New Table Saw or Jointer?

[John McKissick]

I started out with a very inexpensive table saw with a plastic/metal top, added a 4" used jointer with a washing machine motor. upgraded to a Delta Contractors saw and a 12"Wood Master planer/molder and a 6" Jet jointer. then a 60" SafteySpeedCut panel saw a couple years later . 25 years later got a SawStop ICS, now looking to go to a 12" jointer.
SAID all that so you know my background, I recommend a jointer no matter how small for your next piece. Don't have to face joint anything but I find it had not to edge joint even on plywood. You can make auxiliary tables to surround your small saw to make it easier to handle wide/long pieces.
If you plan on staying with plywood then consider a small panel saw such as the https://www.rockler.com/safety-speed...ro-2-panel-saw
Think long and hard on what to do and then like whatever you end up with. Use it until you get another chance to upgrade again.
good luck
Ron

That is a tool I haven't considered yet. That is definitely worth considering.
Thank you

[Von Bickley]

My shops have been built around a decent table saw.

[Justin Rapp]

I don't foresee using rough cut lumber. I think most projects would be cabinet sized or smaller. I see some cabinet/desk type of units in a utility room for craft projects etc. Maybe something cabinet sized but a little nicer in living/dining area for camera equipment storage.

I have seen videos of folks making a big sled to put a straight edge on ugly shaped wood (rough cut).

Rough Cut isn't just the edge grain. Rouch Cut lumber isn't always flat, and it almost never if after it dries. Using a jointer to flatten the face of wood is the first step in the S4S process of wood. To get the edge straight on a table saw using a sled, the face of the board, at least one side must be flat, and you can't get this without either hand plan or jointer. Of course buying already flatten wood is the other way!

[jack duren]

A tablesaw. I dont have a jointer and I sleep just fine without it after 36 years.....

[Tony Shea]

I don't have a jointer and miss it every day. I have a Ridgid hybrid table that is over 12 years old and I still would rather have a 12" jointer than I would a new table saw. My primary way of working is with hand tools and have learned to flatten all my wood using hand planes. Often times I just end up getting lumber to thickness with hand planes if I don't want to break out the planer. I currently am saving up for a jointer/planer combo that is 12" at minimum and prefer to get a 16". I would use this tools more than any other power tool in my shop. Most of my work is done in solid lumber and not sheet goods.

[scott vroom]

Without question, the table saw is the most important tool in my shop.

I owned a Bosch job site saw specifically for job site work. It's limited in its ability, too small to breakdown sheet goods, and lacking safety features of a decent cabinet saw (most notably a riving knife). My local hardwood supplier carries a decent stock of s4s common domestic hardwoods at a considerably lower cost than big box surfaced lumber. As long as you are able to purchase surfaced lumber, I would prioritize a good cabinet saw over a jointer and planer.

[Andy D Jones]

Rough Cut isn't just the edge grain. Rouch Cut lumber isn't always flat, and it almost never if after it dries. Using a jointer to flatten the face of wood is the first step in the S4S process of wood. To get the edge straight on a table saw using a sled, the face of the board, at least one side must be flat, and you can't get this without either hand plan or jointer. Of course buying already flatten wood is the other way!

For flattening the face of a board, a jointer is certainly easiest, but a planer sled can also let your planer do it, with a bit more setup.

I would go with a hybrid or cabinet table saw first, with a good fence.

-- Andy - Arlington TX

[Jim Dwight]

John,

I have a SawStop PCS and a DeWalt track saw. For the first 30 years or so I made sawdust I used a table saw roughly equivalent to your jobsite saw. The last one was a Ryobi BT3100. I built a lot of furniture with the prior saws and have built a few things on the PCS. It is definitely nicer to use a big cabinet saw but, especially with a track saw available, it doesn't limit what you can make to have a smaller somewhat less capable saw. My shop is 14x24 so I do not really have the space for a 59 inch rip table saw but the track saw is easier to use on big pieces anyway. I have a work table which is also the table saw outfeed table that is 3x7 feet. I keep a piece of 1 inch foam board behind it against the lumber rack and when I want to use the track saw I put the foam on the accessory table. That's a lot quicker and easier than setting up a fold down table. One reason I don't use a table like you have for your Kreg is it wouldn't the the right height. I built a mobile base for my PCS to get it up to 38 inches tall and that is not a standard height for work tables.

I also have an old INCA jointer that can plane boards 8 5/8 wide. The beds on it are only about 36 inches long, however, and I have difficulty getting a straight edge on a long board with it. So I use the track saw. I have a 106 inch rail which has been long enough, so far. I plan a 10 foot dining table, however, for this year which will require joining my long rail with one of my shorter ones. Hopefully I can keep the joint straight.

Jointers can be a bit of an issue. A 6 inch is pretty narrow to use on the face of many boards. A 8 inch or bigger takes up a lot of space. The other issue I have with mine is if I joint the face of a board, I often do not get the thickness I need out of it. Better technique would help, undoubtedly, but I often just skip this step and use the planner (mine is an old Ryobi AP-10). That doesn't give me a really flat board but when I glue it to other boards and put it into the project, it will flatten out. If I am making a door, however, I need to get the stock really flat but the frame of a door is pretty narrow and thus not as much of an issue on the jointer.

If you cannot tell already, I think your next step should be a piece of foam board and a work table, if you do not have one already. You can also build your smaller saw into a mobile workstation with drawers and a larger top to make it more useful, that is what I did with the BT3100. The kreg table can be set up only when you really need it. Or possibly it could be your work table if you get the table saw the right height.

[Luis G Rodriguez]

Well, there is a lot of good advice here. But as many had already said, it sounds like what you need is a track saw and a 4' by 8' rigid insulation foam board. Cutting panels with the table saw is not really a good idea.


Also, some of the contributors have said that they don't need a jointer!?! unless you buy exclusively all sides planed lumber (where? and how much?). I can't believe that you would not need a jointer. Have you ever made a small box without properly squared pieces?

[Jim Becker]

Luis, welcome to SMC! And thanks for being a Contributor right from the start.

While I'm very much on the bandwagon around the need for a jointer...and for me that also means wide...there are many folks who find S4S acceptable for what they do or are fine using a sled and shims to flatten a board before thicknessing and other methods to edge joint. Everyone's workflow is different. Everyone's needs are subjective. A thicknesser can provide more general utility to many woodworkers over a jointer if they can only have one and a jointer is kinda the odd tool out without a thickness planer when it comes to power tools.

[Justin Rapp]

Well, there is a lot of good advice here. But as many had already said, it sounds like what you need is a track saw and a 4' by 8' rigid insulation foam board. Cutting panels with the table saw is not really a good idea.


Also, some of the contributors have said that they don't need a jointer!?! unless you buy exclusively all sides planed lumber (where? and how much?). I can't believe that you would not need a jointer. Have you ever made a small box without properly squared pieces?

Hi Luis,

Welcome to the forum. BTW - check the dates on the last post in the thread. Like this one, the last post was over 1 1/2 years back. Being new, you might find tons and tons of good information, but if it's an old thread, the op's question is usually answered and he/she has taken action already.

Again, welcome to the forum and glad to have you hear!

[Bill Space]

I have a 5 HP cabinet saw now, used to have a Craftsman contractors saw.

I have an 8 inch jointer, and a 15 inch planer. Bandsaws...radial arm saws...Shopsmiths...and other stuff.

If I were to lose everything, and have to start over, my first purchase would be a nice cabinet saw, or even a slider maybe.

Damm...I just realized I got sucked into reply to an old thread...oh well...