Justin Peters
04-07-2007, 4:49 PM
OK y'all...I have a bit of a dilemma I would like your advice on. Several years ago, my wife an I bought a house without knowing we would begin to enjoy woodworking. Unfortunately, the layout of our driveway and garage necessitates both of our vehicles being parked in the garage, which is only a two car garage. We have an area off to one side where I have some shelves and such, but the area is a step higher than the actual garage floor, so I cannot use that space to place tools with mobile bases on.
I have a few "floor" tools already: a drill press, a 14" bandsaw, and a 1442 lathe. I would like to finally get the tablesaw. (I know...I should have gotten that first.) I also bought a planer last week at the houston WW show. I think that by rearranging a few things and possibly getting a small shed for the lawnmower and such, I can find space for a tablesaw. I don't, however think I will be successful in finding enough space for even a 6" jointer. I was contemplating getting one of the benchtop models to handle jointing tasks until my wife and I are in a financial situation that will allow us to upgrade our housing situation. I'd try to sell it when we do move and recoup some of the money. In the meantime, I can probably go over to a friend's house to joint anything longer (he has a 6" floor jointer). Is this worth it, or should I just ask to come over ANYTIME I need to joint something.
Right now my detached garage is severely underpowered. I basically have one 110V outlet. Of course, my main electric panel is all the way on the other side of the house, so getting better power to the garage is going to be a challenge. And, my main panel is already maxed out (including slimline breakers) anyways, so I would need to get an electrician out to also replace my main panel. (If anyone can recommend an electrician in the North Houston area, I'd be curious to see how much it would cost to do this...I can wire the garage myself if I can get someone to run electric for a subpanel to it!) I'm not sure if this is a waste of money though...I don't know that folks looking for a new house would see the "value" of a subpanel in the garage.
With all of this in mind, what should I look for in a tablesaw? Ultimately, I would love to get a nice cabinet saw, but I don't think they will run on 110. Also, what's the difference between a hybrid/supersaw/contractor saw, and would one of these be sufficient (read: accurate and powerful enough) to last me for a good while? I'm pretty novice, but I hate buying things more than once. (I know the jointer is an exception). I'd probably want to put a router table extension in the saw eventually also, unless there's a reason not to.
Thanks in advance!
-Justin-
I have a few "floor" tools already: a drill press, a 14" bandsaw, and a 1442 lathe. I would like to finally get the tablesaw. (I know...I should have gotten that first.) I also bought a planer last week at the houston WW show. I think that by rearranging a few things and possibly getting a small shed for the lawnmower and such, I can find space for a tablesaw. I don't, however think I will be successful in finding enough space for even a 6" jointer. I was contemplating getting one of the benchtop models to handle jointing tasks until my wife and I are in a financial situation that will allow us to upgrade our housing situation. I'd try to sell it when we do move and recoup some of the money. In the meantime, I can probably go over to a friend's house to joint anything longer (he has a 6" floor jointer). Is this worth it, or should I just ask to come over ANYTIME I need to joint something.
Right now my detached garage is severely underpowered. I basically have one 110V outlet. Of course, my main electric panel is all the way on the other side of the house, so getting better power to the garage is going to be a challenge. And, my main panel is already maxed out (including slimline breakers) anyways, so I would need to get an electrician out to also replace my main panel. (If anyone can recommend an electrician in the North Houston area, I'd be curious to see how much it would cost to do this...I can wire the garage myself if I can get someone to run electric for a subpanel to it!) I'm not sure if this is a waste of money though...I don't know that folks looking for a new house would see the "value" of a subpanel in the garage.
With all of this in mind, what should I look for in a tablesaw? Ultimately, I would love to get a nice cabinet saw, but I don't think they will run on 110. Also, what's the difference between a hybrid/supersaw/contractor saw, and would one of these be sufficient (read: accurate and powerful enough) to last me for a good while? I'm pretty novice, but I hate buying things more than once. (I know the jointer is an exception). I'd probably want to put a router table extension in the saw eventually also, unless there's a reason not to.
Thanks in advance!
-Justin-