Table Saw Recommendations

[Strider]

I am new to Wood Working and I am trying to build up my wood shop. The next major tool I want to purchase is a table saw and I am looking for some recommendations. I have looked at Grizzly, SHop Fox and Jet. I am looking for something that is affordable since I am new but I won't outgrow in 5 years and won't have to worry about it being a cheapy and dieing on me. Any suggestions?

[Winfield]

I bought the heavy duty Rigid table saw at Home Depot and it works great, it was around $600. I bought it mainly because the convenience factor of just driving down to Home Depot and picking it up when i was ready to buy, it works great and has alot of useful gadgets. It has wheels on it to roll around and its a heavy machine, you'll need a garage or you have to assemble it in whatever room you want it in because its not going through the door, heheheheehe

[Strider]

Haha, cool, thanks for the feedback, someone else had recommended Rigid to me as well, I will have to check it out.

[john_p]

i have a ryiobi (spelling) from lowes and it is accurate to forever. but it does not have a slot in the top for anything. most jigs need one. the sliding table makes up fot most applicaions. if i had room i would already have a second. my lathe is rigid and a well built tool. if you've looked at JET, you've seen the best. If i started over my shop wood be all jet white and dewault yellow....
if you can't decide, buy the most expensive.. sorta like a wife, your going to live with it for a while..and it will hurt you if you don't treat it right.

[ElRay]

I'll add another vote for the Ryobi BT3100 (available at Home Depot). For about $300 you get features and accuracy that can't be matched in saws costing three to four times the cost. If you're interested, lurk at Sam Conder's Site (http://www.bt3central.com) for a while, or join and ask questions. Also Jim Frye has written a good article (http://www.bt3central.com/files/whybuybt3k.PDF) on selecting a new table saw.

Ray

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

Strider, I don't know where to begin but I will try to sum it up and be brief. I think you are going to make the biggest purchase and the most useful woodworking tool you can own. Now I don't know how much wood you are planning on cutting but if I were you I would stay away from those direct drive table top saws. You want a saw that is belt driven and at least 1&1/4 hp motor. You can go with a contractor's type saw. These are all the ones with the motor hanging out the back end. The dewalt is the only one that is enclosed without going into a cabinet saw which is for serious woodworkers. I own a delta contractor saw and own quite a few other delta tools and recomend them highly. What ever saw you decide on I would make sure the tabletop is true and by this I mean it is flat and doesn't have dished out areas on it. You can check that by taking a straght edge of some sort like a 4foot level or other long piece of metal that is straight.and lining it up from end to end and sliding it down the entire length of the top while eyeing under the straight edge. If you see daylight it has got a flaw in it. Look for a saw that has a decent fence and decent miter gauage. You can always upgrade at a later time. Run the blade up and down, tilt the blade back and forth. Make sure they are smoothe. Oh so many things, well check them all out and Good Luck! JTTHECLOCKMAN

[OldtimerJTD]

I couldn't agree more with JT. I purchased my Delta Contractors saw 10 years ago and it still performs just like it was new. I did buy a very good blade for it ($100)and that makes all the difference in the world, no matter what saw you choose to purchase. Do your research and compare all the models that you are thinking about.
Good Luck!
Oldtimer

[ElRay]

Originally posted by JTTHECLOCKMAN
You want a saw that is belt driven and at least 1&1/4 hp motor. You can go with a contractor's type saw. These are all the ones with the motor hanging out the back end. The dewalt is the only one that is enclosed without going into a cabinet saw which is for serious woodworkers.

This is not quite correct. The BT3100 is belt driven (multi-v, like the serpentine belt in most newer cars), the motor isn't hanging out the back (a major source of torque on the trunions and an additive factor to run out), the blade is shrouded inside the cabinet and the shroud ends in a standard shop vac dust port. The saw has phenomenal dust collection. Also, because of the way the belt runs, you have enough depth of cut with a 10" blade to cut through a 4x4 in one pass. I am not aware of another contractor-style saw that can make that claim.

Regarding horsepower, don't believe what's printed (especially if it's a Craftsman). What is often quoted is not the actual running horsepower but is calculated from either the peak current draw at blade lock-up (i.e. right before the circuit breaker pops) or the no-load speed and the blade lock-up torque. Unfortunately, you'll have to look at the rated amperage. That won't account for any ineffeciencies in the motor, but all motors with the same rated current draw will have essentially the same horsepower. For a 15 amp draw, this will be a maximum of about 2-1/2HP. Assuming about 80% - 90% efficiency, you're looking at about 2 HP.

Ray

[ElRay]

Originally posted by john_p
i have a ryiobi (spelling) from lowes and it is accurate to forever. but it does not have a slot in the top for anything. most jigs need one. the sliding table makes up fot most applicaions.

First, this is only an issue if you plan to buy all your jigs and not make any. Visit the "Jigs, Fixtures & Info" section of Sam's Site (http://www.bt3central.com/) to see what people have done. Second, if you really need a standard miter slot, it's a piece of cake to make an inset table with a miter slot (Advantage Track sells them). You can also buy the accessory kit, which has a Miter Slot Table or find them for sale on eBay. The only thing I've "wanted" the miter slot for would be my BenchDog featherboards; but that's because I already had them before I purchased my BT3100. There are plenty of ways to attach featherboards if you were starting from scratch.

Finally, don't discount the Sliding Miter Table (SMT). It's not just a miter gauge replacement. The level of accuracy and repeatability you'll get with the SMT is much greater than you'll achieve with a standard miter gauge. Plus, the amount of travel is far, far greater, so you'll be able to cut (reasonably sized) panels without having to resort to any kind of a panel cutting jig.

Ray