About that Sawstop

[Warren Wilson]

I have been indulging my woodworking hobby for years now with a DeWalt jobsite saw and with lots of purpose-built jigs, it does an adequate job: tiny table but great pinion-geared fence.

A local supplier has the Sawstop contractors saw on for a good price and I have been pondering moving to the larger, heavier saw and from all I’ve read it is a nice, well-made tool. There are certainly some optional bits that are just not available for the little jobsite saw.

The DeWalt is a direct-drive 15 amp saw nominally rated at 2 HP. The Sawstop is belt-driven and rated at 1.75 HP. Will I really be giving up about 1/8 of the power by moving to the Sawstop? I don’t know enough about how the motors are rated or how the different drive technologies impact the cutting power to understand if I am comparing apples to apples on that hp rating.

Can anyone offer me any insights on this?

[Matt Day]

Check the amp draw on each motor. That will tell you more about the power than hp sometimes.

Also, a cabinet saw takes up the same or less floorium than a contractors saw. If you can afford it, I’d strongly suggest a cabinet saw. Then no more worrying about power.

[Dan Rude]

Unless it is a great deal on the Contractor Sawstop. By the time you add the 36" T-Glide fence to the Contractor version is $1,999.99 with the stamped wings, with the Cast Iron wing set for $270.00, total then is $2,270.00. You are already close to the 1.75 HP Professional Sawstop $2,719.00 with 36" T-Glide fence and Cast Iron wings. These Prices are from CPO outlet with Free Shipping, you do need to add the Lift Gate charge if needed. I got the 3HP Pro with 36"T Glide Fence 3 yrs ago and love it, but you need 240 V power it is $3,149.00 today. Dan

[George Makra]

A quarter HP difference is nothing, what ever saw you get just run a sharp blade and all will be good.

[Stan Calow]

I thought the prices for Sawstop were all set in concrete, and dealers could only haggle on the accessories. If you're getting a good price on the Sawstop itself, good for you, but maybe you'd care to share.

[Nick Decker]

Warren, I followed a similar path myself. Started with a Dewalt jobsite and almost upgraded to the SawStop Contractor. Went with the PCS 1.75 hp and very glad I did. Not saying the Contractor isn't a good saw, only that it's not a cabinet saw.

[glenn bradley]

I also feel that a contractor saw is only an incidental step up from a job site saw. You gain things like an induction motor and more of the standard after-market goodies fit. However, contractor saws come with their own set of compromises that can be very frustrating depending on how you plan to use the saw.

If the fixed pricing model on Saw Stops has changed, that could be a good thing. It is past time that they were considered side by side with similarly priced saws despite the safety features.

It is easy to sneak up the price ladder when looking at upgrading a tool but, my recommendation is to save up for a while and move right to a 3HP cab saw. Even these at the $3k tier are still hobby machines IMHO but, a hobby machine you can use for the rest of your life and hand down.

[Jim Becker]

You really cannot compare the two motors the way you are...quite often universal motors, like the one in that jobsite saw, have their ratings pegged at "the meltdown point", rather than what the actual horsepower is while using it. Induction motors, like those on a contractors' style saw or a cabinet saw, have ratings more reflective of reality.

Dan makes a very good point about being sure to understand what you're getting vs what you might want/need and the real price point for that. If the cost of the contractors' style saw approaches that close to the modest cabinet saw version, no question, I'd opt for the latter as a better long term investment as well as a better all around tool.

[Patrick Kane]

Agreed, throw the number out of the window when dealing with consumer grade stuff. Any belt driven induction motor contractor saw will have loads more power than the dewalt. As a contrary point to the others stated above, i actually think you gain a lot in a contractor saw. I agree with everything they say, and own a cabinet saw myself, but the used market is usually chock full with decent contractor saws. $300 in my market will get you a delta, jet, or powermatic contractor saw with 1.5hp motor and unifence/biesemeyer fence. I started with the same saw you have now, and then spent $250 to buy a delta 34-444 from the mid 90s with a unifence. Great little saw for a couple years until i bought a unisaw. I ran thin kerf blades exclusively, and the power was adequate for most things. Ripping 8/4 hardwood tested it a bit, but i cant say it ever stopped the saw mid cut. I had PALS for it, which helped greatly to align it within a few .001". This is critical, because you will be fidgeting with alignment several times a year, or, atleast i was. It seemed like things would slowly drift a couple thous out over the period of a few months, which got me in the habit of taking a dial indicator to it every other month. Depending on your budget and workflow, a used contractor saw gives you an enormous bang for buck, in my opinion. The only major things you gain with moving up to a cabinet saw are more power and a machine that holds its settings for years. I made a lot of projects on a contractor saw with a good fence system.

Now, throw that all out the window if you want a sawstop for the safety feature. In that case, i agree with everyone else in that you are better off saving for another year to get the right tool first.

[Bill Dufour]

AFAIK fixed pricing is not legal unless the store is factory owned.
Bill D.

[John TenEyck]

AFAIK fixed pricing is not legal unless the store is factory owned.
Bill D.

I'm pretty sure the price of Stihl power tools is fixed, but are sold at independent dealers.

John

[Frank Pratt]

I'm going to agree with @Glen Bradley that the contractor saw is actually a huge upgrade from a job site saw. Certainly a bigger step up than going from a contractor to a cabinet. But the additional step up to the cabinets saw is very much worth the added cost. A cabinet saw is just that much nicer to use, along with other benefits like better dust collection & smaller footprint.

[Nick Decker]

I'm pretty sure the price of Stihl power tools is fixed, but are sold at independent dealers.

John

The list goes way beyond SawStop and Stihl...

[glenn bradley]

I'm going to agree with @Glen Bradley that the contractor saw is actually a huge upgrade from a job site saw. Certainly a bigger step up than going from a contractor to a cabinet. But the additional step up to the cabinets saw is very much worth the added cost. A cabinet saw is just that much nicer to use, along with other benefits like better dust collection & smaller footprint.

Sorry, I think you misread my statement. "I also feel that a contractor saw is only an incidental step up from a job site saw."

With the alignment problems overall, and specifically with bevel cuts, the contractor saw can be quite painful. As a qualifier, if 99% of what you do is with the blade at 90 degrees to the table, you can get the saw aligned and leave it there and use it with very good success. The weaknesses start to show only if you make more liberal use of all that a tablesaw can do for you.

I ran a contractor saw (with about $300 of after market stuff thrown at it) for years with good success. As my needs grew, the need for a saw that can cut an accurate bevel and be returned to 90 degrees repeatedly became important to me. Until I needed those things, I was fine. Today, there are things I still do not need so buying a tool that does "more" would add no value for me.

I am happy with an 8" jointer. Someone else wishes his 12" jointer was a 16" but, I don't have that need. We are all different (thank goodness) and our satisfaction with a tool is tied to what we do and how we do it ;-)

[Warren Wilson]

Thank you for your thoughts on this. I will have a look at the specs for amperage and try to control my appetite for novelty. I actually do my woodworking under my carport roof and need to move the saw around regularly, so portability is a requirement and the contractor’s model seemed to offer a good compromise.

As far as pricing — I am looking at an individual unit that has been collecting dust in the store (actually it now has some Festool pieces covering the table that I had to move around to see the price tag). The dealer has lost interest in dealing with Sawstop and just wants the unit gone so he has reduced it to $1400.