Granite top for table saw!

[Dan Forman]

Looking through the new edition of Fine Woodworking, I was surprised to see mention (P. 24) of a new tablesaw offering (cabinet saw) from Steele City with a granite top and wings. Top is about 2" thick, costs $50 more than cast iron, but will stay flat and wear better than CI. They say it would be more likely to chip if you drop a metal tool on it, but can be patched with epoxy in that event.

The new saw will also have a riving knife, will sell for $1250 with CI, 1300 for granite.

Dan

[Nancy Laird]

Dan, there was quite a discussion on this very subject in this thread:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=63394&highlight=granite

Nancy (77 days)

[Dan Forman]

Well, late to the dance again I guess. lol

As the owner of a decidedly unflat Delta Unisaw, I for one would appreciate a flat granite top on my saw.

Dan

[Randal Stevenson]

Well, late to the dance again I guess. lol

As the owner of a decidedly unflat Delta Unisaw, I for one would appreciate a flat granite top on my saw.

Dan

You might consider visiting a headstone shop then.

[Gary Keedwell]

Well, late to the dance again I guess. lol

As the owner of a decidedly unflat Delta Unisaw, I for one would appreciate a flat granite top on my saw.

Dan
I sympathize with you. I have one of those unflat Uni's. Sometimes I regret purchasing that 4 foot straight-edge.:cool:
Gary K.

[Bruce Benjamin]

You might consider visiting a headstone shop then.

I'm not sure if you just left out the, ":)" or not but as has been discussed before, what headstone or granite countertop manufacturer grinds to the tight tolerances that SC does? Looking flat and being flat with a straight edge are two different things. All a headstone and countertop has to do is look flat so why would they pay for the machinery to do any more than that?

Bruce

[Mike Cutler]

Looking through the new edition of Fine Woodworking, I was surprised to see mention (P. 24) of a new tablesaw offering (cabinet saw) from Steele City with a granite top and wings. Top is about 2" thick, costs $50 more than cast iron, but will stay flat and wear better than CI. They say it would be more likely to chip if you drop a metal tool on it, but can be patched with epoxy in that event.

The new saw will also have a riving knife, will sell for $1250 with CI, 1300 for granite.

Dan

I'm really looking forward to seeing one of these. I only question why they are using granite. We have granite reference tables in our lab, but we also have some tables made out of a black resin material. I think you could take an 8lb sledge to one of these tops and not damage it

[Gary Keedwell]

Easy...Stone is stable...(unlike my warped cast iron TS top.) and Steel city has a granite quarry near it's operation in China so they can manufacture it at a reasonable cost. At least that is what I have been reading.
Gary

[Chuck Lenz]

I'm not really sold on the idea of a granite top if it's that brittle.

[Ross Lowry]

I am a machinist and we use granite tables to check our part dimensions on, they are ground perfectly flat and they stay that way irregardless of the conditions.
Yes, they do chip when a heavy metal object falls on them, but it has to be quite an impact though. I once bumped a heavy steel part on the table and nocked it over and it didn't chip.
I don't think you would have a problem in a wood shop with them chipping since no machine shop I ever worked in had a problem with it.
One thing to consider is the weight factor, granite is not that light, it is very heavy.

[Gary Keedwell]

For many years I was the floor inspector for a manufacturing facility. At the center of my station was a huge granite plate that was precision ground within a few tenths of a thousand's of an inch.
I had to keep this stone clean and oil free so my gages and blocks would slide freely. I have had people come over and drop heavy castings and other materials on it when I wasn't looking or didn't catch them in time. Occasionally we had to use the services of a fork lift to move it to other locations.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that with all the care I gave it, it wasn't treated with any particular care by some of the machine operators who dropped their parts on it for me to inspect.
I, for one, would have no problem incorporating granite into any of my woodworking machines. I will never have to put my straight edge on it again and I won't have to worry about it rusting out on me.:)
Gary

[Chuck Lenz]

Now you got me thinking about a router table top. :confused:

[Dan Forman]

I don't think you would have a problem in a wood shop with them chipping since no machine shop I ever worked in had a problem with it.
One thing to consider is the weight factor, granite is not that light, it is very heavy.

The granite top adds about 60 pounds to the weight of the saw.

Dan

[Dan Forman]

Now you got me thinking about a router table top. :confused:

I hear you there!

Dan

[Bill Wyko]

One question I have is. What do you do with your magnetic feather boards?:confused: or any device that would be used magnetically on your table.

[Brian Weick]

No thanks, - that would break to easily. If it didn't chip and wouldn't break I would love to have that for a table!but because of that I have to say no to the granite - I like the steel tables.:)
Brian

[Paul Engle]

Check for flat? take your laser pointer and lay it against the surface , if it makes it to the other end your gtg. if not pull it off and have machine shop grind it . But for crying out loud .0001 " is way more than any piece of wood ever thought of bein flat.....much less stay thata way more than a day.

[Bill Wyko]

I just called Steel City and left a message in regards to the tops ability to be chipped. If they return my call next week I'll post the answers they give me about the chipping issue. Maby if it had a steel band around the edges or something like that.:rolleyes:

[Robert Mayer]

I treat even the cast iron tops on my tools with extreme care. Granite is not going to break if you practice reasonable care.

Just watch, this idea is going to take off. My next saw is going to be a steel city, although can i get blue granite on mine?

[Gary Keedwell]

Check for flat? take your laser pointer and lay it against the surface , if it makes it to the other end your gtg. if not pull it off and have machine shop grind it . But for crying out loud .0001 " is way more than any piece of wood ever thought of bein flat.....much less stay thata way more than a day.
I don't think the specs for the TS top will be that close. It would be a waste of money to have those tolerances. I'm guessing <003 -.004 over the whole surface. (but don't quote me)

Gary

[Mike Spanbauer]

IIRC that's about what the Jet and General saws that I've assembled new had in their spec sheets.

Something like .01 across the surface and an arbor with no greater than .005 runout (something like that)

each unit is hand tested before it leaves the factory or at least did for the units I assembled.

mike

[Gary Keedwell]

Yea, but cast iron can warp on you where stone is as stable as you can get.
GK

[Pete Brown]

What are you all doing with your table saws that would chip and crack cast iron? I would think that anything that would do real damage to a granite top would do the same to your cast iron top.

I treat my cast iron fairly well. The only problem is rust (from sweat or ambient moisture). A fan took care of most of that problem (in both cases ) :)

I have to admit that a granite top sounds pretty interesting. I'd miss using my magentic featherboard, but hey.

Pete

[Mike Heidrick]

I would think the areas of concern for me are the miter channels and any threaded spots in the granite.

[Bill Wyko]

I'm still on the fence on this subject. There are some very nice magnetic feather boards out there that would be on the shelf with a granite top. There also seems to be more and more magnetic accessories popping up as well. I wouldn't mind it on the fence though.(pardon the pun:D )

[Brandon Shew]

I'm still on the fence on this subject. There are some very nice magnetic feather boards out there that would be on the shelf with a granite top. There also seems to be more and more magnetic accessories popping up as well. I wouldn't mind it on the fence though.(pardon the pun:D )

I couldn't see any manetic featherboard of much use. Unless it fits into the t-slot then it could be bumped out of place too easily - even with a strong magnet.

[Allen Bookout]

I couldn't see any manetic featherboard of much use. Unless it fits into the t-slot then it could be bumped out of place too easily - even with a strong magnet.

Try the Grip-Tite magnetic featherboard system and you will change your mind.

[Bill Keehn]

Wow, I was just thinking the other day how cool it would be to have a granite top on my SawStop, and now I find out a manufacturer is actually doing it.

I just put a straight edge on my granite countertops and they are pretty darn flat. I was thinking I could buy countertop material and have some guys I know with a FlowJet cut it to precision dimensions. I think I'd attach a steel edge with precision holes tapped for the fence rails.

If I make one of these and it works well, I'll save the CAD files in case anybody wants to buy one for themselves. :D

[Gary Keedwell]

Wow, I was just thinking the other day how cool it would be to have a granite top on my SawStop, and now I find out a manufacturer is actually doing it.

I just put a straight edge on my granite countertops and they are pretty darn flat. I was thinking I could buy countertop material and have some guys I know with a FlowJet cut it to precision dimensions. I think I'd attach a steel edge with precision holes tapped for the fence rails.

If I make one of these and it works well, I'll save the CAD files in case anybody wants to buy one for themselves. :D
Be aware that all granite is not manufactured equal. The tolerances on the TS will be more precise then the tolerances on a counter. I had that thought a couple of months ago and checked into it. I also put my Starrett straight-edge on my granite counter-top and it was not very flat.
Gary K.

[Greg Peterson]

I have to admit that I'm intrigued. Granite top and riving knife makes for a very compelling configuration. Steel City tools are definitely on my radar these days. Not only are they offering new idea's, but these products are available in the market. Imagine the sales Steel City could have racked up if they would have implemented a 'Count Down to Precision' type of campaign?!

[Gary Keedwell]

I think it is great for the market and especially the consumers to have a new player. A manufacturer who is innovative at a good price and sprinkle some quality control in there, is a good thing, indeed. IMNSHO;)
Gary

[Paul Hendrickson]

I had pretty much made up my mind on a 1023 with the long rails. The only thing stopping me was the desire to have a riving knife. When I heard Grizzly was going to make a saw with one, I got very excited, until I found out it would also have a digital tilt gauge and standard outfeed tables, and be 700 more. :(

Then I heard about the granite top from SCTW. 3hp, 50'' fence (which everyone here seems to love) granite top, AND a riving knife to boot for $1300. I know where my hard-earned cash is going.

As far as those concerned about dropping tools and such, I am not sure just what ya'll do around your saws. I don't let anyone or anything near mine unless it is a piece of wood, and mine is a 40 yr old rockwell. Dance on your cast iron table saw in spikes and throw heavy pieces of steel on it if you like. Meanwhile I will be drooling on my granite, and not worrying about rust! Almost can't wait.

Paul

[Greg Peterson]

I was disappointed to see Grizzly's offering in the 10" cabinet saw w/riving knife category. For the price they're asking, I'd go with the PM2000.

The Steel City mortiser is also on my short list of tools to get.

[Chuck Tringo]

The question I have is how much depth capacity do you lose? I read somewhere that the granite table will be somewhere around 2 inches thick. It seems to me that unless there is a shalower cut out around the blade, you would lose a good bit of cutting depth.

[Gary Keedwell]

I don't have the reference in front of me but I seem to remember something about re-engineering and having no loss of depth of cut. Seems to me in was in another thread about it.
Gary

[Josiah Bartlett]

As long as the carriage is designed for it, they can make the arbor lift up into the insert pocket and not lose any depth.

[Bill Jepson]

No thanks, - that would break to easily. If it didn't chip and wouldn't break I would love to have that for a table!but because of that I have to say no to the granite - I like the steel tables.:)
Brian

Brian and the rest,
Granite DOES NOT CHIP EASILY. It can be chipped, and cast iron can be fractured, scratched, and dented. I very much like the idea of the Granite tops. I have only a Rigid TS, and I am constantly maintaining it to prevent RUST. My shop is in a very hot climate, and the wax just burns off. I do mechanical design for a living and can tell you that several manufacturers of CNC equipment have used granite ways on their machines. When asked why they said the available cast iron was problematic. Once the granite is cut they're done. The wear characteristics in a wood shop should be great. Just don't throw your hammer at it. If you don't WANT to believe it, well don't:) They will have plenty of takers. Most mfgrs wouldn't do granite since they are not set up to accomodate the material. One of the other things I like, besides flatness, The surface will resist most scratches. I really like that!
Should be slick, even if i can't afford one now I'd consider it for the future.
Bill

[Gary Keedwell]

Yea , What he said above me:rolleyes: :) My Uni. is still nice but when I set up for retirement , a TS with granite top is on my list.
Gary