table saw purchase

[Bill Falkenbach]

I hope this query gets at least a few responses.
I am going to purchase a cabinet table saw in the next week and am trying to narrow my choices.
Needs are: 10"--3 to 5 hp--110v or 220v--accuracy!!
Cost is not important. I am interested in quality as I would expect the saw to be with me for a few years. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Since I'm in CA, I will be attending the Woodworking Show in Ontario this weekend. Are there typically dealers there that may have show specials? Anybody ever bought a major piece of equipment at one of these shows?
Thanks, Bill

[Chris Pasko]

I hope this query gets at least a few responses.
I am going to purchase a cabinet table saw in the next week and am trying to narrow my choices.
Needs are: 10"--3 to 5 hp--110v or 220v--accuracy!!
Cost is not important. I am interested in quality as I would expect the saw to be with me for a few years. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Since I'm in CA, I will be attending the Woodworking Show in Ontario this weekend. Are there typically dealers there that may have show specials? Anybody ever bought a major piece of equipment at one of these shows?
Thanks, Bill

If price is no option, have you considered looking at the minimax sliding table saw? They have excellent products, and excellent customer service. They also have a very helpful forum!


www.minimax-usa.com

[John Weber]

If you are looking for a traditional saw, then I would say a Powermatic Model 66, Delta Unisaw, or General 350/360 (I think that is the number for the Canadian built saw), are the leaders in the class. If money really is no object then Chris' MiniMax is sweet.

John

[Gene Collison]

I hope this query gets at least a few responses.
I am going to purchase a cabinet table saw in the next week and am trying to narrow my choices.
Needs are: 10"--3 to 5 hp--110v or 220v--accuracy!!
Cost is not important. I am interested in quality as I would expect the saw to be with me for a few years. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Since I'm in CA, I will be attending the Woodworking Show in Ontario this weekend. Are there typically dealers there that may have show specials? Anybody ever bought a major piece of equipment at one of these shows?
Thanks, Bill

Bill,

Several SMC members including my self have bought the Shopfox cabinet saw from Battels hardware in Whittier who BTW will be at the Ontario show. They will deliver , setup and back it up in an excellent manor. In short, good people. I think they offer free delivery and possibly a small discount at the show. The saw is an excellent product BTW, biesemeyer type fence. Good luck!!

Gene

[CPeter James]

The General 350/650 are made in Canada and the ones that I have seen look to be very well built. The owners really like them I think that the PM 66 is still made in the US down in Tenn. It is the heaviest in it's class and I would really like to own either of them myself, only $2,000 seperates me and the saw.

CPeter

[Kent Cori]

Bill,

There are lots of great table saws out there. Delta, Jet, Powermatic, General and Grizzley/Shop Fox all make saws that will meet almost any need a home woodworker will encounter. There is a range of features, finish and costs. I have a Griz 1023SL that I love and it is on the low end of the TS price range. I suspect if you polled every person on SMC that has a TS, 99% will tell you they think their particular brand and model is great.I recommend you kick the tires on a few, pick out the one you like best and buy it.

Unless you are planning on a full scale production operation, a 3 hp saw will be fine. Wheter 3 hp or 5 hp, you're looking at 220V power.

[Hal Flynt]

I'm very happy with my Powermatic 66. 3 HP has been more than enough so far and the fence is very accurate. Left tilt of course.

Put a Forrest II blade on it and a Freud Dado set and with outfeed, you can do about anything with precision.

That's my 2 cents.

[Boyd Gathwright]

Hi Bill, You are looking at things the way I do. Quality first, dollar second. It doesn’t make much sense to buy something of lesser quality when you are going fight it over many years to come. You are better off waiting until you have the money. With all that said, I bought a Powermatic 66 three horsepower saw not quite a year ago. In my opinion it is the top of the line stateside cabinet saw, I firmly believed I could do no better. Not a month after I bought it, I became aware of the European sliding table and combo saws. Which, after I did my research, I realized I had made a mistake for the long haul. Now the Powermatic 66 will, without question do the job and at a much lower price but the sliding table saw would definitely have made life a whole lot easier. I came within Two Hundred dollars of purchasing a Mini Max 8-foot sliding combo with shaper, 12inch Jointer and Planner and Mortiser. Along with that package there included a Mini Max twenty inch band saw and tooling for the shaper and Mortiser and blades for the band saw. It was a nice package but at the last minute the deal fell through. With that said, if you can afford it, I would, without question, buy a Mini Max or a Felder. I think you will find that the Felder is a little more refined and costlier but from my research you can do no better from a practical point of view.Good Luck with your purchase and I hope this helps.:)Boyd


I hope this query gets at least a few responses.
I am going to purchase a cabinet table saw in the next week and am trying to narrow my choices.
Needs are: 10"--3 to 5 hp--110v or 220v--accuracy!!
Cost is not important. I am interested in quality as I would expect the saw to be with me for a few years. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Since I'm in CA, I will be attending the Woodworking Show in Ontario this weekend. Are there typically dealers there that may have show specials? Anybody ever bought a major piece of equipment at one of these shows?
Thanks, Bill

[John Miliunas]

Bill, all good suggestions, thus far, but I can't let it go without throwing my choice into the mix. I bought a Bridgewood BW10LTS a few months ago. It's actually in the same class as the General and PM66, although it is manufactured in Taiwan. It's distributed soley by Wilke Machinery. They watch over the design and manufactur process, import them, set them up, test and ship 'em to your door. I think if you search around a bit, you'll find Wilke to be one of THE premier companies with A-1 Customer Service and Support. And, the $$ I saved over the General or PM allowed me to throw on a WWII and get a Biesemeyer splitter with $$ left over for wood to cut on it. No regrets. :cool:

[Rob Russell]

I hope this query gets at least a few responses.
I am going to purchase a cabinet table saw in the next week and am trying to narrow my choices.
Needs are: 10"--3 to 5 hp--110v or 220v--accuracy!!
Cost is not important. I am interested in quality as I would expect the saw to be with me for a few years. Any feedback would be appreciated.



Bill,

I've had 3 saws so far. I started with a Craftsmen contractor type saw that I got used. It worked but wasn't what I wanted. I replaced that with a late 70's Unisaw I bought at auction. I upgraded that saw but, with an addition on our house and new workshop, replaced that saw with a Felder european sliding table saw/shaper. Important point here - you said "cost is not important" and it'd sorta better be that way if you want to look at the MiniMax or Felder equipment, because you will have sticker shock.

Once you get past the cost, the european sliding saws offer function and ease of use that the American/Asian saws can't match. Why? You're clamping a board or piece of wood to a table that is supported to and slides right by the blade. The european saws have to meet stricter safety standards than in the U.S., which is why they all have riving knives for splitters.

The saws, especially the combo saw/shapers offer a lot of value considering what you get. The MM is nice equipment. I went with the Felder because I felt it offered slightly better quality (arguing BMW vs Benz here, though) and it definitely offers more options.

If you're hot to buy a saw this week, you're probably going to end up with an American/Asian style saw. If you don't mind researching a bit more and seeing what the euro-sliders can do, you'll be buying a saw that you won't need to replace. Imagine flopping sheet of plywood on a table and sliding it through a cut with one hand. Flop a 10' face-jointed and planed, but rough edge, board on your slider and rip a straight edge without worrying about jointing to get a straight edge. A single pass on the jointer to clean up the cut (if you want) and go to glueup. That's the sort of thing you can do with a slider.

Provided cost isn't an issue. ;)

Good luck with your decision. Rob

[Mark Singer]

Get the Powermatic 66 . I have had one for ten years and its great! Simple, reliable, and dependable. Its nice to have seperate machines if you have the space rather than a combo...Ps...I will probably go to Ontario too. Maybe I see you ...PM has dealers there...Abbey Machinery and Juniors.

[John Shuk]

Laguna has a great table saw too. I was impressed by the video but have never laid hands on one. I do like the european style splitter and the safety built in. If you call talk to Larry Drum. He is great guy and even if you don't buy the saw from him you won't be sorry for having talked to him.

[Glenn Kiso]

Hey Bill,

I think the Pm66 is a great saw, I had one for awhile. I added the Laguna slider to it and wondered why I didn't add it on sooner. You should take a look at Felder booth at the Ontario show just to see if a sliding table concept makes sense for you. I believe they will be attending the Ontario show. If the european sliders make sense then there are a number of saws from rojeck, mini-max, hammer, felder, and laguna in all price brackets that might be worth considering. If not, then I think the PM66 is the best way to go.

[Bill Falkenbach]

Thanks to all who replied. I value all of your opinions as this will allow me to better shape my decision when I pull the trigger on the saw.
Thanks, Bill

[Ed Falis]

... I bought a Bridgewood BW10LTS a few months ago. ...

I've got the same saw. Have had it a bit over a year now, and am very pleased with it. Nice big table, stable, good Bies-clone fence ...

- Ed

[Chris Padilla]

Thanks to all who replied. I value all of your opinions as this will allow me to better shape my decision when I pull the trigger on the saw.
Thanks, Bill

Bill,

Be sure and let us know what you get...we'll set up a nice "gloat" thread just for you! :p

Oh, and we'll want a pic or two, too! ;)

Have Fun!

[Steven Wilson]

I have a Powermatic 66 and it's a great saw. To bad you're not in the Twin Cities as I would sell mine to you. I have a Minimax CU350 smart on order (8' slider, 14" j/p) so the PM66 will need to go.

[Rob Russell]

Hi Steve,

You may want to consider holding on to it. I have had people tell me who have purchased Mini Max’s or combos that they wished they had held on to their cabinet saw.

Boyd ;)

The main reason people kept American-style saws was for their dado capability. The euro-sliders didn't have dado capability because they couldn't sell them in Europe (safety standards, I believe).

Many newer euro-saws do have dado capability, added specifically for machines shipped to the US. For sure the Felder and MiniMax machines do.

[Mark Bachler]

Got a Mini Max S 315 WS. coming tomorrow (I know I sound like a broken record). Quite a bit cheaper than a Felder with simular features. Either way there isn't anythin like a slider. zoom ZOOM zoom.

[John Miliunas]

ZOOM zoom.

No, no, NO! That's Mazda, NOT Mini Max! :D Congrats! We'll be expecting a full review from setup to testing! :cool:

[Steven Wilson]

Hi Steve,

You may want to consider holding on to it. I have had people tell me who have purchased Mini Max’s or combos that they wished they had held on to their cabinet saw.

Boyd ;)

Why?

For dato capability? The Minimax has a 5/8" arbor and can handle my Forrest Dato King.

Because the rip fence isn't as good? When you set the rip fence properly (pull it back to just cover the front of the blade) it's stable enough for an accurate rip, besides both Felder and Minimax have improved there rip fences in the last few years.

Or it's hard to rip with a slider? Not really, you can easily build a parallel ripping fence for your slider and have great rip capability

Reseting the machine? Ok, so you have to plan your work.

Boyd, care to explain why you make your statement? I've talked to a few folks that kept their American style tablesaws and they end up collecting dust in the corner and eating up shop space, eventually they sold them. Besides I have absolutly no room to have a large combo machine and an American tablesaw with a 50" fence both set up. Now, if my dream shop materializes someday then it would be nice to have a Northfield w/roller table or an Oliver hanging out in the shop with a big powerfeeder attached for ripping.