For sure. The blades are not cheap. Dado, even worse. For the price of a dado for the Oliver I could buy a used little unisaw that needs TLC to run dados on LOL.
It takes 16-18" blades wit a 1" arbor. I do have 3 brand new unused blades that came with the purchase. forrest too...
I do case goods furniture mostly. Dressers, nightsands, etc...
I also vote for the Oliver. I have a Oliver machine and it's the flagship of the shop. I also agree with a bigger blade is better.
But that's mostly my vision based on the woodworking I do.
Good luck
Do you have employees? Anyone else work in the shop?
Fox up the Oliver while you have the SS to use. Then crush the SS with the Oliver. Keep the Oliver.
I’ve had two saws now for a couple years and I would not want to go back to a single saw of any type. My set up currently is a Jet 10” exacta saw that I’ve run for years, and an Oliver 260D that I’ve had for a couple years.
The difference in the two saws is immediately evident. There’s just no comparison. The Oliver is in a different league. I keep a cross cut and a FTG rip blade in the Oliver and usually a rip blade in the Jet.
The real utility is having the ability to set up a cut on one saw and use the other for something else. With the Oliver I can set up the quadrant gauge on the slider and then move it out of the way to use the rip fence.
My vote: keep them both!
Things are going to get interesting for me soon when I pick up a full size slider. I could squeeze all three in the shop but I’ll have a similar choice to make.
Micheal, how tall is the 88? The 260D is 34” tall, my only complaint!
Yeah for sure. Awesome you can keep the Jet around. A cabinet saw is very practical and fast.
I don’t know why this is even a discussion, I know the Oliver is a whole hell of a lot more saw. I guess it’s one of those "once you have it", it’s hard to sell situations with the saw stop. I wish I could keep both and that was my plan originally, it's just not possible. I’m guessing the 88 is in the 34" range as well. it’s on 4x4 skids right now and towers over the sawstop
Have you run the 88 yet? If it’s anything like the 260 you’re in for a treat. Once you have it off the blocks you’ll be shocked how stable it is, mine will balance a dime on edge......until you raise the blade and the rush of air shoots it off the table!
Which rip fence do you have? Mine has the ‘F’ fence. One thing I would encourage would be to make some sort of nice auxiliary fence for the quandrant. I’ve been just making wooden fences and that gets old. Some flip stops and a length of 80/20 extrusion would do wonders......I just haven’t made the time for that project.
Early on though I did make racks to hold the fences and accessories, it’s really nice to have a place to put the rip fence when you’re not using it, mine stays off unless in use. I have yet to use the miter gauge.
In my shop I’ve been keeping on bay open enough to pull my van in but I think those days are numbered!
awesome to hear you love your oliver. I have not run mine, yet. its literally in the corner with stuff piled on top of it.
I also have the type F fence. Good tips on the quadrant. I'll get around too that some day. I posted my SS for sale, just to see... Got a really great offer immediately. Looks like I’m keeping the oliver.
It's really nice to have a couple saws if you have the room. If you were within 1000 miles, I'd try to buy the Oliver from you to help make your decision easier. I wouldn't drive 100 miles for a sawstop.