Tannewitz Table Saw Advice

[Matt Hutchinson]

Hello, I usually hang out in the turner forum, and I am looking for some advice. I am hoping you all might be able to tell me whether this tablesaw is a good purchase. I am trying to get a woodturning/woodworking business off the ground, and I have very limited equipment. I am in the process of acquiring more tools, and though this might be a little overkill, the price seems good. Opinions? Pros and cons? Thanks.

http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/tls/704840554.html

Hutch

P.S. I e-mailed the seller and he said it is a tilting arbor saw, but he doesn't know the specs on the motor.

[Jamie Buxton]

Is it 3-phase? (Likely, I think.) Do you have 3-phase?

[Joe Jensen]

They are acknowledged to the king of cabinet style saws. I suspect it's physically larger than you realize. Unless you were doing a lot of work with 4-5" thick stock, I think it would be way overkill. Having said that, I suspect a replacement is $10-15K...joe

[Simon Dupay]

All I know is that is one of the best table saws out there you won't ever want to replace it.

[Peter Quinn]

Can't offer much specific advise except if you buy it, make sure the floor in your shop is very solid, and you will need more than two friends to lift it!

[Matt Hutchinson]

Yes, I figure that it is HUGE. I have seen a number of large saws, and I think it will fit nicely in the right stall of my garage. Honestly, it's such a nice saw, I know it would never need to be replaced, and it is hard to pass up. If I do purchase it, I figure I will be able to resell it fairly easily if needed.

As far as the phase goes, I don't have 3 phase, but I would find a way to afford a rotary phase converter if I got it. Because I am still purchasing tools, a rotary converter would give me the flexibility to continue to buy industrial equipment if I desired. But finances are very limited...

Hutch

[Joe Jensen]

Hutch, sounds like you are prepared for the size. Given that, I say go for it. If nothing else, clean it up and sell it for $3K to buy whatever you want

[Rob Russell]

Hutch,

If you're up for the 3-phase route - once you have that problem solved (and a rotary phase convertor is 1 good solution) - you'll be able to pickup other industrial quality machinery at lower cost than the single-phase versions.

IMO

Rob

[Matt Hutchinson]

Rob and Joe, that's kinda what I am thinking.

As far as phase conversion solutions, the main reason I would try for the rotary is what Rob said, future machine purchases.

And Joe, I am trying to figure out why it's selling for so low. The seller doesn't seem to know very much about it, so I am guessing that it wasn't used by him. I plan on playing with the machine in person, and then I will know if there is a catch.

[Jeff Duncan]

A couple thoughts on the Tanny, they are certainly workhorses and great saws for certain things. I've spent a fair amount of time on one and can't say anything bad about them, however they are certainly not for everyone.
As said already they do require 3 phase and a good amount of floor space, they also require larger blades, not a bad thing, but you'll be spending more $$$ for every blade you buy including dado sets. They won't allow you to use the many aftermarket accessories that fit your standard Uni style cabinet saw. It also will likely be lacking any safety equipment. And there is a chance that it''s been used hard, that's what they are designed for, and may need repairs.
When I had access to the Tanny we also had several Uni's, a 66', and an old Oliver available. The only time we used the Tanny was for ripping large quantities of stock where we would bolt a power feed and run stuff all day. It's a beast of a saw, but for that reason it was also not the first choice for most guys when doing day to day cuts. For that the 66 was first choice followed by the Uni's.
Lastly don't expect it to be an easy saw to unload, there are always Tanny's floating around for sale b/c they are not nearly as desirable to the masses as the smaller saws. That may be the reason this saw is selling so low, b/c there's just not a lot of buyers for them right now. You may be able to turn it around and resell it for $3k if it's in great shape and you find the right buyer at the right time. Then again you may be holding on to it for quite a while if you decide to sell.
Anyway those are just a few of my thoughts, good luck with whatever you decide to do.
JeffD

[Steven Wilson]

Matt, what are you planing on doing with that saw? What is it going to do for your business? How does it fit in with your production processes? If you're going to buy it for a business then it needs to fullfil a purpose. If I want to cut thick stock for turning and such then I would look for a large Bandsaw and a 14-16" jointer. It would be a neat saw to have just wondering for what though.

[Matt Hutchinson]

Jeff and Steve, you both bring up good points. But that's part of the problem with figuring out whether or not to buy the saw.....I don't know what I will be needing it for. I would be using it mostly as a regular everyday cabinet saw, but I want to specialize in architectural turning. I don't know how often I will be needing to saw large chunks of wood, but I have already had a couple jobs that could have been accomplished easier if I had a large saw. It's tough to figure out. I also do a lot of large bowl turning. Maybe it does make more sense to invest in a super bandsaw.

But I keep coming back to one thing....cost. I am having difficulty firguring out if it's more cost effective to buy this saw, get a phase converter, and be able to buy more 3 phase equipment OR if the cost of obtaining accessories will offset any benefits.

(In my high school shop I regularly used an old Oliver industrial tablesaw. It had a rack and pinion fence and I loved it. If this saw's fence is as nice as that one, it will be hard to pass up.)

Another thing.... do you think there are any common procedures that would be more difficult with a machine like this? Thanks for the input.

Hutch

[Cary Falk]

I have seen some pretty nice ones of these restored on the OWWM. They do have a coolness factor. I would consider parts availability if this is for a business. I rebuilt UNI but would have not taken it on had the network of used parts been there. Even then it was nerve wracking tring to locating a cheap part. I think the price is a little high (for me)but it does say OBO.

[Steven Wilson]

Matt, for large chunks of wood I would love to have a 36" bandsaw sporting a 1.5-2" Lennox Trimaster. It's surprising how well bandsaws can rip wood accurately. Now, an old Northfield, Tannawitz, Oliver or other large bandsaw coupled with a large aircraft carrier jointer, and a beast of a planer will be able to surface any large chunk of wood you can to throw at them - better than a tablesaw. If you're looking at obtain old big iron then investing in a good rotary phase converter would be the ticket as almost all of these machines are three phase. As for the tablesaw, I'm sure it would operate as well as the more pedestrian Unisaw's and PM66's however you may want to install a different fence depending on how you like to work. If you were wanting to do cabinets then I might consider the Tannawitz or a sliding table saw.

[Simon Dupay]

I would at least go and check it out and see if it the right saw for you.