Table saw advice - Jet Contractor

[Jimmy Anthony]

Some of you have been helping me decide on my first table saw. What are your thoughts on this? Vs the Delta 36-725.

http://fayar.craigslist.org/tls/4955464405.html

[Peter Aeschliman]

I used to have that saw.

In that price range, I'd say that's a good buy. Just keep reasonable expectations- it will struggle to rip 8/4 hardwoods, the fence is lightweight aluminum, and the dust collection won't be all that good. But it's much better than a jobsite saw.

Since the price is pretty low, if you ever decide you want to trade up to something better, you can sell it for what you paid. So I think the best advice I can give you is to buy used machinery for your first major tool purchases- it's a much better financial decision since you can get your money back. I see a lot of advice from folks on this board saying "buy the best tool you can afford", but the paradox is that you may just be experimenting with the hobby... To justify spending big money on a cabinet saw, you have to already know that you want this to be a lifelong hobby. You can't really come to that decision without doing some woodworking, which is where the catch-22 comes in.

The part i really advise against is putting money into upgrading tools by modifying them. I've been down that path before, with the very saw you are looking at (biesemeyer style fence, cast iron wings, special splitters, etc). You definitely don't get your money back on the upgrades, so save those pennies to put toward a new saw someday if it comes to that.

Anyway, assuming the saw is in good shape, I think it would be a good choice.

[Jimmy Anthony]

Thank you Peter.

[scott spencer]

Looks like a decent saw at a decent price to me. It looks to be in good shape too. It's a nice deal compared to all the other overpriced under-maintained saws I see in your area. An offer of $275 to $300 would be reasonable.

Compared to the new Delta, it doesn't have a true riving knife, and the motor hangs out the back. Both have steel wings, the Jet Fence is ok, I suspect the Jet is a bitter heavier and beefier, and probably has a 15 amp motor, but keep in mind that the drive belt is longer and the drive system a tad less efficient.

[Jimmy Anthony]

Looks like a decent saw at a decent price to me. It looks to be in good shape too. It's a nice deal compared to all the other overpriced under-maintained saws I see in your area. An offer of $275 to $300 would be reasonable.

Compared to the new Delta, it doesn't have a true riving knife, and the motor hangs out the back. Both have steel wings, the Jet Fence is ok, I suspect the Jet is a bitter heavier and beefier, and probably has a 15 amp motor, but keep in mind that the drive belt is longer and the drive system a tad less efficient.

Thank you Scott. From what I have read this seems to be much more in line with a good introductory level saw at a decent price point too. Everything I have seen here has been over priced which is why I have been waivering on what to do. I have reached out to the seller for more information, hopefully it works out...

[Jimmy Anthony]

Question - looks like this model does not have a riving knife. What are some solid aftermarket options as a solution? This isn't a subject I've done much research on yet.

[Jimmy Anthony]

Well that didn't take long, just a little light research proved there are plenty of splitter and aftermarket additions available for this type of saw. I made them an offer... fingers crossed. Thanks guys or the input!

[Jimmy Anthony]

I am the proud owner of a table saw! Yahoo! I was able to get it for $290 which is great for me because I will be making a 2 hour drive to pick it up. They sent me some additional pictures and it looks to be in excellent condition. It has a little surface rust on the table that will polish right up, the rest is in great condition. I'm like a little kid at Christmas! Thanks again for the help and be ready to help me keep learning!

[Art Mann]

If the condition is as it appears in the ad, you got a very good deal IMO.

[Peter Aeschliman]

Congrats- good deal indeed. I sold mine for quite a bit more than that.

You won't be able to fit a true riving knife to that saw. Riving knives tilt and raise with the blade. But a splitter will take care of the vast majority of your needs. Just be really careful whenever doing an operation without a splitter.

[scott spencer]

Congrats. Get it aligned, and put a decent blade on it. Not sure if the B0RK riving knife will fit, but you can contact Bob via TheB0RKstore.com and ask.

310469

[Jimmy Anthony]

Thanks a lot guys. I will be sure to take my time and be careful all things considered. When I get it home I will polish the table, align the and upgrade the blade and do more research as I go too.

Here are a few more pics they emailed me for fun!
310435310436310437310438310439310440

[Mike Cutler]

Jimmy

Congrat's on your new saw. You got a nice deal on it.

I own that saw, at least the blue version of it, and it is a very capable tables saw. It will have no problems accurately cutting to a line. The dust collection is kind of crappy, actually, really crappy, and most guys set the blade at 90 degrees to the table and close off the back for better dust collection. Stuff some thick foam strips where the table meets the base and it will improve even more.
If it has a solid belt for the motor to arbor, change it out to a link belt, you will be much happier.
Installing a set of PALS will make the table alignment easier, but isn't absolutely necessary. That front left trunnion bolt, as accessed from the rear, is a pain to get too and tighten up.
Back that fence up with a clamp for rips, and you shouldn't have any worries. I'll disagree with Peter a little and say that getting a better fence, down the line, for that saw will improve it. Don't go crazy though. There are plenty of nice used after market fences on the various sell sites. The upgrade to that fence was the Jet Xacta fence.

[Jimmy Anthony]

Mike thanks for the info. Can you elaborate a little more in what you mean by back the fence up with a clamp? Do you mean clamp the back side down to eliminate movement?

[Ryan Bodnarchuk]

Looks good to me. funny is that I just got a delta 36-725 the other day. still in the process of setup, I was looking for a saw exactly like the one you got used, but there was nothing even close.

I did get the delta for $425 new in the box though, which I thought was a pretty good deal since they retail up here for $599. It looks to be a similar size as well.

for the Jet, depending on what his shop looked like, it is either already tuned and aligned and you have to do nothing... or he had no idea how to adjust it, got frustrated and decided to sell it to someone who can. :)

[Jimmy Anthony]

I was planning to pick up the Delta this weekend... I had been looking for over 6 months for something like this and gave up! Funny how stuff works out.

[Ryan Bodnarchuk]

Agreed. my old crafstman POS feather light died a few days ago. I did not have 6 months to wait for a used deal.

[Mike Cutler]

Mike thanks for the info. Can you elaborate a little more in what you mean by back the fence up with a clamp? Do you mean clamp the back side down to eliminate movement?

Jimmy

What I do is take a piece of 3/4" material and I butt it up against the fence on the non-cutting side. I clamp this scrap of wood to the table. It stops the back end of the fence from towing out during long rips. I also have a piece of 220 grit sand paper inserted between the cam clamp and the fence on the front. That epoxy paint is some kind of slick, and the UHMW pad on the front can slip. Too be fair to the saw and fence though, I tend to work with really heavy, long, tropical wood material. They can act as a pretty substantial lever with just a bare touch. I've run 10' long, 14" wide, 5/4, Brazillian Cherry through mine. It's also seen some 8/4 padauk, that was about 8' long. About the only limiting cut I can think of is a dado. Run a 6" dado and not an 8" set if you can. The rotational mass of an 8" dado is pretty substantial and tends to use up a good amount of motor energy.
Rest assured, that saw is capable of some pretty substantial work. ;)

[Jimmy Anthony]

UPDATE: Got the saw home, looked it over good and for fun plugged up to see what I got myself in to. That thing about walked across the garage it vibrated so bad... so I shut if off quickly, unplugged it and started poking around. Turns out the motor mount plate was installed upside down, so the pulley was out of alignment and could not be aligned given how it was setup. Took it apart, put it back together correctly and viola... runs like a top. Still some vibration because the v-belt is misshapen.

That's ok the PowerTwist I have on the way should help with that.... :D

[Peter Aeschliman]

Oh man, I hate that feeling when something doesn't go right at first. Glad you got it sorted out!

[Jimmy Anthony]

Quick update: The new belt came in... what a difference! The saw went from shaking so bad a glass of water would walk across the table top to passing the nickel test. It runs very smooth. Also took it all apart and inspected everything, then went through the alignment procedures stated in the operators manual when setting it back up (needless to say it was in dire need of some adjusting).

Finished that, aligned the saw blade, adjusted the positive stops and started making cuts. I'm really happy with the deal I got - considering the condition this thing is in I think I lucked out.

Thank you all for the help.

I do have another question: It has a factory splitter and guard/cover that tilts with the blade. Would an add-on riving knife add that much value/improvement over the factory splitter? I understand the issue of non-through cuts. And honestly removing the splitter and adding it back on would be a pain, but I don't intend on being in a hurry either. I'm not sure there is an aftermarket part that would allow for non-through cuts for this saw. Could the **** be setup to do that?

[Frank Pratt]

I've had the blue version of that saw with a Bies fence for about 15 years & it's been great. Once you get everything dialed you won't have to touch it. I don't think there is a riving knife you can get for it, which is one reason I'm upgrading.

Frank

[Curt Harms]

A trick I've heard of to close off the back of a contractor's saw for dust collection. Use a piece of light plywood sized appropriately. Drill a blind hole to flush fit round magnets. Epoxy 'em in. By using not-too-strong magnets to hold the cover in place, if you forget and tilt the blade the magnets will let the cover move. I learned it's not a good idea to have a solid back on a contractor saw the hard way, though no permanent damage.