New General or Powermatic

[cecil dean]

Looking to purchase my first cabinet table saw. Looking at a General 2hp at $1100. or a PM 1.75hp at $2000. Is the PM worth an addition $900 or should I save the money. I know that brand name is worth something but I do not have the extra cash for just that.

[Jesse Busenitz]

What model of PM is it? I'm a big fan of the older 66's and have two. I assume you are look at new, and maybe you're set on that but if you don't mind doing a little work, some great deals can be found on PM 66's or Delta Unisaws.

[Jim Hill]

Cecil,
I've had the original General 650, left tilt for some time (before the riving knife edition) I've been very pleased with it, but am considering selling it to get a Sawstop.

[Frank Pratt]

General used to make some truly great machinery. Then came along General International & the Canadian made product gradually disappeared. In my table saw shopping odyssey I found the current General stuff to be about on par with rest of the value oriented Asian stuff. It's OK, but the quality, fit & finish isn't that great. Powermatic is much better than General. For me it was between Powermatic PM2000 & SawStop PCS. I got the SawStop.

[richard poitras]

If you are looking at new and from a price point Grizzly may be something to consider. To me the Powermatic’s just ant what they use to be and are overpriced for what they are now. But that’s just my option..and I have not seen one of the newer Generals.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

Check out Fine Woodworking's review of Table Saws from back in 2006. I agree with them that the General is every bit as good as the PM 66.

[scott spencer]

Based on the price points and HP info given, I'm assuming one is a General International 50-200R and the other the PM1000. Even though both have cabinet mounted trunnions, neither of these are true industrial cabinet saws. The biggest difference is the structure and robustness of the trunnions, and horsepower. Check the schematics closely....the trunnion brackets are much smaller and bolt to the center of the cabinet struts as opposed to the corners. It's also worth noting that neither have much in common with their venerable ancestors the PM66/PM2000 and General 350/650. Both are good full featured Asian made hybrids in full enclosures... they're just not the industrial bruisers of old that folks like to compare them to. The PM offers the better fence IMO, but I don't feel as though it's worth a $900 premium. The GI uses a vertical elevation thread vs a swing arm.

If you have 220v, the Grizzly G0690 and G1023RL are in the same price range...both are these are industrial cabinet saws. (You may need 220v for the GI anyway)

Here's the guts of the PM1000:



(this is a pic of the Laguna Fusion for comparison...it's more similar to the PM1000)



Here's the guts of the G1023RL:

[Clay Fails]

I was in the same place a few years back and narrowed it down to the PM, Delta, and SS. I can't recall the models of the PM and Delta right now, but after carefully looking at them all, I concluded the SS Industrial cabinet saw (ICS) was the beefiest build of them all, and the safety feature was just an added bonus. I purchased the Saw Stop ICS and never looked back............

[Mike Cutler]

Cecil

I own the predecessor to the General you,are looking at. I have the 50-220M1. It's a very nice saw, but if I had it to do again, I wouldn't buy it. It's taken everything I've thrown it's way, but I want a bigger, heavier, more powerful saw. No good reason. I just want one.
If you're willing to drop $1200.00- $2000.00 on a cabinet saw, there are more powerful cabinet saws out there. Go used and you can buy a cabinet saw that you'll own for life. There's an Oliver slider in the classifieds that could be a serious consideration, if it's still for sale.

[roger wiegand]

The current issue of FWW has an overview of the saws in this class. (It's not really a review, but you might find it useful)

The article is amusing for those who participate in one of the ever-popular electrical debate on what to call standard north American voltage by using every possible combination of 110/115/120/220/230/240 to describe the motors involved. Makes you wonder if they have an editor.

[Erik Manchester]

Cecil,

The new General International saws are not the same as General Canada saws which are very well built but no longer made/sold.

General Intl saws are more like the Grizzly saws that are available.

Decide what features are must-have, and what are nice-to-have before going too far as the budget may dictate/limit your new options.

Lots of great used eqpt out there if you don't need shiny and are willing to invest some sweat equity.

Not all of the newest safety features are available on these older units so if a riving knife is a must you will most likely be looking at something fairly new.

Sawstop are great saws, but they don't come cheap. I don't own one, but cannot say I never will. My old General 350 does what I need for now.

Good luck on your search.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

If the General was made in Canada, jump on it.

[cecil dean]

I think I will start looking for an older PM66 or a unisaw. I would like to thank everyone for the information. It is nice to be able to ask and get so much help.

[roger wiegand]

I think I will start looking for an older PM66 or a unisaw.

Excellent choice! I've used my PM66 for 25 years now and don't expect to ever have to change.

[Rick Fisher]

I would buy a decent used 3hp or 5hp Cabinet saw over a new 2hp saw .