About to buy TS-Advice?

[russell johansen]

Been looking at the left tilt Grizzly g0575. Any thoughts or alternatives? I am wired for 110 and need to spend under 600 (if I can keep it at 500, I may be able to swing the frued dial dado set).

It the fence on the grizzly's ok?
Any accessories I need?
Best book to buy for the first timer?

Want to build simple furniture (shelves, storage etc..) and may want to get into entertainment centers or beds eventually.

Don't want to every buy another one :) but don't need top of the line either.

[Tim Morton]

Welcome to the Sawmill Creek. Its a wealth of info, but it sounds like you have been doing your homework. The grizz left tilt would be a fine choice. Its a new design for grizzly but I can't imagine any problems with it. As for NEVER wanting to upgrade.....we'll see :D :D :D . The only way that I could assure you of not wanting to upgrade would be if you popped for the 1023SL. but even still.....

Seriously....thats a good saw and if will serve you well for decades if you let it. Grizz makes 2 fences, alumipro(?) and ShpFox classic. The SF Classic is a more desirable fence, but I don't think it comes on any of the contractor saws...you might check with them about that. The alumipro is a nice fence too!!.

You might want to consider a SF mobile base while you are at it, if you think you will be moving the saw around alot.

There is a book I believe is called simply The Tablesaw Book....it is one that most would recommend...the authors name escapes me, but I believe he is a member of the forum.

Did I forget anything? If so others will be around soon.

Again..Welcome!!!!

[joseph j shields]

Russell,

I don't know anything about the Grizzly.... but I could offer the following tips:

Your table saw will be one of your primary tools.... so get the best your can afford.
Regardless of what saw you get, make sure you don't cheat on blades. I first started out with a POS $299 table saw. And it cut like a $299 saw until I got a good blade. My first try was a Frued rip blade (#72??) and a cross cut blade. The results were night & day. Later, I got trired of changing blades & just bought a Forrest combo blade. I've been using Forrest for the past 15 years. I know they are about $80 (Hartville Tools with 20% off) but cheaper that 2 Frueds.
If your budget is tight, I would think about buying the Forrest and getting a cheaper dado. (ps I have the Frued dial dado and really like it)
Like I said I don't know jack about the Grizzly, but the fence is really important... so ask around-specially about the fence. You don't want to have to buy an after market fence (about +$250)
If you will be cutting sheet goods you should think about getting the extended fence & build an extended table.
When placing the saw, make sure you have room for an outfeed table. You will want to add an outfeed table, if you have the room.
I have an old Delta Unisaw and love it... I know its out of your price range, but you may want to check locally for a used one. (In fact I bought my Unisaw used)
Sorry for the long post:o

But I hope this helps you!

-jj

[Dick Parr]

I love my Grizzly tools, but for the money ya need to check this place out. :)

http://www.generalindustrialsupp.com/product.asp?ID=8

[Tim Morton]

I love my Grizzly tools, but for the money ya need to check this place out.

http://www.generalindustrialsupp.com/product.asp?ID=8
__________________
Dick


That is a nice price for a S&D Powermatic saw.... :cool: That would tempt me if i were shopping for a TS.

[Mike Holbrook]

I bought the General 50-185 just recently. I think this saw is very hard to beat for the money. If you check out recent tool reviews this saw has been the pick of the contractor saws and has much to recommend it over many much more expensive saws. The only problem with this saw is the directions that come with it are terri
able. One call to General will get it straightened out though.

[russell johansen]

Well, I thought I knew what I was going to buy. The Grizzly still looks good but the S&D Powermatic saw seems like a great deal also. As a newbie, I am having trouble seeing the difference.

Specific questions include:

Is the scratch and dent sale an ok way to go? Quite a savings.

Are the fences comparable?

Any other reason to spend more money on the Powermatic for $585 Scratch and dent vs $515 for the Grizzly?

[Tim Morton]

Well, I thought I knew what I was going to buy. The Grizzly still looks good but the S&D Powermatic saw seems like a great deal also. As a newbie, I am having trouble seeing the difference.

Specific questions include:

Is the scratch and dent sale an ok way to go? Quite a savings.

Are the fences comparable?

Any other reason to spend more money on the Powermatic for $585 Scratch and dent vs $515 for the Grizzly?

S&D is a good way to go when looking to save money. A week after you use the saw you will not remember its a S&D.

The powermatic fence is better, it has removable parts that can be replaced if damaged.

The picture of the PM shows 2 cast iron wings...thats going to make it a heavy and thus more stable saw.

Bottom line is the PM is a beter saw, but it won't be around for long at that S&D price...

[Bob Yarbrough]

I got what I think is a pretty good deal on a 10" Delta contractors saw at the local Rocklers. 30" inch rip capacity with Deltas "kinda" bies fence for $550. They also had some "old" style Delta Cabinet saws with 50" capacity and a real bies fence for $900. I just don't know if all the stores had the same deals. Miht be worth checking out