Upgrading from jobsite

[Joe Crouch]

Hello all,

I just want to start off by thanking everyone for the awesome information and ideas on here. I have been a lurker for awhile and have learned a lot just browsing this site.

Currently I have a crappy Ryobi jobsite saw. I worry every time I cut with it because it seems like something is smoking or not quite working right. I am looking to get something more reliable. I have been browsing CL and the likes and I struggle to find much it seems. Recently what looks to me like (probably?) a Craftsman 113 came up. The price right now is too high ($200), but I wanted to double check with you guys if this looks like a decent saw.

https://imgur.com/a/Zf8onaX

I would much rather get a decent used cabinet saw (unisaw or pm66 I've seen thrown around here). But the prices on those are often 1k+ from everything I see in my area.

Any and all advice is welcome!
Thanks!

[Ben Helmich]

Look at the fence first. It all boils down to the fence. And a riving knife. Highly recommend a riving knife. The 113 doesn’t tell you much. The first three are the manufacture code, in this case Emerson. They made a million saws for Sears. If you get the rest of the serial number in front of some Sears guys they might be able to tell you more. In general I’d rather have a mediocre saw with a great fence than a great saw with a crappy fence.

[David Buchhauser]

Hello all,

I just want to start off by thanking everyone for the awesome information and ideas on here. I have been a lurker for awhile and have learned a lot just browsing this site.

Currently I have a crappy Ryobi jobsite saw. I worry every time I cut with it because it seems like something is smoking or not quite working right. I am looking to get something more reliable. I have been browsing CL and the likes and I struggle to find much it seems. Recently what looks to me like (probably?) a Craftsman 113 came up. The price right now is too high ($200), but I wanted to double check with you guys if this looks like a decent saw.

https://imgur.com/a/Zf8onaX

I would much rather get a decent used cabinet saw (unisaw or pm66 I've seen thrown around here). But the prices on those are often 1k+ from everything I see in my area.

Any and all advice is welcome!
Thanks!

Hi Joe,
I have a similar Craftsman table saw that I purchased new in the early 80's. This saw was not offered with a riving knife, but did come with a splitter/blade guard as shown in my photos below. I have seen similar Craftsman saws sell in my area (Tucson, Arizona) for anywhere from $50 to $250, depending on condition. You would need to inspect the saw in question and try it out to see exactly how it runs.
David

20200519_222258_resized.jpg 20200519_222318_resized.jpg 20200519_222413_resized.jpg 20200519_222427_resized.jpg

[Lee Schierer]

That is essentially the same saw that I have and it can be made very accurate. Take a look at my website and you will see the projects I've made on that saw. The only really bad feature of that saw is the fence. It is a pain to use because it rarely locks down parallel to the blade each time it is repositioned. I upgraded mine to a Beismeyer fence years ago.
lsfence1.jpg

If you buy that saw you should for safety reasons build a guard around that exposed belt and pulley. You should also invest the time in aligning the saw so the blade is parallel to the miter slots.

[David Buchhauser]

Mine has a semi "belt guard" due to the OEM Craftsman dust collector assembly. I've never felt the need to upgrade the fence, although I will agree that it is sometimes cumbersome to get aligned perfect. I can still do accurate work, even with the OEM fence.
David

20200519_222309_resized.jpg

[Mike Kees]

Look at the fence first. It all boils down to the fence. And a riving knife. Highly recommend a riving knife. The 113 doesn’t tell you much. The first three are the manufacture code, in this case Emerson. They made a million saws for Sears. If you get the rest of the serial number in front of some Sears guys they might be able to tell you more. In general I’d rather have a mediocre saw with a great fence than a great saw with a crappy fence.

I am with Ben on this one,for me the fence is priority #1 motor with adequate power is number 2. Look for a Delta contractors saw with a Unifence or a Biesmeyer.

[David Buchhauser]

Look for a Delta contractors saw with a Unifence or a Biesmeyer.

But probably not for under $200.
David

[Jim Becker]

Joe, please clarify your budget...in your OP you say that the Craftsman was too high at $200 but does that mean it wasn't worth that to you or that you couldn't afford to pay that much? If that's your actual budget, things are going to be pretty difficult.

[Joe Crouch]

Thanks for the advice so far! Really appreciate the help. From looking at the pictures it doesn't seem like that great of a fence. Probably something that would need replaced. Also, good idea about the belt/pulley guard! I had not thought of that.

With regards to budget, anything up to 1000 is reasonable to consider. I would much rather stay in the 500-600 max range but could push that if needed. Also, it's perfectly fine with me if I can get by a little cheaper because I don't own too many tools at all yet. If I can save some here, the sooner I can get a planet, bandsaw, etc.

I don't need it to be the best saw in the world. And I don't mind putting in a bit of work to fix something up. But I do want something dependable that I know can last me for awhile.

[Mike Kees]

Five hundred for a Delta contractor should be very doable.

[Curt Harms]

If I were in that market, I'd look for a Craftsman "zip code" saw, preferably the 22124(? not sure of the model) Hybrid saw, trunnions mounted to the cabinet not the top which makes alignment simpler. Can run on a 20 amp 120 volt circuit and comes with a Biesmeyer fence. There are 2 other models that come with a less well regarded fence but possibly cheaper. I think there's a Ridgid saw from the same source though I have no idea about the model #, something like Ridgid 45xx.

[Joe Crouch]

A different saw came up on the market just today. Looks very similary only it has the "contractor" label on the saw. Does anyone know if this means anything different?
'https://fortwayne.craigslist.org/tls/d/auburn-table-saw/7130968361.html

Also, I found a PM66 that has been up for sale for awhile. It looks like it has a unifence with it. I assume this would be a much better saw. Not so sure on the pricing though. Anyone have thoughts on this one?
'https://fortwayne.craigslist.org/tls/d/oxford-powermatic-10-model-66-table-saw/7111284343.html

Thanks again for all the help! I really do appreciate it!

[Ron Selzer]

The Craftsman is a better saw than the one I started on and learned a lot about the faults of an inexpensive saw. Still got work done with it, ruined and repaired alot of wood with it. Even got some cut right the first time. The Powermatic could be a good saw, depending on condition, definitely get the Delta Fence with it.
Given your budget I would seriously consider the https://www.grizzly.com/products/Sho...able-Saw/W1837
Good luck
Ron

[John McKissick]

Hello all,

I just want to start off by thanking everyone for the awesome information and ideas on here. I have been a lurker for awhile and have learned a lot just browsing this site.

Currently I have a crappy Ryobi jobsite saw. I worry every time I cut with it because it seems like something is smoking or not quite working right. I am looking to get something more reliable. I have been browsing CL and the likes and I struggle to find much it seems. Recently what looks to me like (probably?) a Craftsman 113 came up. The price right now is too high ($200), but I wanted to double check with you guys if this looks like a decent saw.

https://imgur.com/a/Zf8onaX

I would much rather get a decent used cabinet saw (unisaw or pm66 I've seen thrown around here). But the prices on those are often 1k+ from everything I see in my area.

Any and all advice is welcome!
Thanks!

Iffff you want to stay with something small and storable I think the Bosch jobsite saw with gravity rise stand is very good. I have the older model and it's quite accurate. I just measured blade to slot runnout at virtually zero. more accurate than the blade runnout (wobble). Fence is pretty rigid and I haven't had it move on me yet during a cut. I considered upgrading ONLY for table size but the small footprint folded up + accuracy is more important to me right now.
My priorities may change in the future

[Thomas L. Miller]

Joe,
I had one of these saws prior to upgrading to a cabinet saw. One thing that mine had that drove me nuts was the miter gage slots weren't 0.75 inches. they were just enough smaller that nothing off the shelf worked with them. Be careful when you're looking at a used saw and measure those slots carefully!
Hope this helps. Good luck with the journey!
Tom