Thinking about upgrading to a sliding table saw

[Jeffrey Kretz]

I currently have a Jet Xacta saw and it's been working fine for me, but I find myself wishing I had a sliding fence for larger panels, as well as having a scoring blade for cleaner cuts on the underside.

Assuming I could resell the saw for a (relatively) fair value as used machine, an upgrade to a sliding saw would be affordable without too much strain.

The question I find myself wondering, is would I miss having the cabinet saw? (I don't have room for both, not to mention there isn't budget for both)

This wouldn't have occurred to me except for a comment I recently heard in a Mike Farrington youtube video, that he breaks down sheet goods on his sliding saw, but still cuts them to final size on his cabinet saw.

For those of you with limited space, and assuming cost wasn't really an issue, would you prefer a cabinet saw or a sliding table saw? Are there things you find easier/better on a cabinet saw?

Thanks for any insight.

[Mike Kees]

Jeff. Things that are great on a slider: Straight line ripping solid stock to get a straight edge. Crosscutting lumber to exact lengths. Cutting up panel material to square and precise sizes. About the only thing that I like my cabinet saw for now is ripping narrow strips and dado cuts. I also sometimes use it just because it is closer to me than my slider. The scoring blade is great for veneer face plywood and melamine. So do you need a slider ? Probably not,however they are nice. They also take up a lot of floor space,depending on the size of machine you get. I would check out some of the smaller short stroke sliders like a Hammer k3 or the Minimax Sc2 or Sc3. I owned a Minimax Sc2 for a while and loved it,sometimes I wish I had kept it, however I do not need two sliders. The guy who cuts his plywood pieces to final size on a cabinet saw either does not know what he is doing or he does not have his slider set up well. It should be far easier to cut up pieces accurately on his slider. Final notes if I could only have one it would definitely be a slider.

[David Kumm]

I have a bunch of sliding saws and like either 10' or longer, or 39-49" short stroke. Have you seen the MM SC2 on Woodweb in Wis? Still in crate. Dave

[Jeffrey Kretz]

Thanks.

I plan on going down the Felder showroom in Anaheim to see the machines in person. I’ll get a better idea of the space requirements.

The SCM one for resale looks interesting. How does the $4500 he’s asking for compare to a brand new one just off the assembly line?

[Derek Cohen]

Jeffrey, hopefully to put your mind at rest, the slider section may be locked in place, and then the saw is used in the exactly same manner as a standard table saw (cutting against a rip fence). In other words, you get two saws for the price of one. :)

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Rod Sheridan]

I've owned a short stroke saw/shaper since 2010, there's absolutely no way I would o back to a cabinet saw.

The capacity, capability and accuracy are outstanding.

Mine had dado capability, I use it a fair amount of time. I also have a stock feeder on a flip up bracket, boy does the saw make perfect rips once a human isn't feeding it.

Most of the time my outrigger is hanging on the wall, the saw is smaller than my previous cabinet saw, yet if I need the outrigger it pops on in a minute.

For me, crosscutting a sheet of ply is as large a slider as I need......Rod.

[Darcy Warner]

I hate them. I hate having to have a jig or fixture to rip lumber ( plus limited on length for that) I hate leaning over them to try to rip lumber. No thank you.

[Brian Holcombe]

I enjoy having a short stroke slider. I have all of about 20 minutes on a cabinet saw in my lifetime so I have no mental comparison, I use a bandsaw for ripping a planer for making parallel and a slider for crosscuts.

[Robert Engel]

Jeffrey,

I looked at one a few years ago and after I realized what the work zone requirements are I had to look at other options. Even though I have a decent sized shop, I couldn't justify the footprint. My main reason for one was crosscutting sheet goods & straightling ripping an edge on dimensional lumber.

Ultimately I decided a track saw could do both of these, and was the best answer for me.

One thing I heard Farrington mention is ripping against the fence on the slider is a bit awkward. That is why he kept the conventional tablesaw.

.

[Jeffrey Kretz]

I imagine the online photos don't really do the size justice.

Could anyone tell me the footprint required for a sliding table saw with an outrigger?

[Jim Becker]

I did the move from an Xacta Saw to a slider quite a few years ago now...zero looking back! Yes, there is a little learning curve for some things and some jigs that come in handy. But there is so much to like about using a true slider. (There are also many threads here with previous discussion that you might find helpful)

For footprint, there are two things you need to look at...the outrigger which is to the left of the blade and the wagon stroke. My 8'6" stroke SCM/Minimax S315WS requires 19' for end to end travel of the wagon. The outrigger is about 5', give or take hanging off the wagon. I my shop, the spot where my slider and J/P occupy, things were a bit tight, so I cut down the right side table by 16" to get more space.

https://zfyzua.bn.files.1drv.com/y4mWBwCCeHA5NKat_vVZm8t8oTZo_KF-fM6P6U5flGUR2R63x_VDtwIQ5fmT5HTe9n8ud11Vj7b-DxrAcCXWvW1bE_DjKdJiVtm0s4xPqubDAvOH9koQMTSU2_7iKZ ClakwolH741iUxXvKB3pzD5HvtJiaO9vzR2G21WmMGjZD_ftku YjyoXbpwkCsBZxfGM3VYyio_ZWWTkQ8qQBTFaJzGg?width=66 0&height=299&cropmode=none

[Rod Sheridan]

I hate them. I hate having to have a jig or fixture to rip lumber ( plus limited on length for that) I hate leaning over them to try to rip lumber. No thank you.

I use the rip fence mostly for ripping, I can rip the same length piece as I can on a cabinet saw. I can also straight line rip if I want.

Short stroke sliders have the same ergonomics as a cabinet saw, no leaning over.............Rod.

[glenn bradley]

You probably noticed Darcy has a different opinion than many owners. I recall a recent forum post where the person had kept the cab-saw for everything except cross cuts which went to the slider. Just food for thought.

[Rod Sheridan]

I imagine the online photos don't really do the size justice.

Could anyone tell me the footprint required for a sliding table saw with an outrigger?

Hi, I've included a drawing of mine, which is the saw/shaper so it's very slightly larger than the saw.

This is for the 51" version.

It takes up less space than my old General cabinet saw as it doesn't need an out feed table normally and the outrigger is normally removed.

The sliders don't need any more space if you buy a small one, you do however need the same space for infeed and outfeed of wood.

I would estimate that my outrigger is about 36". I can measure it if you want.

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[Patrick Kane]

I have both, use both, and like both. If I had to keep one, it might be the slider, but i wouldnt be overjoyed by the decision. I have come to really enjoy the ease of dead on crosscuts off the slider. 90% of my furniture joinery is done via the domino, and it doesnt get much better than the combo of perfectly square and equally sized parts followed up by 5-10 mins with the Df700. a 10' machine is probably the best "if you had to have only one" machine. I very rarely rip anything over 10'.

[Izzy Charo]

A couple of years ago I went from a Unisaw (vintage 1983) to a Hammer K3/48 inch slider. Overall I'm happy with the upgrade. I do, however, miss having a miter gauge slot to the right of the blade for jigs, etc. A couple of things I've found to be frustrating on the K3: 1) the slot on the slider is not standard, and so will not accept commercial miter gauge runners for jigs, etc. 2) the fence lacks a crosshair...and so I find it more difficult to quickly get a precise setting than with the Bissemeyer I had on my Unisaw (I added a DRO to solve this issue). I went with the short stroke due to the size limitations of my home shop...and so I also often rip using the rip fence--no problem with the short stroke model. Hope some of this is useful.

[Jeffrey Kretz]

Thanks so much for all the replies!

I'll update my shop floor plan in SketchUp and see what I can figure out.

[Mike Wilkins]

I had a Delta Unisaw prior to getting a Laguna sliding table saw. Sold the Unisaw shortly after but wished I had kept it. I later got a standard cabinet saw to use for joinery purposes such as dadoes, rabbets and groove cuts. The slider excels at cross cutting to length and large panels, in addition to the scoring feature. I think that having both a standard cabinet saw and a slider in your shop is a bonus if you have the space.

[David Kumm]

Here is a short slider set up for ripping. While not as handy as a 10' machine, for the space needed, it is pretty efficient.412878412879412880412881 Tonight I was cutting for trim stock. The fence needs to be stout or anchored in the back, and the cast iron table needs to be thick to handle the stress of the feeder. I'm sure many have this set up on a cabinet saw but it works just as well on a slider and moves things along quickly.

Finally moved back out of the way. 412882 Dave

[Erik Loza]

...he breaks down sheet goods on his sliding saw, but still cuts them to final size on his cabinet saw...
Curious. The only reason I could see someone preferring the cabinet saw is for ripping thin pieces. Never had a customer tell me they used a cabinet saw after getting the slider. Lots of guys, however, tell me they break down the panels with a track saw first, then process the pieces on the slider. Or, I have had bigger shops keep the cabinet saw and leave it just set up for dado's. Just my 2-cents.

Erik

[Mark e Kessler]

Here is a Felder k700s 110" slide with 49" rip capacity in a inside garage dimension of 23' x 23', drawing is slightly off but full stroke can be done. AD941 shown as well. Most of the time only the front half of the slide is used so its not like its taking up the whole space.

I have no plans to keep my cabinet saw it can all be done safer and better on a slider and I am way attached to it - I have had it 30yrs and it was my first "real" piece of equipment I bought I have probably easily put a million dollars worth of jobs thru it...

Mark

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[Wakahisa Shinta]

I had two cabinet saws before purchasing a Hammer K3 49". I still have the K3, but a KF 700 SP is now the main saw. Both of the cabinet saws are sold at the time of the K3 purchase. As others have said, sliding table saw excels at processing sheet goods. With the KF 700 SP and 3200 mm sliding table, the track saw is not being utilized as it used to. A hydraulic lift table makes handling 4x8, 5x5 sheets even easier by myself. I heavily modified a HF hydraulic lift table. Another effect is the idling of the chop saw as well.

There are a myriads jigs one can make to make the slider even more safe. Fritz and Franz is the first jig one should make. Parallel rip fence/stops to be able to rip using the sliding table. Hold down clamps are a must for such operations. There are a lot of documentation of what people have used or made. I have made the T-nut for the sliding table T-slot out of hard wood and metal. All of them are still in service. I made extra stock that I don't think I will run out for years. For very thin, 1/8 inch rip of solid wood, I use either my cross-cut fence's end (extended with a wood/laminate wood piece) or a parallel stop as the reference point to the left of the blade (for this, you have to move the rip fence for each new cut). The set up of the sliding table saw takes some time to master. Once mastered, it gets faster and more intuitive. You will need some precision tools but that depend on how precise you want to be. I have reference 36-inch and 72-inch straight edges, a large square, a precision level, feeler gauges, and indicators. However, you can get away with just a level with grounded surfaces, feeler gauges, and a square.

The workflow for truing up lumber has gotten a bit easier too. Rough lumber gets first cut on the slider to establish a straight face, then to either bandsaw or jointer, then finish at the jointer/planer. Cutting tenons on the slider with the cross cut fence and flip stops are effortless. F&F jig makes cutting small piece safe. There is a learning curve with a sliding table saw. It gets more intuitive as time goes by. I, for one, would not reverse to a cabinet saw.

Felder now has PCS on their top end machines. Spend the money if you want even more safety tech. I have found that being out of the path of the saw blade has increased the safety factor tremendously.

Budget for 3-phase converter if you're heading that way. If you move your machines, budget for a pallet jack, narrow forks, if you go with Felder/Hammer. I decided against mobility kit because the pallet jack can move other heavy machines. Moving a KF 700 SP with a pallet jack is very easy.

WS

[scott vroom]

I echo everything Rod said. I've got a Hammer K3 51" short stroke and with the slider pushed forward it's ergonomically identical to a cabinet saw. Best of both worlds. I would never go back to a cabinet saw.

Here's the footprint:

[Stephen Bandirola]

Does anyone know anything about the Paoloni P150 slider? I might be able to get one fairly cheaply. It seems a little small though.
The slider stroke is only 59 inches
cutting width 43 inches
Table 34 x 22 inches

Is the quality similar to the Hammer?

Steve

[David Kumm]

Paoloni is at least equal or possibly a tad better than Hammer- maybe closer to 700. If you can't handle a longer slider, the Paoloni would be a good machine if priced right. I'd guess 2000-2500 ? Dave

[Stephen Bandirola]

Thank you.

[Chris Vickers]

If you can fit a 8' slider, I would try everything possible to do that. Pre-breaking down sheet goods is time consuming, more waste. I have a slider and a cabinet saw. My cabinet saw is setup with a ripping blade for narrow stock as it is easier to work around than the slider. I would never get rid of the slider. In fact I'm upgrading my Felder K700S to a Altendorf next week. It does eat up real estate, but you can work around that. You can put some mobile tools in front or behind it, roll out of the way to use full stroke of the slider.

[Dave Cav]

After using conventional cabinet saws for 25 years I switched from a nicely restored Delta 12/14 cabinet saw to a MiniMax SC4E. I'm still learning all the tricks to using the saw, but generally I like it a lot better than the cabinet saw. I got rid of my 12" RAS and have learned how to break stock down on the slider, and of course I got rid of the 12/14. I DID keep my Powermatic PM-65, which I generally only use for occasional fussy crosscut work like tenon shoulders, and because my router table was built into the PMs left wing. I installed the PM on the back of the slider as close to the wagon as I could get it, and it takes up essentially zero extra room.

Sam Blasco has a lot of good Youtube videos on using a slider; also Extreme Woodworker. Watch the videos a few times, use the slider, then a couple of months later, watch them again.