I’m in the market for a Table Saw, new or used… I only have 350 US dollars to work with…. any suggestions? Any comparison articles you know about?
Ah, and since my wife will be helping me carry this beast in and out of my shed, it should be fairly portable.
Brian
Replies
It's going to be pretty hard to get a contractor's saw for $350 unless you go used or go Grizzly. I'd suggest a good set of casters for moving it in and out of your shed.
The other possibility would be a Ryobi (3000, I think?)
Be careful when looking at on-line catalogs in this price range -- many of the saws listed will be direct-drive saws, rather than belt/motor-driven. That might be the best way to go, who knows, given your budget, but you want to make the decision knowingly, not by default. You can put a real good sawblade on one of those Delta direct-drive saws that actually has a reasonable table with it and get some darned good cuts.
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Hi Brian,
The Ryobi BT3100 is $299 at HD and from what I understand the accessory kit is free at the moment. The accessory kit consists of casters, router mounting stuff plus router fence and some other stuff I can't remember. For the price it's a great deal. The saw itself is a bit different from the others you will see, but it is quite accurate and the fence is very good on all I've seen.
Ken
Brian,
At that price point your probably going to find your best selection in contractor portable table saws...new and used. As Forestgirl said, the most important thing is making your purchase 'Knowingly'. In other words, the pluses and minuses of each option at that price.
If you buy something that doesn't quite meet your needs from an accuracy/quality standpoint the aftermarket solutions can be quite pricey. Likewise, if you buy something that does not have the functional utility you need it can force you to buy addtional machines/tools to accomodate the shortcommings. So, for instance, my little portable TS could do some nice work but, with a miter slot that would not accomodate anything ...and only 5-6" of table in front of blade...and the arbor would not accept dado blades...I felt it was very inadequate and bought a cabinet saw.
On the other hand, take a look at Rob Millard's Philadelphia Pie Crust Table 1760 in the gallery....he works 5-6 day a week in his shop..used the TS once in four months...and hangs it on the wall when done. The man has been able to find workarounds for his TS shortcommings..its called talent...lol
I sent you an e-mail about a used saw you might be interested in if you are near the Buffalo area.
Tony
Another option: both Lowes and HD have the Delta 36-600 for about $300. It's a 1 1/2 hp belt-driven table saw with a cast iron top. It's smaller and lighter than a contractor's saw, but much more stable than a benchtop. With a sharp, thin-kerf blade, it has all the power I need. Good luck.!
Brian,
I used a BT-3000 for 10 plus years. Recently sold it because I out grew it but it was a great saw. I understand that there is a new model with a lot of updates now and a very reasonable price.
Here's a web site that has all kind of information on it.
http://www.bt3central.com/bt3k.asp
Otherwise look for a used saw or go to Grizzly.
Len
Here's a link to a comparision test of 10" portable saws. http://www.toolsofthetrade.net/articles/showarticle.asp?articleID=1580&position=2&type=article&partID=1 If you can stretch your budget a wee bit, the Bosch 4000 occasionally goes on sale for less than $400(US)- it would be my first pick among the portable saws, budget permitting. If you're near a DeWalt or Porter Cable factory service center, check them out. They sometimes have reconditioned saws with a new tool warranty that's within your budget. Tool Crib/Amazon also carries recon equipment- availability varies. Grizzly is running a special on the 1022 http://www.grizzly.com/products/item.cfm?itemnumber=G1022SM. It seems like a lot of saw for the money but portability may be an issue. I have no experience with the 1022, perhaps others can comment. As for used, keep your eyes open ........... you never know what might come along.
"...used...keep your eyes open ........... you never know what might come along." Yes, this is very true. Also, it might "come along" faster if he networks a little. When I was at the Seattle WWing show (1999?maybe) I chatted with a couple of local WWing club guys, mentioning that used contractor's saws were really hard to find. One of them referred me to a framing shop owner who had just bought a PM66 and had an old blue Jet to get rid of.
I called the guy, went out to visit, and got the saw for free. Motor was dead, got a new motor for $175. Trunnions were badly out of parallel, I couldn't figure it out, so paid a Jet service guy $60 to tweak the stretcher bars, and he threw in 2 cast iron wings for $30 more.
It was talking with people that got me that saw. Hardly ever see contractor's saws in the papers around here.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I've noticed that a lot of people have recomended Grizzly as a low cost option. What can you (or anyone else) tell me about this company?
Brian,
As I mentioned before I sold my BT-3000. What I didn't mention is, I bought a Grizzly 1023S cabinet saw. It's the equivalent of a Unisaw. (I said equivalent.) I don't want to start the debate over which cabinet saw is better.
I am very happy with my Grizzly. The finish of the saw was good and it was accurate without having to go through to much fuss. It runs great. My neighbor has a drill press made by Grizzly and he is happy with it as well.
Grizzly imports their machines from the East. They do a good job cleaning up their castings. Their customer service, (at least in my experience) has been very good. Any problems I have had (minor ones) were quickly taken care of.
I would log onto their web site and take a look around.
http://www.grizzlyindustrial.com/
Hope this helps,
Len
I bought a Grizzley 8 inch jointer and was so happy with it that I've bought a whole bunch of stuff from them.. nothing has made me disappointed, and I intend to continue buying from them as long as their service is so excellant and their prices are so competive..
go to grizzley.com check 'em out..
Grizzly is a catalog-only tool company http://www.grizzly.com that ships directly to customers and has no dealers. They produce both hobby equipment and industrial equipment. I have a Grizzly bandsaw and would love (love) to have that 8" jointer. They have a showroom in Bellingham, WA (which side of Canada are you in?) and one or two back east. You could ask for their catalog -- it'll give you lots to think about!
Not all of their tools are great, but many of them are excellent buys for the $$, the 8" jointer and the 1023S cabinet saw are two excellent examples. Their motor/belt driven contractor's saw is regular $325 plus shipping. This time of year, they have a sale going, so you could go to their web site and see what it's selling for now into September.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Grizzly has been around for 20 years and people that I know that have their equipment (cabinet saw, jointer, planer) have been well pleased. Grizzly can give you references to people that own the equipment you're interested in- might be worth a call.
Check out Ebay Auctions or garage sales in your area. You probably can find a nice Craftsman.
Boris
"Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
Garage sales, yes, eBay no (IMHO). First of all, good deals are rare (see the other eBay thread where they talk about how people frequently [usually?] pay near-new prices for used tools). Second of all, it doesn't make sense for a relative newbie (Brian, is this correct?) to be trying to buy a large power tool through a venue like eBay rather than from a tool dealer or manufacturer who can provide answers to his questions and support when he needs it.
I'm not anti-eBay -- I both sell and (occasionally) buy on eBay, but it is not the be-all and end-all of purchasing and there are lots of situations where it's the less desirable place to shop.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Last year I helped my brother buy a Delta Unisaw for $400 from eBay. $400 plus extra blades, moveable stand, upgraded fence, outfeed table. Guy died and widow was selling it no reserve. It was a local seller, so no freight and we would see it before we bid. This was a Unisaw from the 1940's and had the beautiful Art-Deco Delta Logo. It was only a two horse 110 motor, and upgrading to 3 horse 240 would have been cost prohibitive, but a really nice saw for cheap cheap. This saw would have sold for over $1,000 anywhere else.
I am not saying to buy every saw on eBay. But there is no harm checking it out.
Regards,
Boris
"Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
If money is that tight (and you have the patience to deal with Harbor Freight) take a look at this one: http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=46813
I know a couple of folks that have that one and claim it is a nice saw. Certainly the cast iron wings and better fence are a leg up on the Grizzly.
Use item code 46813-1MHA and you can get it for $299.99.
Would beat listening to a universal motor scream.
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