift/inserts, but you have to buy velcro rings for each insert ($2.50 each). The DustRouter dust collection is outstanding, and the motor is open for easy access and cooling.

Here is my extension. You can see in the second photo where I mounted the dust port, and where the door is to the table saw motor. I will have to remove the router/lift and a section of the dust hose to get to the motor. No big deal, and how often do you need to do that anyway? The Excalibur comes with a nice fence, but you can use your table saw fence too. I made the little cabinet to fit under the router, and it has a shelf on the back for the fence to stow. You can see the fence in storage behind the cabinet in the first photo. I love this setup: Requires less space, has excellent dust collection, and is highly accurate. Only drawback is that you have to remove the fence to crosscut on the table saw.

[Adam Merritt]

...and you have my infinite sympathy on space. I work in a two car attached garage, one can never have enough...

I know the feeling as well. I get half of a 2.5 car garage. I hoped that by combining the router table and table saw, I would be able to justify the space. It was really hard to order the shorter rail package, but I just couldn't think of any way to make it fit otherwise. I saw someone post this picture on Reddit a while back. i think I can do something similar in my garage to save space (thinking of building a new workbench to store my saw under it. I have the SawStop industrial base, so it should be easy to move in and out of there). Anyways, while I dream of having a large workspace in the future, I have to make do with what I have available now.

[Chris Hachet]

I know the feeling as well. I get half of a 2.5 car garage. I hoped that by combining the router table and table saw, I would be able to justify the space. It was really hard to order the shorter rail package, but I just couldn't think of any way to make it fit otherwise. I saw someone post this picture on Reddit a while back. i think I can do something similar in my garage to save space (thinking of building a new workbench to store my saw under it. I have the SawStop industrial base, so it should be easy to move in and out of there). Anyways, while I dream of having a large workspace in the future, I have to make do with what I have available now.

In a lot of ways limited space is also a blessing, as you only buy what you actually need to work wood.

[Paul K. Johnson]

In a lot of ways limited space is also a blessing, as you only buy what you actually need to work wood.

Is that how it's supposed to work? I did it wrong.

[Chris Hachet]

Is that how it's supposed to work? I did it wrong.

You have a successful business, methinks you are doing something very, very right.

[Earl McLain]

In a lot of ways limited space is also a blessing, as you only buy what you actually need to work wood.

No way...really???
earl

[Chris Hachet]

No way...really???
earl

My wife in her infinite wisdom turned me on to used machinery and Old American iron. I would own an Oliver 117 Band saw if I could...still thinking about an Oliver 192 or 232.

Life is too short, methinks.

[andy bessette]

"In a lot of ways limited space is also a blessing, as you only buy what you actually need to work wood."

Though my shop space is mostly taken up with woodworking machines its overcrowding is also due to metal working machines such as bandsaws, lathe, mill, hydraulic press, tig welder, etc.

Limited space is NOT a blessing.

[Chris Hachet]

"In a lot of ways limited space is also a blessing, as you only buy what you actually need to work wood."

Though my shop space is mostly taken up with woodworking machines its overcrowding is also due to metal working machines such as bandsaws, lathe, mill, hydraulic press, tig welder, etc.

Limited space is NOT a blessing.

See....it is a blessing...you are destined to build a second shop as a metal working shop and you will be all set.

[Jim Dwight]

I have a router table setup in an extension table on the left side of the blade of my small BT3100 table saw. I rarely use it. Instead I use my homemade router table with built in lift that is about 2 feet square. It does everything I need a router table to do. Is a smaller, while still nice, router table a possibility? I almost never use the setup in my extension table. It works but the separate table is just much nicer. I found I wanted to use the saw while it was setup for the router and vice versa.

With respect to hp, my saw has a 15A universal motor. So less power than a normal contractor saw. I can rip 3.5 inches deep in hardwood but ONLY if I use a good rip blade (I use a Freud) that is both clean and sharp. With a bigger saw, I suspect I could use the combination blade that is normally on the saw. It isn't worth it to me to be able to do these cuts without changing the blade. I've built 8 bedroom sets and a lot of other stuff on my little table saws (this isn't the first but has been used the longest). If most of your work is somewhat crude or very precise but small, I don't see why you need a 3hp motor. My projects are not consistently small and my track saw and little table saw are fine for me. I could have had 220V put in cheaply when I had my shop built but I did not because after several decades of doing this, I know I do not need a 220V tool.