Possible free saw, Needs a top

[mike rawl]

Hi,

I may have a chance at getting a free Steel City3 hp cabinet saw. Like I said in the title it needs a top, it had an iron top when it was new, not a granite one. The owner of the saw had the saw ins storage for a few years and there was a leak in his unit. He said that the leak was right above the saw and the top was badly rusted and pitted and the through the top away. Now, he is thinking about throwing the rest of the saw away, I would like to have the saw to replace an old 1950's third hand Craftsman contractor saw that I have, but I am not sure if it is worth it. Oh, other than the top, the saw is almost unused.

I was wondering if anyone knows if another brand's table top will fit. I know grizzly sells replacement tops for their saws but they are not cheap. I have seen tops for other brands on eBay ranging from super cheap to not so cheap. Considering that Steel City saws were Asian imports does anyone know if the tops to these saws are interchangeable.

Thanks,
Mike

[Maurice Mcmurry]

It must have been acid rain?

[mike rawl]

I don't know. I am sure that the top could have been salvaged but he said he through the top away a few years ago and I only met the guy with the saw a few months ago. I have seen some pretty nasty stuff brought back to life, it just takes effort that he did not want to put into the saw. He has two others in his shop that he uses daily and I guess he would have lost more money trying to get the saw back into shape.

[Curt Harms]

I recall reading that Steel City machines were not necessarily Chi-wanese standard. I would not be confident in a Grizzly or Jet table saw top fitting a Steel City machine. I suppose if you were able to get measurements of things like space between holes in the base, location of the blade relative to those holes and they matched, maybe. Probably not worth the risk though, at least to me.

[Thomas Wilson]

Or you could buy a little-used UniSaw or equivalent from someone purchasing a SawStop. They go pretty cheap and I have one. I am in East TN.

[Mike Kees]

Got a couple Unisaw tops laying around. However I am thousands of miles away....

[Mike Kees]

Mike if that saw does not come with a fence ,pass on it. The top could be made from a couple layers of MDF with a plastic laminate top. It will be too much effort to spend if you still have to buy a fence as well. As others have said look for a used Unisaw ,or Jet or Powermatic or General cabinet saw.

[Rod Wolfy]

It's probably good for parts at best. If water got in the motor, well it even run? I mean, let's say it has a USA made Baldor 3hp motor. You could use that on another piece of machinery. But, the trunyons and all that with water damage or pitting? Spend your money on a 1980s unisaw for $500 and you'll probably get better use.

[Mike Henderson]

I agree with Rod. Unless you get it really cheap, I'd pass. Odds are that the motor can be salvaged but it might take some cleaning work and maybe new bearings.

I'd look for a used saw in better condition.

Mike

[Frederick Skelly]

I had an out of the box idea, in case nothing else turns out to be feasible. What about building a top using some kind of Torsion Box. You'd have to use the right materials, and work out how to implement a miter gauge slot and how to attach a good fence in a way that doesnt warp the structure. But if you could buy the saw cheaply enough, working this out could be a satisfying challenge. (Not as good as a cast iron top, but I bet it could work.)

[Doug Garson]

If I were you and had the time and space to work on the saw I'd grab it, (if free isn't cheap enough what is?) and then check out some of the shop made table saws on Youtube for ideas on how to make the top. MDF with laminate or Corian sound like good options. Worst case scenario, you could part it out, 3HP motor gotta be worth a few hundred if it wasn't damaged by the water.

[Christopher Charles]

Could make a nice disc sander as well with a simple homemade top.

[Bill Dufour]

Make a nice disk sander with a low rpm motor.
Bill D