I don't mean to gloat, but...

[Nathan Hoffman]

A while back I asked for advice on what tools constituted a good workshop for someone just starting out, and I received a lot of good feedback. So I started looking for a good tablesaw, jointer, router table and dust collector, picking up many good tips and opinions here on SMC.

I had narrowed my TS choice down to Jet and Grizzly, but fellow Creeker Rob Russell emailed me about his Rockwell Unisaw being for sale (he's replaced it with a beautiful Felder), so I snapped it up. It has several cast iron extensions and router table added to it (78" of cast top!)with a 52" fence and rail setup from Voss technologies, essentially a Beis clone. I bought a Hitachi MV12 from Amazon when they were $135 and have it mounted in the table, and the whole thing moves on an HTC mobile base.

The next item is the Grizzly G1182Z jointer which I'm impressed with for the price - it looks like it is going to work well for what I need. I would have liked a DJ-20, but with building the new house, etc, $$ is a little tight. I also just received my Bosch 1584AVS jig saw that came high recommended by SMC.

The last major tool for now is a good DC, especially since the shop is in the basement and LOML says that no way is she going to have her new house continually full of dust. I plan to order the Jet DC1100CK today.

Here are some pics of the tools in my dad's shop. In case anyone wants to know, that is a 1947 International KB-6 flatbed behind the saw.

Thanks for looking!

[Mike Scoggins]

Nathan,

Congratulations! Looks like you're well on your way to a well-equipped shop! Now the fun of turning out some projects can begin. Be sure to post pictures here as they're done.

Mike

[John Miliunas]

And worthy gloats they are, Nathan! Whew...Don't believe I've ever seen that much cast iron on a Unisaw before! Should make things real, REAL stable. A lot of folks have the M12V mounted in a table, myself inclusive, and I find it to do a great job. Can't comment on the jigsaw, as I had previously only had cheapies and finally opted for the Festool. I also have a Griz jointer, albeit, the little brother to the one you picked up. FWIW, I'm sure the Jet DC is an excellent unit but, especially if you're going to be setting up shop in part of your living environment (sharing the same HVAC system), I would consider going the cheap route for dust collection. By that, I mean, go directly to a cyclone unit with 6" ducts and add to it with an air filter hung strategically from the ceiling. Yes, I said "cheap". I'm afraid that, if you're in a shared environment, it won't take long at all before LOYL starts to notice a higher than permissible amount of dust in the house! If you intend on continuing your hobby/craft within the same confines, I think you'll find yourself looking at better dust collection and filtration. Doing it correctly now, will, I believe, save you loads of money in the long run. Take it from someone who ended up spending WAY to much $$ going the other way! Have phun with all your new toyls and keep us posted on the progress! You've got a great start on it! :cool:

[Matt Woodworth]

Wow, I lurk more than post around here but your unisaw has drawn me out. Holy cast iron, that must be nice and heavy.

You top is looking pretty good but you still might be interested in my article on cleaning cast iron tools.

http://www.just4fun.org/woodworking/articles/cleaning_cast_iron.htm

[Tyler Howell]

Nathon,
I'm a big fan of recycling and I'm real interested in your big iron there.
That reccycled item behind the Saw needs an OT pic review of its own.

Thanks for sharing.;)

[Rob Russell]

I can provide a little more history on Nathan's Unisaw. It's a 1977 vintage Rockwell "1.5 HP" and is a nice unit. I put 1.5 in quotes, because Rockwell underrated their motors - it's probably closer to 2HP. I bought it at auction a whole bunch of years ago (paid, too much, but that's another story). It was originally bought by a guy who wanted to build a boat. That never floated. I could tell by the amount of sawdust inside the saw in the trunnions etc that it hadn't seen much use. It has the Rockwell Low Voltage Controls motor starter. I'd guess that his saw probably has less than 100 hours of use on it.

The cast iron top of the saw is a total of 6 1/2' long. The extra extensions and router table were made by a company called Nucraft. There are (2) 12" cast iron wings. The router table is an 18" wing with a recess for a plate to mount the router to. The original plate was a plexiglass plate, but those cracked. The replacement plate (on Nathan's saw now) is Lexan. As I remember, it has 8 levelling screws (2 at each corner) plus 4 large screws to hold the plate down to the cast iron top. The 3 Nucraft pieces inserted between the right side of the saw and the wing. The original right hand 6" wing is on the very right side of the saw table by the router table.

The whole top is bolted together and to the mobile base. The net effect is a saw, with a 6 1/2' cast iron top and ability to use your main rip fence as a base for router rable add-ons.

The fence is a Voss Technologies Evolution II. It's a Bies clone, made by a company that's out of business now. It's a solid fence, but I would't be surprised if it gets replaced long-term with one of the slicker fences out now.

I gave him the Forrest Woodworker II blade that I'd put on the saw with one of their blade stabilizers too.

Nathan's got a great saw that will last him many years.

Nathan - question for you. It looks to me as if you did take that PITA blade guard off but left the splitter on. Is that true? FYI for the others, the saw has a hinged splitter that tilts with the blade and rotates back out of the way when you want to run a dado cutter.

Rob

[Byron Trantham]

Nathan, David Marks would be proud of you! He's a big fan of keeping equipment in play. Congratulations. I am sure you will be very happy with your decision.

[Nathan Hoffman]

Rob- Yes I did ditch the guard, and I've left the splitter for now, but I may do something different entirely in the long run. An overarm guard makes sense to me, but its not in the budget now. Is the Felder all ready to make some dust yet?

Does anyone else have an opinion on the Jet canister-type dust collectors?

[Chris Padilla]

Nice purchase...great TS.

Now let's talk about that 30s truck behind all the goodies! :)

[Rob Russell]

Rob- Yes I did ditch the guard, and I've left the splitter for now, but I may do something different entirely in the long run. An overarm guard makes sense to me, but its not in the budget now. Is the Felder all ready to make some dust yet?


The green monsters are getting there. The new shop looks a whole bunch different than when you saw it. You can actually walk around in there now. The saw/shaper is out where it's gonna be. I'm shooting for a mid-April commissioning.