Moving a Table Saw

[Dennis Roy]

Hi all, this is my first post.

I just purchased a SawStop Professional Cabinet saw. 230 VAC. I have seen the shipping box and have been told it weighs about 400 lbs. It will be delivered to my garage by the store, but no further than that. I need it in the basement. I cannot, for bad back reasons, assist anyone in moving it and don’t want to enlist friends to help me move it for fear someone will get injured or the saw will get damaged in the process.

For those of you who have received this or similar saw and moved it into a basement, how did you do this? Hire movers? How was it moved, i.e. was the box unpacked first and each piece moved individually (even so the cabinet itself is upwards of 300 lbs and would be unprotected once removed from the packaging), or was the entire box moved to the basement and unpacked there?
What equipment did the movers use to navigate a staircase (mine has a landing and a 90 degree turn)?

Thanks

[Matt Day]

2 moderately strong/fit/intelligent guys and a hand truck and a strap will do it.

I've heard recommendations of piano movers and hired from Craigslist.

Forgot to add- uncrate it so it's a light and small as possible.

[John K Jordan]

Dennis, when I move things by myself I take them apart as much as possible.

I agree with checking with some piano movers. They are very used to moving extremely heavy, fragile, and expensive things. Two BIG guys moved my Baldwin grand piano, maybe 1100 lbs and worth more than a fancy new car. They said if I had more than three steps they would have brought a third guy. Not a scratch.

To locate reputable movers ask a piano dealer or piano tuner.

Moving the piano wasn't that expensive, even out of one house, into a truck, then again into the new house. Moving something as light weight as the saw just into the basement might be even cheaper.

JKJ

[Ben Rivel]

The piano movers is a good idea. But in case that doesnt pan out after taking the cast iron table top off the saw really isnt that heavy. Two guys with an appliance dolly or perhaps calling a safe moving company with one of those motorized stair climbing dollies could easily move it down steps.

[Alan Lilly]

I have a bad back and I moved mine new sawstop about 2 months ago, into my basement from my garage.
Not with brute force mind you, but with patience, planning and leverage.
I removed the top (yes you will have to realign it later, but it's not that bad). All the misc parts aren't that heavy.
The secret is a good dolly and straps. Move each wing and main steel top individually on the dolly. Take it slow, one step at a time and use your legs, not your back.
A good dolly should have the sliding belts behind the wheels which allows you to drag the back of the dolly down each step without scratching nice stairs. My stairs are carpeted so it was even easier. That leaves the main cabinet, which I also strapped to the dolly (upright) with motor and no top.
It was the same amount of effort to lower it one step at a time because I had 1 extra person helper support some of the weight as we lowered it patiently down each step.
The key is not to get in a hurry or get yourself tired. You can take as long of a break on each step as needed because a balanced dolly requires almost no effort regardless of the weight on it.
Even if you are afraid to attempt this yourself.. you just need 2 people with confidence and some understanding of how to use a good dolly.
I moved everything else in my basement by myself except the 18" bandsaw. That one really was tough and dangerous and I should have used 3 guys.
I also have a landing with 90 deg turn. Not so bad to make the turn on the dolly. As you approach the bottom of the stairs ... shoot for the side near the turn, that way you have enough room to pivot and make the turn. You may need to do a little back and forth motion to wiggle the positioning around. It also helps if you remove the door by removing the hinge pins (if your landing has a door at the 90 turn like mine), but I did'nt need to this time like I have for other equipment in the past.

Remember... patience, planning and leverage are the key.

[peter Joseph]

I recently moved my entire shop out of my basement in NY to my shop in Philadelphia. Included in the move was a 600lb safe. Someone recommended a certain nationwide moving company to me (PM me for details) and I had them come out for an estimate. On the day of, 3 young guys (who I later learned were competition strongmen) came out and had everything on a 28ft truck in 90 minutes. I had been thinking of how to get the safe out for months now. In the end, one guy bearhugged it, locked his wrists, and carried it straight from the basement, up the reinforced stairs, and into the truck in one shot. Ive never seen anything like it. Beyond that they moved one cabinet saw, RAS, 2 drill presses, 8" jointer, 2 bandsaws, 500lb South Bend metal lathe, shaper, 4 rollaways and chests (full) etc, etc.. Everything arrived without any issue and in perfect condition. Whoever you go with, make sure they know how to, and have, moved machinery. While it took only 90 min to bring everything to the truck lift gate, it took just as long to secure everything properly.

Good luck

[John T Barker]

Rigging outfits specialize in machinery moving. I personally would avoid taking a machine apart unless I really had to. Riggers could do it with their eyes closed I think. I've moved a bunch of table saws in my time, they never impressed me as that heavy (but I was much younger back then.)

[Marshall Mosby]

First of all welcome Dennis. I hope you will find the right solutions to all your DIY projects here that you are going to pursue with your newly bought saw. The answer to your question is probably asking the movers to do it for you. They do it best.

[Dennis Roy]

Thanks everyone. Much appreciated.

[Jim Dwight]

You can easily rent a good two wheeled dolly with straps. U-Haul has them and it isn't expensive to rent it for a day. I've moved a refrigerator with my little cheap two wheeler but I would get a good one for a heavy table saw. My wife and I also got a woodstove that weighed over 300 lbs out of the house, down a few steps on a two wheeled dolly. I had my son help the new owner load it into his pickup, however. After two hernia surgeries I am trying not to lift much over 100 lbs. But using a two wheeler, moving the stove on flat ground wasn't bad - but I needed help tilting it back. With it strapped to a bigger two wheeler I could have done it myself. Years ago, I worked for awhile in a floor covering wearhouse. I occasionally got to unload a boxcar of 6 foot linoleum rolls on a two wheeler. Some of them weighed over 400 lbs. They weren't bad, for a teenager, if they came in vertical. If the car was humped and they looked like pickup sticks that was bad.

Anyway, a two wheeler makes a tremendous difference.

[Marc Burt]

Moving a disassembled table saw will be no problem for any halfway competent movers. I would be shocked if the bothered with any equipment at all. I would remove it from the shipping packaging in the garage before carrying it down simply to avoid the hassle of having to remove the trash back up the stairs afterwards. But if you can't move it and you don't want to ask friends to help then I see no alternative than hiring movers. I'd try to find some to do it on the side though. Most companies have a two or three hour minimum around here and about $125/hr. So I'd try to get a couple guys who just want to make a quick $100 cash in 15 minutes and be done.

FWIW I recently took delivery of a Grizzly 1023 which is stated somewhere around 450' and was surprised how easy it was to move on my own. Of course I didn't have to go down a basement! But I was able to move it where I wanted it, get if off the pallet and onto a mobile base on my own. That would never happen down stairs and isn't an option for you, but my point is simply that they're compact machines so the weight is easier to handle than something bigger and just as heavy. I think a couple competent friends could easily handle it particularly if you took the table off.

Congrats on the saw! I'm sure you will really enjoy it.

[Rich Riddle]

In a thread a while ago, a member offered this link that is useful on moving anything into a basement. It worked when I had to move a 24" Italian Band Saw out of a basement (the seller forgot to indicated it was in a basement). This most likely involves taking apart the saw including the top. That said, there are tools made to calibrate the blade with the mitre gauge slots and you should do this anyway.

http://www.bobshowto.com/Tips-Tricks/moving-tips/winches-ramps-move-myself.htm

[Al Launier]

2nd Rich's suggestion! I did something similar to remove an old Sears TS which I replaced with a Ridgid 3650 TS. I used a jury-rigged pulley system attached to a reinforced railing near the top of the stairs & some 2x12s. Worked well, but getting it to the "load" position was the most difficult part, needed some help there & to walk it into the basement shop area.

[Rick Moyer]

I recently moved my entire shop out of my basement in NY to my shop in Philadelphia. Included in the move was a 600lb safe. Someone recommended a certain nationwide moving company to me (PM me for details) and I had them come out for an estimate. On the day of, 3 young guys (who I later learned were competition strongmen) came out and had everything on a 28ft truck in 90 minutes. I had been thinking of how to get the safe out for months now. In the end, one guy bearhugged it, locked his wrists, and carried it straight from the basement, up the reinforced stairs, and into the truck in one shot. Ive never seen anything like it. Beyond that they moved one cabinet saw, RAS, 2 drill presses, 8" jointer, 2 bandsaws, 500lb South Bend metal lathe, shaper, 4 rollaways and chests (full) etc, etc.. Everything arrived without any issue and in perfect condition. Whoever you go with, make sure they know how to, and have, moved machinery. While it took only 90 min to bring everything to the truck lift gate, it took just as long to secure everything properly.

Good luck
While I'm having trouble envisioning a 600lb safe being small enough to get one's arms completely around, I just wanted to say that "I hope you tipped him well!"

[Chris Fournier]

It's no surprise but people over think this subject all of the time. Lot's of responses here are of the get it done variety and I am solidly in that camp. 400 pound is nothing to handle if you plan it out.

Dolly, remove the table top, strap each piece one at a time to the dolly and two folks of unspectacular strength will have the saw in the basement in 5 minutes. Put a rope on the dolly, a 2X4 across he door frame and you can be the brake man if you want to get safety fancy.

Make sure that dolly tires are inflated.

Your task is not difficult and friends were designed for this sort of thing, don't fight it, embrace it!

[peter Joseph]

Hey Rick, the safe is a family heirloom, 100+ years old. It is actually quite small (20x18x25) BUT the inside compartment is only about 8x6x12 which makes for 6 inch walls all around which I believe are filled with concrete. The lil sucker doesnt look it but when you roll it around on its solid iron wheels it sounds like an army tank.

Oh, and no one knows the combo so it isn't usable lol

[mark mcfarlane]

...
Make sure that dolly tires are inflated...

Oh yes, +1

[Rick Moyer]

Hey Rick, the safe is a family heirloom, 100+ years old. It is actually quite small (20x18x25) BUT the inside compartment is only about 8x6x12 which makes for 6 inch walls all around which I believe are filled with concrete. The lil sucker doesnt look it but when you roll it around on its solid iron wheels it sounds like an army tank.

Oh, and no one knows the combo so it isn't usable lol
Cool! Are you sure it's empty?

[Keith Hankins]

For this reason, I bought it from a local vendor and paid to have it put in the basement. Woodcraft brought it took care of every thing and my back was the grateful for it. I paid I think 150$ for delivery and set up but don't begrudge it a bit. Also, if they boogered it up while delivering I was not responsible.

If I'd had my two strapping boys still at home I might have done diff.

If you have a local high school, go put an offer out of 50-100 & some lineman will get it done in a heart beat.