PM66 or Unisaw for Xmas. Help me decide
eddiehaskell
| Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on
My girlfriend today informed me that she thinks I need a new tablesaw for Xmas and wanted to know if I wanted a PM 66 or a Unisaw! I”m still trying to recover from the shock! Anyway, I’d be thrilled with either one but just wanted some opinions. By the way, I’m a serious DIYer and am now beginning to turn out some pretty good furniture. Thanks.
Replies
Does she have a sister?
I've had a '66' since '92; it's a flawless beast!
lv
I have owned both. I used my Unisaw for about 20 years. Through that time I owned a restoration business and high end antique reproduction business with five guys working for me. Since then I realized its too tough to make the kind of money I want with the kind of hours I want, and now just do it for myself. In the past 10 years I have owned a P66, so I feel somwhat qualified. Having said all that my advice to you is to decide if you want heads or tails.! Just kidding. My observations are as follows: The P66 is more "heavy duty" overall. Casting quality on both is about the same. Accuracy is equal especially w/ any of the high tec fence systems.I am currently using the Powermatic positive lock fence (I forgot what they call it). On, both I have the 3 h.p which fufills my needs.If I had to spacifically identify any difference, it would be in the tilting arbor. I think the Unisaw is smother and require less effort , it seems to be less prone to worm gears clogging than the P66, and it seems easier to vacum. Oher than those idosyncracies, like I said, toss a coin.I still have my Unisaw and it sits waiting for me to ship it to my son in Colorado. By the way for all those who have a p66, any suggestions on getting mine to evacuate most of the saw dust ?? Unfortunatlu mine "doesn't suck".
On any table saw, you need to seal the air leaks that keep the dust going in the desired direction. "Think like the wind, Grasshopper". You have negative pressure at the port on the saw swhere the hose attaches. You also have sawdust being thrown in by the blade in a particular direction, usually down and toward the rear of the cabinet. If you have air leaks at the middle of the cabinet(like where the arc of the blade height adjuster is, you'll only redirect the dust from the middle down to the bottom. The rest will go where it will. If the only place for the air to go is from top down and creates a situation of negative pressure at the blade slot and the rear where the blade guard moves with the rest being very small leaks, you'll collect more dust. I sealed the gaps where the table meets the cabinet and all other holes below the top. If the blade is too low and I'm cutting particle board, I get dust over the top of the material. If the blade is high enough, I see very little of it. If I make the stoopid decision to leave the DC off because "I'm only making a couple of cuts", the time wasted by cleanup is nore than enough of a reminder to hook it up the next time. I went out this AM (20 degrees and damp) and made 4 cuts on a particle board shelf and had to move my truck out, move the saw, move some other material and hook up the DC to the saw. It was worth hooking up the DC. I WANT A HEATER IN MY GARAGE WITH A THERMOSTAT!!!!!! c'mon, anybody? little help here!
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
She's a keeper! Of those two saws, I'd pick the PM66.
LV,
I debated between the two and ended up buying the PM66 (5 HP single phase with the Biesemeyer fence) earlier this year. Fantastic machine. I'm sure that I would be happy with a Unisaw as well, but the 66 seemed a bit heavier duty. You may want to look into the PM2000 which was recently introduced. It has a riving knife and casters built into the base. It is comparable in price to the 66.... Haven't read any reviews, etc... just want to let you know it;s out there.
Cheers,
M
The new PM 2000 was listed as one of the "Top Ten" tools of the year in the Feb. 06 issue of Workbench. They talk about the retracting casters, the quick-release blade guard, the riving knife, a locking arbor for blade changes, and an internal blade guard and hose that inprove dust collection.
And she wants a Jaguar XK?
I think they start a about 70 grand...
Boy, your in trouble now! Geeee.. Lets see.. What to get her?
To me either one would be fine.. Maybe she like one color better than the other?
HAPPY HOLIDAY!
Hi I am in the same predicament you are I have been trying to narrow which table saw to buy. I recently went to the woodworks show in fort wash PA. I put my hands on both the powermatic and the unisaw after that there is no way I would buy the unisaw the powermatic is much smoother all around every knob or wheel I turned just moved like it was sup to. the finish on the cast iron is litterally night and day the pm feels like a sheet of glass, and the unisaw felt like 80grit sand paper. pm also comes with a baldor motor which is probably one of the best money can buy! In my opinion the 4-500 dollar dif is well worth the money. Another difference the trunion on the pm is machined from one solid piece of iron. should have less vibration. Now I only wish grizzly was there so I could put my hands on that saw and compare.
the finish on the cast iron is litterally night and day the pm feels like a sheet of glass, and the unisaw felt like 80grit sand paper
If you're talking about the table surface, ... really? 80 grit? That is literally unbelievable.My goal is for my work to outlast me. Expect my joinery to get simpler as time goes by.
maybe not 80grit but a huge difference it was not really smoothe at all
Grizzly has a showroom in Muncie, PA.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
yeah i know but it is about a 5 hour drive from where I am, I would still like to make a trip up there though.
Guys-
Thanks for all the opinions. You're right, she is a keeper, and I just wanted to tell you that this Tuesday I will become the proud father of a brand new 3HP Powermatic 66. I can hardly believe it. after a lot of years with a benchtop and later a decent contractor's saw. Looked at both real carefully on Friday and basically came to the same conclusion many of you did. Both are quality, most of us would be very happy with either a Unisaw or a 66, but I just felt that the overall integrity of the way the 66 is built really stands out. So my local Woodworker's Emporium here in Las Vegas will be dropping it off on Tuesday, and I'll get to spend some leisurely time this week setting it up. And yes, she does want me to build her an armoire and matching chest of drawers for the bedroom. It will be my pleasure. Thanks guys, and Merry Christmas.
Ed
It's hard for me to imagine what you must be feeling like right now! Hope you don't mind if I live just a bit vicariously through your post...Merry Christmas!
Congratulations;
You won't go wrong on the saw. The assembly instructions are not the best. Seems to be a lapse in assembling the the fence. I was missing some bolts that I finally got from the factory. After several years I needed to hold a piece of plastic pipe for an unrelated project so stuck it in that rectangular pipe in front. You guessed it! Out came a sack of bolts that had been years earlier. So if you need the bolts, I probably could still find them. Set up right, it is a nice smooth running saw.
Just to clarify: Muncie is in Indiana. Grizzly is in Muncy, PA. Both towns named after the Moncie Indians who went to Indiana after being driven out of PA. Carry on...Rick in Muncy.
SUre bust me on my furst speling arror sinse I was a kidd. At least I got the state right. And my intentions were pure."I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
Edited 12/22/2005 4:05 pm by highfigh
THere ya go. Just hometown pride is all. Rick
And you probably don't want people think you live in Indiana, right?
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
HELL NO!! I'm no hoosier! Like the Colts though. Rick
You better marry that girl before you find her giving away saws to other guys:-)
I've had a PM66 for about 8-9 yrs now and love it. All the setup adjustments I made when I first bought it have remained in place and I haven't ever needed to reset anything. The PM Accufence on mine is sturdy and doesn't seem to deflect any under load. I must say though that I think the versatility of the Delta Unifence gives the fence a slight edge. I haven't used the Delta though so I can't comment on other aspects of it. If you're not in a real big hurry though, I'd also advise waiting until the new Powermatic is out. I read a lot of good buzz about the saws features and I think it is supposed to be out Jan or Feb 06 ?? Even if you still decide to go with a PM66 you might be able to find better prices if dealers are trying to move them out to make room for the new ones.
If you build it he will come.
I have a PM 66 but having worked on machines for the last 25 years I wouldn't waste the money on it. I'd go for a dedicated slider. Another option is the Grizzly cabinet saw and an excaliber sliding table and you would still be ahead of the game. A dedicated slider is nice becasue you could still use a moble base, not so with most retrofit sliders. The Grizzly saws aren't bad. I know of a few pro shops with them and I was pretty impressed at the quality for the money.
Had an old Unisaw for five years, liked the saw hated the fence. Bought a PM 66 20 years ago loved the saw, hated the fence. Dick Biesmeyer saved me. I bought one of the early Biesmeyer fences for my 66 Loved the saw and the fence. Used it for 20 years and just replaced the arbor bearings (easy job) and end up giving the rebuilt saw to my son (he grew up with that saw) and bought a Laguna TS. It is the best saw of the three with the best fence( biesmeyer clone). It is about the same price as the new PM 66 (about $2500) Baldor 5 HP but I got the scoring attachment ($500 extra) Great for plywood. I still love that PM66 so I dont think you can go wrong with that saw. The Laguna is a better saw, takes a 12" blade, better dust collection, arbor lock for blade changing, steel extention table with heavy duty legs. If you are trying to save money I've used on of those Bridgewood 10" saws and they are very nice for the money. (Taiwan motor) I don't know anything about their longevity.
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