peter gagliardi
Contributor

Hi Peter,
I have an opportunity to purchase a Martin T17. I am going to take a look at it in a week or so. I’m trying to find out anything I can about the saw. I have a machinist background and I have been looking for a project piece. I do a fair amount of woodwork and don’t have a desire for a museum piece. I want it to look like one when I’m done, but it has to be a functioning part of my shop. I just can’t find any info/pics/videos or anything about this saw. Do you have any that you could share along with perhaps some thoughts on the saw? The same guy also has a Yates American g89 slider which is also very rare. I just have a bit of a thing for European engineering. Thanks.

Geoffrey, sorry for the delay in response. I thought you had PM'ed me, and i couldnt find it after looking, and posting a question in the forum help area to find this.
Anyway, for hardwood dimensioning, with a small slider , you really can't go wrong with any of the more well known heavy cast iron US or British machines by - Northfield, Whitney, Tannewitz, American, Greenlee, Oliver, Wadkin, etc... There is a reason they were the staple of furniture factories everywhere.
I do think all are capable of excellent work. You should have little trouble finding an older US machine, but you might need to budget for shipping. If you really want a Martin, T17's are rarer than the more common T75, but usually 2-3 surface every year. Just saw one sell a few weeks ago in NYC. If you have the room, a T75 is an aweful nice machine as well.

My opinion on which US machine I like best is the Greenlee, but a little harder to find than some of the others.

Peter

Hi Peter, my name is Geoffrey Keating. I have a handmade furniture studio out in Colorado (Keating Woodworks). I was wondering what table saw you would recommend for dimensioning hardwood lumber. I basically never work with sheet goods but would like to have a slider function as well as a better depth of cut than my PM2000 5hp offers.

It seems some of the obvious vintage choices (Martin T17) are super hard to come by. Any insight you could offer for new or vintage machines would be extremely appreciated. I've appreciated your insights on the forums for some time now (I basically get on every so often and lurk). Thank you for your time!
Geoffrey