My G1023RL review

[Cary Falk]

This information is probably worth what you paid for it. I spent the day finishing up the assembly and building a side table. I ended up shifting the rail since I have a sliding table. I have about 33” of rip capacity. This is not my 1st Grizzly tool. I own a G0513X2 band saw and a 18/36 sander(purchased used).I am basing most of my comparisons to my 1970 Unisaw which I completely tore down and restored.

Shipping damage – None. I picked it up in Bellingham. I have had a bandsaw (in a pretty flimsy crate) and an 8” jointer delivered in the past without any issues. The packing seemed reasonable enough. It had a wooden pallet on the bottom, moulded Styrofoam over the top of the table with a heavy cardboard box surrounding the saw. There were plastic straps holding the box on and the table saw was bolted to the pallet. I know the packing is not as heavy duty as what the zip code saws that come with the steel frame and my G0453Z planer came on a pallet encased with plywood. Ram a forklift fork into either and you will have damage. They make it 8000 miles to the states undamaged in the current package and UPS, FedEx, etc manages to mangle it up in less than 250 miles. Everything in the boxes were well packed.

Table flatness – Less than .0035” in any direction. Measured with a Lee Valley 36” straight edge and a piece of paper. The paper measured with my caliper anywhere from .0025” to .0035”. I could not get the paper under the straight edge in the few places I could see light. I bet companies really hate the fact that majority of hobbiest have all of these precision measuring tools. None of the tolerances ever seem to be specified. With the guesstimated flatness tolerance of .015”, I think I am good to go. The Right extension wing(left not installed due to sliding table) bolted up with no problems. I few small taps with a rubber mallet had it flush.I never had to shim it

Alignment – I think everybody should check the alignment and I don’t expect it to be less than .001” out of the factory. I ended up aligning mine because I thought it was out. Come to find out, the blade was not tight. It could have been aligned right from the factory. I will never know. It was easily aligned to .001 at 90 degrees. I checked it at 45 degrees and it is within .001” also. I checked the other miter slot at 90 degrees and it is also within .001. Sweet. The 90 degree tilt stop was really, really close. I adjusted it a hair to make myself feel better.

Fit and finish – I never owned a the Unisaw or a PM2000 but I looked them over several times in the store. The grind on the tableof the Grizzly is just as good as either one of those saws. I looked for chipped or scratched paint/ power coat and couldn’t find any.

Fence – I am no stranger to the Shop Fox Classic. I had one on my Unisaw. It is built like a tank. The magnified cursor still sucks. I made a replacement out of Aluminum and ¼” Plexiglas for the old one and kept it an put it on this one once I find it. The face has about .005” waviness along it’s length. My old ones wore after a while. I might replace with plywood and Formica in the future.

Dust Collection – Similar setup to the new Unisaw where there is an angled floor pan and the dust port sucks from the floor pan and the hose to the shroud. The shround bu itself is pretty good. Without the DC turned on I got very dusty. I ripped a board with a 1.5hp Jet DC connceted to the saw and an Excalibur overhead guard and it got all of the dust.

Riving knife – I have never used one. I had a Biesemeyer Snap in splitter in my Unisaw. It was easy to remove. The riving knife never has to be removed, but if it does, it is removed in a couple of seconds with the flip of a lever. It It was already aligned correctly out of the box.

Trunion – The tilt mechanism seems to be the same as the older version and similar to the old Unisaw. The blade elevation is where all the new stuff has happened . There is an adjustable gib to take out any slack from wear. All of the parts appear to be hefty enough to perform the task. Everything moves smooth and easy. They move so smoothly I can grap the wheel and spin it and it will make a couple of revolutions before it stops

Manual – 94 page spiral bound book all in English!!!!! Nowhere are the instructions repeated in Spanish, French, or German. I can’t say I read the whole thing. I tend to skim manuals a lot. I did flip through all of the pages. What I did read it seems to be pretty good and includes info on how to change the Arbor bearings.

Wrenches – I have heard some grumbling over how flimsy they are. They are 5/32” thick. My old Unisaw one was a little thicker but I am not sure how much. I haven’t had to crank on mine so I am not sure how they will hold up.

Motor – Spec says 30 amp circuit but comes with a 6-15 plug. It works fine on my 20A circuit running with my 1.5hp DC. Motor is stamped 14 amps. It is very smooth. My Unisaw would shudder on startup and shutdown.

Likes:
1) Large hand wheels. Did I say how much I love the large hand wheels? They are ginormous. Everything turns smoothly and locks down tight.
2) Access door on the right hand side of saw. Between this and the motor cover I find it very easy to get an anything that need lubricated.
3)Price tag. It cost me about $100 to switch from my 1970 Unisaw to the G1023RL. I got better Dust collection, smooth table, and a riving knife. This saw is a bargain
4)Tilt indicator. The clear plastic with a red line appears to be more accurate than the old round nosed metal pointer on my Unisaw.
5) Large paddle off switch.
6) the table top finish is awesome.
7) riving knife is very convenient.
8)Dust collection is much improved over my Unisaw.
9)Last but not least, Grizzly customer service.

Dislikes:
1) Standard throat plate warped and bowed pretty bad. Grizzly is sending out another once they come in around Oct 4. The Dado plate was fine. I will be make a ZCI anyway.
2) Shop Fox Classic magnified cursor. Replace with a home made one and life is much better.
3) Miter gage – Does anyone even use stock miter gages any more? I guess this one is not bad. It has an adjustable miter bar. It looks functional. It is pretty heavy and made out of cast iron. I don’t care for the plastic handle because it looks cheap. I guess that is kind of weird since my Incra has a plastic handle. The miter gage on the hybrid and one of the contractor saw looks much bigger and has a chrome handle. I played with it up in the showroom. You would think the cabinet saw would have the beefier miter gage. I haven’t used it and probably won’t. I can imagine the bottom of the head of the cast iron might scratch the pretty polished table so on the wall it goes. I have an Incra 1000SE and a JessEm Mast-R-Slide that will replace it..
4) Not really but I got a chuckle out of this one. There are boxes in the bottom of the saw when shipped. The motor is then rotated at a 45 degree angle and locked in place by a thick brace connected to the motor and the table thus pinning the boxes under the motor. Where do you think the handwheel is for the blade tilt is? That’s right, pinned in the box under the motor. Luckly the hand wheel was on the motor opening side of the box and I was able to pull it out of the side of the box once it was cut open the end. I can just see them laughing at the factory as they were putting it in there. I had a good laugh as well.

All in all I am VERY happy with the upgrade from my old Unisaw. The left tilt is a little weird to me since I always used a right tilt. With the blade angled it is very close to the miter gage. I don’t tilt the blade that much anyway. I do like adjusting the blade tilt with my right hand since I am right handed. It is nice to be able to make a cabinet under the side table and not have to worry about the motor cover. The current price is outstanding. If it holds up as well as the old 1023s then this is going to be a great saw. So here are some picures for the visual people. I even ran it without the DC so you could tell I used it. I still need to put a piece of plywood under the right table and build a cabinet.

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/DSC_0205.jpg
http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/DSC_0206.jpg

[Jim O'Dell]

Excellent write up!! Thanks. Though I'm not in the market for a 1023R series (I'm still totally in love with my G0691!!;)) this will be very useful to those that are interested in one. Enjoy it! Jim.

[Van Huskey]

Congrats on the saw, thanks for the review and pictures. Had hoped to see one at IWF but alas Grizzly did not make the trip this year.

[keith micinski]

I not only had a complaint with my wrench the open end one ripped apart the very first time I tried to use it. I made my own yesterday at work.

[Jacob Mac]

Great review. If you do not mind, I have a few questions. What prompted you buying the new saw? What does this saw do that your old Delta did not? Is this saw appreciably better than the Delta?

[keith micinski]

I would also add that I used the shop fox classic fence for the first time ever today and it was one of the worst experiences ever. I am using my old delta contractors saw to make the side table and cabinetry for my new saw and I was in shock at how much I hated the fence. The magnifying indicator doesn't just suck it is virtually useless. There is no way to adjust the squareness of the fence to the table outside of adjusting the whole rail itself which sucks. But my biggest complaint was the fact that after using my 52 unifence for years I had actually almost talked myself into selling the old saw with the unifence and trying out the 30 inch shop fox. Thank God I didn't do that. How on earth does anyone use one of those fences to do anything. I had a bunch of parts that were 27 to 30 and couldn't use the fence for any of them. For all of you guys that have a 30 inch fence, don't ever use a 52 because you'll never be able to go back to just 30 again.

[Cary Falk]

Great review. If you do not mind, I have a few questions. What prompted you buying the new saw? What does this saw do that your old Delta did not? Is this saw appreciably better than the Delta?
I sold the Unisaw because of the poor dust collection and I wanted a riving knife. Can you tell which saw the board was cut on? No. If you take away the riving knife and the Dust collection the saws are the same function wise. For all of those people that say the Grizzly is a lesser saw, I would disagree.

[Bob Riefer]

Fence – I am no stranger to the Shop Fox Classic. I had one on my Unisaw. It is built like a tank. The magnified cursor still sucks. I made a replacement out of Aluminum and ¼” Plexiglas for the old one and kept it an put it on this one once I find it.

I'd be interested to see a close up of how you modified the cursor as I plan to do the same.

Thanks for the write up!

[Cary Falk]

I'd be interested to see a close up of how you modified the cursor as I plan to do the same.

Thanks for the write up!

1/4" Al and 1/4" plexiglass. I used and exacto knife to scribe the line. I tried to fill in the line with a sharpie or red paint without any luck. I used some washers on the undersied to shim it closer to the tape for a more accurate measurement. There was also a thread on here that the cursor on the Beiesemeyer fence works also. I think it was about $3. More than likely the shipping is another $7 unless you have a Delta service center local.
http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/DSC_0077-1.jpg

[Cary Falk]

I would also add that I used the shop fox classic fence for the first time ever today and it was one of the worst experiences ever. I am using my old delta contractors saw to make the side table and cabinetry for my new saw and I was in shock at how much I hated the fence. The magnifying indicator doesn't just suck it is virtually useless. There is no way to adjust the squareness of the fence to the table outside of adjusting the whole rail itself which sucks. But my biggest complaint was the fact that after using my 52 unifence for years I had actually almost talked myself into selling the old saw with the unifence and trying out the 30 inch shop fox. Thank God I didn't do that. How on earth does anyone use one of those fences to do anything. I had a bunch of parts that were 27 to 30 and couldn't use the fence for any of them. For all of you guys that have a 30 inch fence, don't ever use a 52 because you'll never be able to go back to just 30 again.

You can shim the fence square by putting tape along the top or bottom of the back of the face. The Biesemeyer looks to be exactly the same without any adjustment for square. My T2 I had on my contractor saw had a couple of large nylon screws/plugs on each side of the fence that rides the rails to square it. I'm not sure how the Unifence is squared. I thought about tapping a couple of holes and adding the plugs to my Shop Fox but I currently don't need to do it. I went from a 52" fence down to this one which I now have about 33". I added the JessEm which should eliminate my need for such a long fence. If it weren't for the JessEm I would still have a 52" fence. I do like the space it is going to save. I find it hard to fault the fence for being to short. Put your Unifence on the 1023 and the Shop Fox on the other one you have and you will have the best of both worlds.:D

[Jim O'Dell]

The G0690/1 saws have a cursor window with a red line on each side. I guess this is to help you sight these 2 in a straight to get a more accurate reading on the tape. Problem with mine is they were way out of line with each other. I scraped one off, but need to polish the plexiglass out to make it easier to read through. Interesting that the Biese cursor works with the SF fence...I'll have to try mine on my Griz fence. Either that or just go ahead and spring for the long Biese rails and use the same fence between the two saws. :rolleyes: Jim.

[keith micinski]

The Unifence has the same nylon screws on each side to adjust it. Having to use tape on my new thousand dollar saw would drive me out of my mind. I would imagine that the tape would wear off pretty quick as much sliding around as I do with the fence. I did swap the fences but I am having to use the Shop Fox fence on my old saw to build the side table for my Unifence on the new saw.

[Mike Murphy]

Thanks so much for the write up!! I am ordering the same saw in the next few days. My question is were did you purchase the base with wheels I see in your picture. That looks far superior to the one available from Grizzly. Thanks!!

[Paul Johnstone]

You can shim the fence square by putting tape along the top or bottom of the back of the face. The Biesemeyer looks to be exactly the same without any adjustment for square. My T2 I had on my contractor saw had a couple of large nylon screws/plugs on each side of the fence that rides the rails to square it.

My Beis fence has screws on the fence clampdown area to adjust for squaring.. quick and easy.
I hope they didn't delete that feature in newer models.

[Ruhi Arslan]

Excellent write up. Thank you.

Jim,
690/1 does not have shroud, is that right? How does it effect the dust collection efficiency if one were to compare both?

http://cdn6.grizzly.com/pics/jpeg500/g/g0690_det10.jpghttp://cdn1.grizzly.com/pics/jpeg500/g/g1023rl_det1.jpg




They make it 8000 miles to the states undamaged in the current package and UPS, FedEx, etc manages to mangle it up in less than 250 miles.
My guess is they make the 8000 miles journey in a container and not handled till they take it out of the container to start distributing them. I moved household from London to San Diego in a freight container which was manually searched by Customs (happened to arrive week after 9/11) and moved from San Diego to NJ without a single broken glassware or scratch on any furniture. I moved 25 miles in NJ, some of the glassware containers (yes, containers not cardboard boxes) were totally shattered, most furniture damaged one way or another, adjustable leg of the dryer broken and side is collapsed...
So, the size doesn't matter, I meant the length... I mean... I mean the distance... :D

[Cary Falk]

Mike,
I welded the base up from 1x2" steel tube. I like all 4 wheels to swivel so I am forced to make my own.
http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/DSC_0210.jpg

[Matt Jutte]

+1 for the review, this may make my saw decision a lot easier

[Cary Falk]

My Beis fence has screws on the fence clampdown area to adjust for squaring.. quick and easy.
I hope they didn't delete that feature in newer models.


Paul,
Just for clarification, I was talking about these nylon screws that are on the T2 to square the fence faces to the table.
http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/t2.jpg



The Shop Fox Classic does not have them but would be pretty easy to add once you found a source for them(Delta wants $11 a piece. YIKES) The Shop Fox does have the set screws to square it to the blade.

[Cary Falk]

Excellent write up. Thank you.

Jim,
690/1 does not have shroud, is that right? How does it effect the dust collection efficiency if one were to compare both?



I'm not Jim and do not own the 690 but I did have a Uni that has the same trunion. The 690/1 does not have a shroud. I sold my UNI to get better dust collection and a riving knife. I think the 1023RL has better dust collection than the Uni so I assume it will be better than the 690/1. In all of the threads about the 690/1, I don't recall reading anything anything negative about the dust collection.

[Charlton Wang]

Hey Cary,

Since you have the G1023RL maybe you can clarify something. In the manual it says that to use the blade guard, you have to open up the right access door in order to engage and disengage the quick release lever (page 31). Is this really necessary? Why can't the throat plate be installed or removed with the guard in place?

Also, is the belt changing procedure really THAT complicated?

Thanks!
Charlton

[Cary Falk]

Hey Cary,

Since you have the G1023RL maybe you can clarify something. In the manual it says that to use the blade guard, you have to open up the right access door in order to engage and disengage the quick release lever (page 31). Is this really necessary? Why can't the throat plate be installed or removed with the guard in place?

Also, is the belt changing procedure really THAT complicated?

Thanks!
Charlton

Well, let me first say that I use the low profile riving knife and a overhead guard. I do not have any problems with removing the knife from the top or removing the ZCI with the knife in place. To answer you question about the guard, I don't know for sure but I can test it tomorrow and report back. It does make sense when you think about it. The guard can be removed from the larger knife but it still has the paws attached. On a regular insert with a splitter, the insert is held together between the blade and splitter and open in the back. The insert is usually lifted in the front and pulled foward. The insert with a riving knife is held together at the front and back of the insert. The insert can't be lifted in the back and slid foward. It has to be lifted over the knife. If the slit for the knife and blade is not wide enough to clear the paws, you would have now choice but to remove the knife first. If you can't remove the insert, you can only get to the knife release from under the table.


All that being said, I will test it tomorrow.

Is the belt change that difficult? Probably not. I have not changed the belt and did not look at the internals that mucy, but it looks like the manual started with a belt change and continued with a bearing change. From the pictures, it looks like you can loosen the belt tension bolt and slip the belt on and off. I will take a closer look tomorrow.

[Charlton Wang]

Thanks. I guess for a home made splitter where the split runs from the front of the blade all the way through the back of the throat plate, you wouldn't have a problem just sliding it out but I guess the fork-like nature might make it less rigid. I guess I need to see the throat plate for the saw to know what the situation is.

As for the belt, it looks like the arbor pulley is actually sandwiched between an arbor bearing housing so you'd have to knock out the arbor shaft from at least one bearing in order to get a free end that you could loop the belt around for replacement. It's probably a small task but still seems a lot more complicated than other saws I've seen.

Let me know what you find but if it's too much of a hassle, don't worry about it. Thanks!

[Cary Falk]

Charlton,
I did som fiddling. You can remove the large splitter/riving knife with the paws without going under the table. There is enough room to raise the front of the insert to get your hand in and release the knife.
176595
176593
176594

The picture on the website shows notches on each side of the opening at the rear of the blade. Picture is more than likely from a different saw since that steel plate behind the knife is not present also. Maybe this is from the G0690/91. This notch would clear the pegs that hold the paws and the insert could be lifted off without removing the knife. As it is on my saw you have to remove the knife to remove the insert. My insert did not have these notches but they would be easy enough to make.
176596
I use the small knife and a ZCI. There is no issue removing the ZCI or knife from the top of the table.
176597
I did try the larger knife and my ZCI. I can still get at the knife from the top like the OEM insert. I did not have my cut/opening for the rear of the knife back far enough to complete the removal process but it is possible if I were to extend the back of the opening.
176598
176599

To get at the belt. Remove the dust shroud. Loosen the belt tension bolt. The picture below shows the shroud removed. Remove the horizontal shroud/knife mounting bracket (2 bolts )shown in the picture and the belt slides towards you unobstructed. Nothing else needs to be removed.
176600

HTH.

Now if somebody could just tell me what that steel plate behind the knife is for. It is driving me crazy not knowing.

Cary

[Charlton Wang]

Thanks, Cary. That's very helpful.

Isn't the steel plate behind the knife supposed to be a wear plate for the anti-kickback pawls so that they don't scratch the table top?

[Cary Falk]

Thanks, Cary. That's very helpful.

Isn't the steel plate behind the knife supposed to be a wear plate for the anti-kickback pawls so that they don't scratch the table top?

That couuld be. The thought crossed my mind this morning. Those paws are sharp.
Cary

[Neil Brooks]

My only problem with my shop-made ZCIs IS the tendency for my anti-kickback pawls to chew up the Insert, so ... if that's their role ... I may have to copy it. Good idea.

[keith micinski]

If the purpose of that plate is to be removable for wear from the paws I would have much rather had a flush cast iron area with a few scratches on it. I hate the little lip the plastic cover leaves.

[Joseph Tarantino]

beautiful saw and a good writeup. here's hoping it provides you with many years of safe, troublefree service. and i found your left tilt comment interesting.

the only TSs i've had are left tilts. and i can't imagine ripping on a saw where the blade tilts towards the fence. i'd be concerned about the workpiece getting caught between the blade and the fence with potentially catatrophic results. not an issue for you now. but i do have one question about your ZCI.

what's with the holes? i assume they are for dust collection, but do they really improve table top dust collection? and if that is their primary function, do they help with table top dust collection in the absence of dust collection at the blade guard? your input would be appreciated.

[Cary Falk]

beautiful saw and a good writeup. here's hoping it provides you with many years of safe, troublefree service. and i found your left tilt comment interesting.

the only TSs i've had are left tilts. and i can't imagine ripping on a saw where the blade tilts towards the fence. i'd be concerned about the workpiece getting caught between the blade and the fence with potentially catatrophic results. not an issue for you now. but i do have one question about your ZCI.

what's with the holes? i assume they are for dust collection, but do they really improve table top dust collection? and if that is their primary function, do they help with table top dust collection in the absence of dust collection at the blade guard? your input would be appreciated.




The vibration of the motor was causing the ZCI to oscillate at it's resonant frequency. This was causing the ZCI to vibrate violently. I drilled the holes to alter the frequency and thus eliminating the vibration.


Or..... it was an attempt at better dust collection. The table has such a bad bow in it that all the sawdust rolls to the ZCI and down the holes to the DC. (That was a joke. The table is within .003"):D


Well, I had to put 1 finger hole in there. I realize that most of the holes are covered up when you cut something. I have read arguments for both sides of the debate. I thought it might make some difference when I do crosscuts. I have a lot of "suck" on the overhead guard that would lift up the front end of the ZCI. It does help with that. I don't really have an answer whether it helps with the overarm gaurd removed. I had all that real estate on that side of the blade so I thought I would give it a try. I do like at least 2 holes in it to lift it out. Kinda like grabbing a bowling ball.

[Jim O'Dell]

Excellent write up. Thank you.

Jim,
690/1 does not have shroud, is that right? How does it effect the dust collection efficiency if one were to compare both?

http://cdn6.grizzly.com/pics/jpeg500/g/g0690_det10.jpghttp://cdn1.grizzly.com/pics/jpeg500/g/g1023rl_det1.jpg
snip


Ruhi, sorry I missed your question. I think Cary answered pretty good though. I suspect the 1023R series to have a little better collection, but I haven't noticed any problems with mine. But then I cut out the dust door for a 6" pipe for my cyclone to hook to, so I should have a little better collection than those that stayed with the 4" hook up. I also collect with a home made overhead guard that has a 4" hose to it. There is a little bit of dust in the cabinet, but it doesn't pile up in the corners or anything. I still think I would go with the 691 over the 1023R for myself. Not that anyone would be wrong the other way. But the dust port on the right side of the cabinet and on a removable door was the one single clincher for me. One less 90 degree turn in the piping, plus the pipe doesn't stick out the back and be in the way of my mobile outfeed table or other table saw. And with 6" pipe and two 45 els to make the turn, that's a lot of space saved! Jim.

[Salem Ganzhorn]

I have a G0691 as well. But I don't have overhead collection and use a 2HP DC with the stock 4" opening. Dust does collet in the cabinet and without an overhead collector it can get pretty dusty on top and around the saw.
But I still like it. If I were buying now it would be a tough decision but I would probably go for the improved dust collection.
Salem

[Charlton Wang]

Kinda like grabbing a bowling ball.

Two-fingered bowling! Strong fingers you must have. :)

[Aaron Ledbetter]

Old thread - but an interesting read...thanks for posting!!

I am about ready to pull the trigger on a new Grizzly TS - but I'm torn between the 690/1023rl (seems like several folks have gone through this). I have compared these saws extensively, and still can't decide. I was leaning pretty heavily towards the 690, but the dust collection has me thinking twice. Also, I'm not sure how the fences compare (I've used neither)

OP - if you come back to read this...
Do you have any regrets with this saw now that you've been using it for a while?

Any 690/691 owners with regrets?

I'm sure that either one of these saws will do me just fine - but the decision is killing me, and I need a new saw yesterday! :confused:

[Cary Falk]

I still smile every time I use it. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

[Jason Dreyer]

What a fantastic machine - can't wait to get mine. Awesome modifications too, Cary. Wishing I would have learned how to weld so I could make a base like that one.

Anyone else have this saw, done a similar extension mod, and found a decent mobile base to use?

[Rick Bunt]

My G1023RL arrived today (no pictures, so not gloating), but I do plan to shift the rails to the right (by one bolt hole following Cary Falk's and Scott Spencer's suggestions in this thread (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?164239-Hybrid-Saw/page3)). I ordered the T23376 (http://www.grizzly.com/products/Universal-Mobile-Base/T23376) mobile base (wheel mounts with user supplied plywood base). I will report on success of both once I get things up and running.

[Chuong Nguyen]

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/DSC_0205.jpg[/IMG]


It looks like you have swivel casters all around for your mobile base.
any vibration or movement issues with that?
where did you get your mobile base? or was it custom made.
i would like to get 4 swivel casters on my TS to make it more maneuverable.

[Cary Falk]

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q297/caryincamas/DSC_0210.jpg[/IMG]


It looks like you have swivel casters all around for your mobile base.
any vibration or movement issues with that?
where did you get your mobile base? or was it custom made.
i would like to get 4 swivel casters on my TS to make it more maneuverable.

I made the mobile base myself. The casters are from Woodcraft. They lock down with very little play. Most of the time I don't lock down the wheels unless I am cutting something big. I have not felt the need to engage the screws with the pads on them. There isn't any vibration with the wheels unlocked. The saw is heavy enough that it doesn't want to move

[Chuong Nguyen]

Thanks Cary,

I'm going to have to build me a mobile base like yours. I hate only have a swivel caster on one side for my TS.

Last question: are those 3" or 4" casters?
thank you

[Jason Dreyer]

I got the go-ahead last night and ordered mine this morning. :-)

Quick question - how long is the power cord on this thing?

[Cary Falk]

I got the go-ahead last night and ordered mine this morning. :-)

Quick question - how long is the power cord on this thing?

It's super short. I think it is 6'. It has a plug on it already.

[Cary Falk]

Thanks Cary,

I'm going to have to build me a mobile base like yours. I hate only have a swivel caster on one side for my TS.

Last question: are those 3" or 4" casters?
thank you

They are 3". http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2001989/22711/3-Caster-Double-Locking-Swiveling-with-38-Threaded-Spindle.aspx

[Chuong Nguyen]

Hey Cary,

Where did you get the Threaded Leveling Pads with the knob? I'm having a helluva time sourcing those. thank you

[Cary Falk]

Hey Cary,

Where did you get the Threaded Leveling Pads with the knob? I'm having a helluva time sourcing those. thank you

I made them out of some nuts, allthread, fender washers, and 1/4" rod.

[Chuong Nguyen]

I made them out of some nuts, allthread, fender washers, and 1/4" rod.

Clever! thanks

[Matt Miraglia]

Nice review. Just got back from the PA Grizzly showroom after speaking for awhile with Bruce from Grizzly. Showed me the different saws and features and made my decision to grab a 1023RL. It is really nice to see/play with the machines in person. Would recommend a visit for anyone close by to Showroom. OK, I did have to pay the price and take the wife to QVC...

[John Petsche]

great mobile base, and saw review.

[Steve Griffin]

I not only had a complaint with my wrench the open end one ripped apart the very first time I tried to use it. I made my own yesterday at work.

Yep. I think they make that open ended wrench with 50% chewing gum to save money.

I recently bought a compact Dewalt jobsite saw which came with a really nice open ended wrench which happens to fit the grizzly perfectly.

[David J Wood]

Hi Cary,
I like most guys have been paining over the small differences between the G0691 and the G1023RLX. I am specifically looking for a saw with 50+ inch rip capacity and the wrap-around design of the fence on the G0690/1 appears to be a superior design over the Shop Fox Classic fence included with the G1023RL/RLX. While I have not been able to see one in person, I have assumed that making minor adjustments side to side on the fence would be more accurate with the wrap-around design of the G0691 fence because the fence is sort of surrounded on the front, top and back of the fence rail with the nylon slides. Whereas the Shop Fox Classic fence is only held in place on the front and top when the lever is released. So can you tell me if you have experienced any "slop" in making side-to-side adjustments that would cause the fence to twist left to right resulting in lost accuracy???

Thank you very much!

[Cary Falk]

David,
I will assume by "adjustment" you mean moving the fence to make a cut? There is some play due to the non wrap around design but there is a piece of iron with a nylon pad between the lever and the fence which helps somewhat.I usually have my left hand on the fence and my right hand on the lever when moving it so the play is minimal. I tend to coarse align my fence to the tape with my left and fine adjust(bump)with my right. It may sound weird but it is one continus motion for me. I have never experienced any loss of accuracy due to it. If I had the wrap around design I would still be moving it the same way. I could maybe see a possible issue with teh fenc wracking if you move it with the left while you hold a tabe at the blade with your left. I trust my tape on the fence to not have to do that.
Cary