Craftsman radial arm saw. is this model any good.

[keith ouellette]

it is Model 113.197751. I can't get a picture of it right now. I know some are better than others and some are out right dogs. it is for sale for $150.

It is a 10" 120v but can be re wired for 240. it has a hold down kit. an 8" molding/dado guard as well as the 10" saw guard. A dado blade and a molding head. I doubt I would use any of the extras except the 8" guard (for my frued dial a dado) and the hold down kit assuming the hold down kit works well. It is on a 4 leg stand.

The radial i have now has a lot to be desired and there are some things I would like to do on the radial like dados and some cross cuts.

So is this a Good model and is the price pretty good?

[Thomas Hotchkin]

Keith
Don't know about that model number. I have a 38 year old craftsman 10" RAS model # 113.29460, that has built two houses, some out buildings, and a lot of furniture. It is starting to die on me, and no parts available. So I'm looking at a used Dewalt 12" that only 30 old and has some parts available. In the North West my Craftsman is going for 50-100 dollars, and a few for free. Tom

[Rick Potter]

I have a 197752, which I bought for $200 about a year ago. I bought it as a dedicated dado machine. It had a new 4' wide table on it and is in very good condition. Around here I think I paid top dollar, but that figure may be skewed because there are so many in bad condition. I am happy with it, and ordered the free recall upgrade kit, but do not plan on putting it on.

If yours is in good shape, that is probably a fair price. You might even be able to talk him down a bit. I have had no alinement problems with mine. I also have a DeWalt 7790 12" that I crosscut with. Definitely a better saw, but also more expensive.

What is the hold down for? Maybe ripping? One of the best things about the RAS is that it tends to hold the wood against the fence. I have never had a problem with wood trying to lift.

Rick Potter

[Sylvain Deschamps]

Type in the model number to see if you can get a recall kit. http://www.radialarmsawrecall.com/

[Van Huskey]

If I remember right that is a late 70s into the 80s saw. If my time period is right it is a decent saw among the Craftsman versions. It isn't the best but far from the worst and likely to be in overall better shape than the earlier versions which WERE better but a lot got abused. I will say I have used all my Cman RAS saws I have owned in the last 10 or so years as set 90 degree crosscut saws. I find they work excellent in that fashion but aren't the best for staying aligned if you swing them in and out all the time. The fact it has accessories may mean it has lived a easy and pampered life. 75% of the ones I see have been road hard and put away wet and have little or nothing in the way of accessories as they have been lost or misplaced because people neglected the saw.

[Bill Edwards(2)]

Is this it?

http://vintagemachinery.org/photoindex/images/11092-A.jpg

[phil harold]

once I got decent table saw and a sliding miter saw, I got rid of my RAS
Best thing I ever did...

[keith ouellette]

Is this it?

http://vintagemachinery.org/photoindex/images/11092-A.jpg

the picture I have seen of it is from the other side so I can't be sure. I am going to try and look at it today.

[keith ouellette]

this is the one. looks like its the same one Bill has.

It seems to be in pretty good shape and is complete. the arm doesn't wiggle. I can flex it but I have to push it harder than I think the wood will.

I figure it will make an 17" log dado with an 8" frued dado blade or cross cut 18 in. I think I may have another book case to do after the one I'm working on so I think it will come in handy for that.

$150???

[Rick Potter]

Yup, that's what mine looks like too. Try to talk him down a bit. Can't hurt. By the way, I put a new blade in mine today, and just for fun I copied a video I saw on You Tube. I cut a 3/4" piece off a 9" oak board, then set it length wise against the fence, and without holding or touching it cut it lengthwise twice. In other words ended up with 3 three eighths pieces 9" long. As I said earlier, one good feature of the RAS is that it tends to hold the work against the fence.

Rick Potter

[phil harold]

one good feature of the RAS is that it tends to hold the work against the fence.

Rick Potter
one bad feature of the RAS is that it tends pull its self into the wood, walking towards you

This can become even more scary when using a dado blade




"Radial arm saws were built for industry early last century when thick wide boards of solid wood were staple materials. They were used in mill work to rough cut to length, and in production, to cut to length. Holding a right angle was not a problem for the well engineered, heavily built machines, but the quality of the grain cut was poor since it was the age of the spacing set blade.

After WWII a lightweight downmarket version of a radial arm saw sold vigorously to homeowners it was said to be the "must own" woodworking machine in the U.S. Unlike it's industrial counterpart, it didn't hold a right angle at all well and the quality of the end grain cut was what you got with the blade of the times. In the 60s, with the introduction of the TCT blade, the end grain cut was greatly improved but the inaccurate angle cut remained. Today's mitre saws are better engineered than the "homeowner" radial arm saws. They are generally limited to a 12" cut length and they use a TCT blade. They hold the set angle very well and deliver a first rate end grain cut?that for me takes care of to the vast majority of cross cuts. Dimensions longer than 12" are best cut using a sliding cross cut fence or box on a table saw.

Are they safe? If they're used to cross cut and if accuracy is not important, yes. If they are used in any other way, no."

[David Winer]

Kieth, I could not send you a private message because your inbox is over-filled. --David Winer
file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/HP_Owner/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot.png

[John McClanahan]

I'm sure that saw is on the recall list. As such, you can get an improved blade guard and a new table for free. I'm have no idea what the new table does for it, though.

John

[Dave Lehnert]

I'm sure that saw is on the recall list. As such, you can get an improved blade guard and a new table for free. I'm have no idea what the new table does for it, though.

John

That saw is part of the recall. Give them a call to get a FREE upgrade kit.

http://www.radialarmsawrecall.com/

[Tom Ewell]

The saw with the recall upgrades installed.
One needs to manually lift the guard, (black lever behind the handle) for the saw to clear the fence. I do find that with the new guard the bulk of dust shoots right into the collector.

184135184136

[Louis Brandt]

this is the one. looks like its the same one Bill has.

It seems to be in pretty good shape and is complete. the arm doesn't wiggle. I can flex it but I have to push it harder than I think the wood will.

I figure it will make an 17" log dado with an 8" frued dado blade or cross cut 18 in. I think I may have another book case to do after the one I'm working on so I think it will come in handy for that.

$150???

Keith,

I have a Craftsman radial arm saw, and it's also a 10 inch model, but it's a lot older than the one that you're looking at. I really like mine, and I knew a guy who had one like you're looking at, and he liked his very much.

One thing than puzzles me is that you said that you thought that the one that you're looking at will crosscut 18 inches. My older 10 inch won't crosscut anywhere near that much. It will only do about 12 or 13 inches. If you get the saw, I'd be interested to know what the maximum crosscut turns out to be.

I'm not saying that you're wrong, only that mine won't do nearly that much, and I'd like to know whether yours will.

Thanks,
Louis

[Tom Ewell]

One thing than puzzles me is that you said that you thought that the one that you're looking at will crosscut 18 inches. My older 10 inch won't crosscut anywhere near that much. It will only do about 12 or 13 inches.

Not too sure about this one either, mine will cut 1x12 as is and might be able to push it to 15” with a lower fence at a rear position before negating the benefits of the new guard. A full dado would be even less. If you push the fence back too far you run the risk of a spinning blade grabbing your stock before you’re ready…. A really bad situation.

[keith ouellette]

Keith,

I have a Craftsman radial arm saw, and it's also a 10 inch model, but it's a lot older than the one that you're looking at. I really like mine, and I knew a guy who had one like you're looking at, and he liked his very much.

One thing than puzzles me is that you said that you thought that the one that you're looking at will crosscut 18 inches. My older 10 inch won't crosscut anywhere near that much. It will only do about 12 or 13 inches. If you get the saw, I'd be interested to know what the maximum crosscut turns out to be.

I'm not saying that you're wrong, only that mine won't do nearly that much, and I'd like to know whether yours will.

Thanks,
Louis



Thanks for pointing that out. From reading another post I cansee where I went wrong. I forgot to figure in having the saw blade on before it enters the wood. Al I did is measure the groove in the table from the blade and subtract 2 inches and thought that would be the cross cut length. I can see I'm wrong now.

Sure glad I posted that number. Now I'm re thinking my plan because 13" isn't much to plan a system around.

[Joe Angrisani]

Keith.... If you go for this saw, I will add that I think $150 is somewhere between ridiculous and pipedream. There must be five at a time here on a much less-populated Craiglist with an asking price of $100, and I personally know two people who paid $100, and two who paid $50 in the end.

But 13" isn't much.

[Gregory King]

New poster, here. The pictures that I see look newer than mine which I bought in 1978. Just after x-mas, I posted mine on Kijjiji for $275. No takers yet. If I have to keep it for a while, I will. Too good to give away. Looks like the sliding compound miter saws have replaced these old relics.

[Tom Ewell]

. The pictures that I see look newer than mine which I bought in 1978..

Yep, didn't get mine 'til 5/79 but I have no idea how long this model was in production prior to or following my purchase. The scale pointers on mine are metal as opposed to the plastic ones seen in many pictures. Other than that, don't see any thing else different.

This guy claims '78 for this one.
http://vintagemachinery.org/photoindex/detail.aspx?id=11092

Mod. No. 113.19771 is the saw only

Mod. No. 113.197751 is saw with a leg set.

[John McClanahan]

I think the saw in the photos is early 1980's or newer. I recently sold my saw that I purchased in late 1980. It had a painted handle, rather than the bare aluminum. It also had a more round motor, with a 1/2" threaded stub opposite the blade for attachments. Shortly after I bought mine, I remember Sears had a model change. I think that's when the aluminum handle models came out.

John