From: bennett@adobe.com(Bennett Leeds)
Subject: Re: Bottom Line-Which Table Saw Is Best?
Reply-To: bennett@adobe.com
Organization: Adobe Systems Incorporated
Distribution: na
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 1992 17:41:40 GMT

Dan Schlissel writes
>... Let's concentrate on on three, Delta, Grizzly, and Powermatic
> (the big ticket item) cabinet saws.

Why just these three? There are other manufacturers of high quality cabinet 
style table saws out there (General, Inca, Lumina, Ulmia, Felder, etc.).


> I know that we may have done this before, but we
> never really came to any conclusion as to who makes the best saw.

The conclusion is that there is no "Best" tablesaw. For instance, you can get a 
dual sliding table 14" blade, 8 HP, 3-phase, panel scoring tablesaw if you 
want. But, it's not the "Best" since it costs $10,000. It also wouldn't be the 
best if you're trying to build jewelry boxes, or other small items.

Different people, with different budgets, different projects in mind, 
differently sized shops, and different work habits will prefer different 
machines. That's the real "bottom line."


>... I am getting closer and closer to replacing my Sears saw.

OK, then:

1) What kind of projects do you anticipate building? How big is your shop
   space? These questions are mostly to determine the form factor of the saw. 
   If you build guitars or jewelry boxes, you may not even want a floor 
   standing tablesaw. If you work with sheet goods often, you'll want a big 
   table surface with and large capacity rip fence. But, if your shop is
   small, you may have to compromise. Similar questions concern how thick
   and hard the stock you'll be cutting is - these help determine how much
   power you really need. Most saws are 10", but 12" and 14" saws are also
   available, as are smaller 8" saws.

2) What operations will you use the saw for? Sawing, obviously, but will
   you want to run a molding head cutter on it, or do you already own a
   shaper? Will you want to build a crosscut box or sliding table, or do
   you already own a radial arm or sliding miter saw? Since you already
   have a saw, if your shop is big enough you may want to put a dado blade
   on your older saw and leave it there, for instance. If you intend to
   raise panels on your saw, or make deep dadoes, for instance, then you'll 
   want a bigger motor to handle the deeper cuts or heavier blades. If you'll 
   just be cutting plywood, however, the bigger motor really isn't a necessity. 
   Anyway, a tablesaw can be used for more than just sawing, and you should 
   keep in mind how well the saw you buy will perform the desired operations.

3) What's your tablesaw budget? This should include saw accessories like
   rip fences, miter gauges, blade guards, and dust collection facilities.
   Most saws come with these in some form, but you may wish to upgrade them.
   Don't underestimate this: a good rip fence (that is easy to set accurately,
   rigid enough, and parallel to the blade) and a good miter gauge (one that
   doesn't have play in the slots, has a good protractor, maybe even the
   capability for adding sliding drop stops) can make poor saw tolerable and
   a mediocre saw a pleasure. The standard rip fence and miter gauge the come
   with many saws are of lower quality than the saw itself.

   All a table saw really is is a blade that spins, a mechanism to adjust 
   the blade's height and angle, and a table top to support work and jigs. 
   You can always buy or build better accessories for it.

4) Now you can look at the saws+accessories that fit your budget and
   requirements with an eye towards quality and convenience (ease of use),
   and safety.

4a) Some quality questions:
    How much runout does the arbor have? How about the arbor flanges? How
    flat is the table top? How well milled are the miter gauge slots? Are
    the slots parallel to each other? How well do the extension wings fit - are
    they flat with the table? How well does the insert fit? How good is the
    protractor on the front of the saw for setting angles? Is there a gauge
    for blade height?

    You'll need to ask similar questions for the accessories you'll be
    using: How straight is the rip fence? How accurate is the scale? How 
    well does the fence maintain parallelness across its range and when
    clamped and in use? Does the miter gauge bar fit the slot snugly?

4b) Some convenience questions:
    Is the on/off switch located in a good place? Are the blade height and
    angle adjustments easy to make? Do they lock well? How hard is it to
    change blades (eg, access to the arbor, is there an arbor lock)? Does
    the blade tilt to the side you prefer? How much table is in front of
    a fully raised blade? Are the miter slots "T" shaped? How hard is it
    to hook up a dust collector port?

    Do the same for the accessories: Can you attach holddown wheels to the
    rip fence, or will they raise the back of the fence? How easy is it to
    jig sliding fixtures onto the rip fence? How easy is it to attach 
    auxiliary wood faces to it? Does it have a micro-adjuster? Can you attach
    a wood face to the miter gauge easily? Does it have a fence with 
    adjustable sliding drop stops? Does it have a clamp?

4c) Some safety questions:
    Check out the blade guard. Does it simply meet the letter of the law,
    or is it actually something that you can live with daily? Some blade
    guards are so bad that it may actually be safer not to use them, but
    I always recommend using a guard. Some rip fence manufacturers also
    make blade guards. I consider the extra money cheap insurance for my
    fingers and eyes. The aftermarket blade guards are usually overarm
    types and so can be used for most operations (standard ones are usually 
    supported by the splitter and so can't be used for cutting grooves,
    for instance).

    A splitter behind the blade helps prevent kickback. Using feather
    boards and holddown wheels is something I also recommend. Some rip
    fences have features than enable easy mounting of holddown wheels
    or push blocks.

    A magnetic starter has the safety feature that if the power is cut off,
    the saw won't automatically restart when the power is turned back on.

5) Consider the factory warranty and parts availability issue. How long
   is the warranty? Some are as short as 90 days - some are as long as
   5 years. What doesn't the warranty cover? Are parts available from 
   many sources, or only where you bought the machine?


This should give you a good idea of what saw is right for you. I'm sure 
there are additional criteria that I've missed, but this is a good start.

- Bennett Leeds
bennett@adobe.com
"And remember this - there's no more important safety rule than to wear
these: safety glasses."