Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.
How many of you will buy a self driving car because they are safer
I have never tried a driver-less car, but I know if I buy my children a new car, I will get them one that has all the modern safety bells & whistles because: a) I can afford a safer car, and b) I want the best protection for them. Five or six years ago, you could have those features only in luxury brands, but heck, Honda and Toyota now put them on their popular models. My wife will sure love to have one of those driver-less cars as she hates driving to work in the morning.
Simon
Last edited by Jim Becker; 07-25-2017 at 7:36 PM. Reason: fixed quote tagging
We digress. BIG upgrade in safety. Lateral move or slight downgrade mechanically. Dave
There are obviously many strong opinions regarding sawstop that I just cant understand. Anyways. I recently sold my 52" platinum American made uni saw for a pcs 3hp 52 inch. I feel it has been a huge upgrade. The riving knife is great with quick change over to the guard, dust collection is awesome and the fit and finish is stellar. The mobile base works great as well. The motor starts and runs smooth as butter and the cast iron is flat as can be. All of these things I consider improvements over my old saw and would make upgrading worth the price to me. Add is a safety device not available on other saws and you have me sold. I know everyone thinks they are so great that an acceding couldn't possiable happen to them but that is foolish in my opinion. I have worked on saws my whole life and have never had an accident but I have seen one happen to a coworker, and he happened to be one of the best people I've ever worked with in fabrication. It can happen to anyone. Anyways I feel it's worth it. Then again, I look at safety ratings when buying a car for my wife to drive my kids in. I'm willing to pay for extra safety. Even if I never use it. Ymmv....
Last edited by Nick Dimov; 07-26-2017 at 3:56 AM.
I cut a lot of 1.5+ thick lumber and wouldnt want to drop down to 1.75hp. If anything, i want more than 3hp on my unisaw. Doing some quick math, this "trade" is going to cost you $600ish and 2-3 hours in labor to go get the saw and swap the motor. This is assuming you sell the unisaw for $900-1000. Seems like a trivial amount of money if it prevents an accident in your life. The positives are a sawstop holds its value much better than a unisaw. You would have a new motor for 20+ years of effortless service.
What fence does your unisaw have? If i went from a unifence to a sawstop bies, i wouldnt be happy at all. I hate my friend's sawstop fence. Truth be told, i dislike all bies fences. I loved the unifence and currently operate a VSCT fence.
I converted my 120v 1.75hp SS to 220v and it was really easy, took maybe half hour. I cut a lot of 8/4 lumber, some hard, some soft and it's never been an issue. Run the correct blade on it and the motor won't bog down. I run a Forrest WW 24T ripping blade for 8/4 lumber, Forrest WW 40T for anything less than 4/4 and Forrest 80T blade for ply and melamine. This has worked out well for me and it hasn't given me any issues nor have I ever felt the need for more power. I wouldn't say no to a 3hp SS but I wouldn't bother with swapping out the motor.
Someone had mentioned it being a pain to change the brake for a dado blade. I don't see that as an issue either. You're already changing out the blade and being a stacked dado, that takes time. What's another 60 seconds to swap out the brake going to cost you?
If I were you I would grab the PCS just because of the price. If you like it, great! If you don't, sell it for 1.5 times what you paid....
I have the 1.75 PCS and it is great for me. I have never had any other "cabinet" style saw though so I cannot compare it to the Unisaw you are using.
Missed out. Sold to another buyer. Would have been a deal at just around $1900 for the equivalent of a PCS 3hp 36" fence and I'd have a spare 1.75hp motor.
Oh well, If I don't find a used one by the time the fiance and I move, one will magically appear in boxes in the new house from the equity in my place.
I would buy it based on the price alone. If you like it better, sell your Unisaw (or better yet keep and use them both). If you don't, sell it for 1.5K!
I have the 1.75 PCS 36" and love it. But... it is the only cabinet saw I have ever had, so I really cannot compare the two.
Crap, it just hit me that i think the OP is from the Pittsburgh area, which is ME! I never search sawstop, but apparently i was asleep at the craigslist wheel on this one.
Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.