Radial arm saw question.

[Brian Greb]

I have an oldish Craftsman RAS and I have only used it like 5 or 6 times since I got my TS and SCMS. My question is; "Is it time that I should think about selling the beast for some shop space". Are there any special functions that I'll miss later? Any thoughts y'all might have are greatly appreciated.

[Brian Greb]

[cough]
"...is ...Is... ...Is this thing on?"
[cough, cough]

by the thundering sounds of crickets I assume y'all think I should ditch the beast for more space...

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Mike Ruggeri]

I was in the same place as you a few years ago. I sold mine and haven't missed it at all.

Mike

[Mike Circo]

My RAS is the most used tool in my shop.

First I hate the screaming noise of the universal motor in a CMS. The smooth hum of the induction motor is more to my liking. So, what you will miss later is your hearing! :D

I've cut big triangles on the RAS I don't think could be done as easily and safely other ways.

I use mine a LOT with the stacked dado set in it. Other ways to do dados, but for narrow pieces it is a whiz.

Working big timbers for outdoors, construction or big stuff (like my bench) I used the RAS for half laps, big dadoes, plowing out grooves, and making big tenons. Cutting small pieces is safe as I can clamp stuff to the fence and keep my hands far, far away.

Truthfully my favorite tool in the shop. I have two and want to upgrade my old Sears some day.

M

[Paul Wunder]

I had a high quality 220V DeWalt RAS for almost 20 years. Good for crosscuts but not really much else. Space hog. Dust polluter. Bought a real table saw three years ago. Sold RAS for $300 last year and never looked back.

[Loren Hedahl]

I have two, a turret head Delta and a light weight aluminum arm 9 inch Craftsman.

The 9 inch I mount on a DeWalt miter saw stand for portability. For framing and building decks, it is great.

The Delta is on a sand with large casters. It has a habit of spewing sawdust everywhere, so I only use it when the weather allows me to roll it outside. When it is, it is my favorite saw for everything except breaking down plywood. With a sharp rip blade of a low hook angle it performs the ripping function to my satisfaction. With a cross cut blade with a zero or negative hook angle I'm happy with its performance.

So I guess it all boils down to how you want to make small pieces of wood from larger pieces!

[Jeff Bratt]

See this - http://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=137217 - and many other threads... there's no consesus - it's an entirely personal choice...

[Clarence Miller]

I have an older DeWalt (it's still the old blue color). It shares a fence with my CMS. I don't use it much but when I am cutting 1x 12s it's my goto baby. I bought it at an auction for $60 to mount a dado blade on for shelving uprights where I was able to see the blade cutting from the top instead of having it face down on a ts. I wouldn't part with mine but with it sharing the fence as it does it fits in the space.

[Glen Butler]

My RAS is the most used tool in my shop.

First I hate the screaming noise of the universal motor in a CMS. The smooth hum of the induction motor is more to my liking. So, what you will miss later is your hearing! :D



A lot of non industrial RAS's have universal motor and I believe that craftsmans has a universal motor. So smooth hum is out the door. Ditch the thing.

[Paul Hingco]

I have a RAS and really like it for long crosscuts and for dados. Otherwise I use my Dewalt slider. I don't use it too often so I'm still debating on keeping it. My my complaint is that its a rather large footprint in a small shop.

[Paul Hingco]

It has a habit of spewing sawdust everywhere, so I only use it when the weather allows me to roll it outside.


Have you tried adding dust collection to it? I got my Delta used and the guy I got it from made a funnel like device (made of sheet metal) that was attached behind the arm. It by no means caught everything (especially dust coming from port on blade cover) but it got most of it.

[Don Selke]

I use mine on all my projects along with the table saw and would not think of parting with it. Different strokes for different folks I guess

[Van Huskey]

If you don't use it you don't like it or just haven't played with it enough. If you want to sell it check out the recall, if it is on the recall you can either get $100 or get the kit and spruce it up before the sale.

[Barry Wilson]

The chop saws also have intruded quite a little on it's territory. The earlier model craftsman like mine have a stronger arm than the newer models had. So it retains it's accuracy a little bettter. I really never use mine much anymore for some reason.

[Bill Bixby]

I prefer dadoes on the RAS to the table saw (especially with plywood) due to the way that the blade pushes the material down on the table.

[Bill Leonard]

I recently purchased an older Dewalt RAS at auction for $40.00. Put it in the shop and tinkered with it until I was happy it was set up true. Used it a couple of times for crosscuts and miters. Great saw, great addition to the shop. I like it better than my SCMS. I believe it complements the TS, not a replacement, but a nice addition. Different strokes for different folks. By the way, I put my SCMS on the shelf.

[Myk Rian]

Brian;
Comparing the Craftsman RAS to my DeWalt, I would get rid of the Cman. If you find you want a RAS, look for a pre 1962 DeWalt. You would be amazed at the difference in build. They come up on CL all the time. Mine was $100.
Here's my 1958 MBF that I have spent the last 2 weeks restoring. It's a tank.
The table is still being built, but will be installed later today. I'll match this saw against any Cman ever built.

[David Bridgeman]

I am in the same boat. I had limited space and rarely used the RAS after the TS and CMS. So recently I disassembled it and am storing it under my CMS station. I can't seem to let it go. I used it for many years before getting the other saws. I guess after a while (unless I get more space) I will have to let it go.

[Bill White]

Ya ain't gettin' my RAS.
I've NEVER seen a RAS that didn't have an induction motor. Guess that they're out there, but my C'man sure doesn't have one.
Bill

[Sean Nagle]

I bought a first generation Makita SCMS in 1993. It has been a workhorse for household construction projects and for rough crosscuts. However, I never felt it had the accuracy and cut quality for fine furniture, even with a zero clearance plate and fence. Recently I decided to upgrade to a new SCMS. I looked at all the top contenders, but I observed too much flex in all the sliding mechanisms. I ended up buying a used 12" Delta turret model RAS instead of the SCMS.

I'm no newbie when it comes to setting up and maintaining machinery, but I can see why RAS's have such a bad reputation. There are 4 critical adjustments that must be made and often times remade several times before the system as a whole is properly dialed in and this assumes that the sliding mechanism is rock solid. The tableboard and fence are integral to its accuracy and performance and need to be built accordingly. Add to this the poor mechanical design and quality of most of the newer RAS's, I can see how most people just gave up with the tool. I figure I still need to invest another full day getting my commercial-grade saw dialed in. But I can see the huge benefits that it will deliver that my SCMS never could.

As far as the argument that a RAS takes up too much space is concerned, I think it takes up less space than a SCMS. The newer SCMS models are enormous and the sliding mechanism requires considerable depth. My RAS will be used strictly for crosscutting [and primarily 90 degree cuts at that]. Ripping is all done on my tablesaw. As many have commented, the RAS and tablesaw are complementary machines. When each is optimally located within a shop, you can actually get better use of precious shop space, especially in a small shop.

There are projects that just beg for a RAS in the shop. If anyone has ever built a bed, you know that crosscutting and forming tenons in bed rails is a very tricky proposition on a tablesaw.

[Erik Christensen]

My RAS is a 12" turret Delta and it gets used a lot. As others have pointed out it does things that are much more difficult and less safe using other tools - like cutting dado's or tenon's on long stock. I have 99+% dust collection using it for most operations (I NEVER rip on it - x-cut only) but it took some work and requires a 5HP DC.

My SCMS is a festool and used for complex cuts (easier to angle in either dimension than the big RAS) and smaller production runs.

What the RAS really excels at is safe high speed production cutting - the saw & DC stay on, the arm motion is less fatiguing (straight out vs down & out/in) and the bigger table makes moving stock around much easier.

I think both are useful assuming you have the space - that said ditch the craftsman - I had one for 2 decades it is not near the productive tool a real RAS is.

[Dennis Lopeman]

I've heard a lot of horror stories. I LIKE mine and it does get used a lot. I have really only used it for cutting piece to size/length, so far. Although doing dados (slowly) sounds like a good idea too.

Yes - keep your hands WAY out of the WAY... double tripple check. Whenever I turn any of my tools on, I think of all the gruesome stuff that could happen to me if a F up.

RAS's are notorious, mine no exception, for wanting to JUMP through the wood... so I always try to apply push while pulling... it's weird. But honestly, it jumps faster than I can react.

Oh yeah - older craftsman RAS have a recall on them - you can enter your SN in and get a BRAND NEW gaurd assembly, and they send you a new table, too!! really cool...

Anyway, maybe I should be using my Cmpnd Miter Saw instead...

[James Carmichael]

Brian;
Comparing the Craftsman RAS to my DeWalt, I would get rid of the Cman. If you find you want a RAS, look for a pre 1962 DeWalt. You would be amazed at the difference in build. They come up on CL all the time. Mine was $100.
Here's my 1958 MBF that I have spent the last 2 weeks restoring. It's a tank.
The table is still being built, but will be installed later today. I'll match this saw against any Cman ever built.

Love the bronze color, Myk. What's your paint?

I might do my MBC the same.

[Jason White]

Probably only quick and dirty dadoes. Beyond that, you probably won't miss it. I don't really miss mine....much...... :(

Jason


I have an oldish Craftsman RAS and I have only used it like 5 or 6 times since I got my TS and SCMS. My question is; "Is it time that I should think about selling the beast for some shop space". Are there any special functions that I'll miss later? Any thoughts y'all might have are greatly appreciated.

[Dennis Lopeman]

Here's the link to that recall:

http://www.radialarmsawrecall.com/

I tried my SN in the web interface first and it was GOOD... so then I just called so I wouldn't be entering my personal infromation over the INternet...

They gave me NO grief. Just got my info and in a week or 2 all the new parts arrived. It really modernized my OLD (70's?) RAS... cool little lever things lifts the gaurd up and down!! I always show ppl that who come in my shop!

OH - AND IT DOES NOT MATTER THAT YOU ARE OR ARE NOT the original owner. They didn't care.

[Don Jarvie]

9" Delta 900 here. Use it for cross cuts since I can cut up to 13 inches compared to 6 on my Hitachi MS.

Put a 6 ft table next to it and it's always ready. I rarely cross cut on my table saw anymore.

[Brian Greb]

Since I only use the SOB once and a while... I wouldn't miss it.

But if I want to keep it I should think about getting the recall parts (that exposed blade scares the bejesus out of me... has since I was like 18) and dialing it in... that said I guess I could put drop leaf extensions on it and make a new rolling stand for it. That would make it's "parked" size smaller.

I do see it value for dadoes in long panels(but i can do this with a router and straight edge) and half lap, joints and tenons on long boards(I could cut these with... dare I say it ... hand tools)... I definitely don't want to have to buy a replacement further down the road.

I guess I have a lot to think about now. The big question I have to answer is how much is that 3'X4' of shop space worth.

Thanks guys I'll keep y'all up to date on my decision.

[Jeff Miller]

A lot of non industrial RAS's have universal motor and I believe that craftsmans has a universal motor. So smooth hum is out the door. Ditch the thing.




http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f32/woodfarmer/Twelve%20inch%20RAS/12ras008.jpg?t=1272070713




HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM is all I hear:D:D:D:D




JEFF:)

[Myk Rian]

Love the bronze color, Myk. What's your paint?

I might do my MBC the same.
James;
The saw is hammered copper and the base is aged copper. Both are Rust-Oleum rattle can paints. The hammered paint is a PITA to put on.
You have to keep shaking the heck out of it while spraying.

More pics are here. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?p=1407043#post1407043
Beats any C-man to heck. Here's the first miter I made with it, while making the Mr. Sawdust table for it.