I have been looking for a nice high end table saw for quite a while. I went to Sears this weekend ready to buy their saw, but it went up quite a bit in the last month, so I walked out pissed. This evening me and the wifey went to Wal-Mart, and I decided to stop and look at Home Depot. Chris (Geolemon) told me about his Ridgid saw, and how much he loved it. Also of note was the neat caster system it has. You can step on the pedal and it raises the table on a caster platform. Roll it to where you need it, and step on the release and it drops down on fixed adjustable stands. Pretty darn slick!!! Well, walking into Home Depot (Sorry Mike, I looked at Lowes, and I prefer shopping at Lowes, but their selection was junk) I came across a surprise... They mislabled the Table I wanted... and they gave it to me for that!!! So, I got the table for a huge discount, plus since I bought over $500 in Ridgid tools, they gave me $100 Home Depot gift card!!! So I am going to be getting the roller stand (to support cut wood) and a nice collection of large cabinet assembly clamps!!! Anyways, here 'tis... :ss: Happieness. I will be a stereo building fool for the next couple weeks. Chris, The WWII, or Wood Worker II is the saw blade I was telling you about. When it gets done cutting it is like a freshly sanded cut. We cut some solid Walnut with it that we used for veneer... no kidding, it was that thin!!!
you can buy all the tools you want from Home Depot, I dont work for the Tool companies Just dont buy any of your Grills, Hoses, Garden Tools, etc etc etc from them As far as Selection Goes, it really depends on the Location, Although most of the NC stores do carry full assortments (after all Lowes is Based in NC ) remember to that lowes can order pretty much anything that the brands they carry make, even if they dont stock it I always love finding the Mispriced products, that is a Great way to get Deals, what did you pay for it anyway?
That's awesome Seth. I have been wanting one for a while, but I can't afford even the cheap ones, and I'm not impressed with them. My biggest issue with cheap table saws is the adjustable fence. Usually when you move them, they don't stay parallel with the saw blade. I was spoiled at Whizzy's where our installer had a Dewalt. So now for my question. How is the fence on that saw? Does it move uniformly, or is it easy to move one side more than the other? BTW, we shop at Lowes for all our stuff at Adire. But that's because they are only a few blocks away. My biggest complaint is their nut and bolt selection. They used to have a huge selection, but now it sucks. [french accent] I spew raspberries in the bolt sections general direction. [/french accent] Steven Kephart Adire Audio
The fence stays very true, it's very thick, and it's adjustable in tension. It moves fine in either direction, it's idle-tension is adjustable as well. I love my table saw, the caster system is nice, I roll it out of my garage into the driveway to saw whenever it's nice out, drop it down on it's feet, and it's stable. When I'm done, I press the platform down again, roll it back to it's parking spot in the garage, and set it down on it's feet again. Last time I was in Home Depot, I saw that they had that saw on sale... Normally, it's $600 (that's what I paid for mine). The regular price has been not only lowered to $550, but they've got an additional $100 worth of rebates, or something along those lines... and $450 for a saw like this is a bargain and a half. B) I also bought a Rigid outfeed table, which folds to a very compact size. I prefer that over a roller, because you can feed your material off the saw, and onto the outfeed table - and let go of it, without it rollling off and crashing to the ground. Just a thought.. the outfeed table isn't too expensive, I don't think... it's got a plastic narrow tabletop that slightly tilts, to accept your outfeed as it comes off, and it's adjustable in height. It's a really good compliment to the table saw, and a must if you are cutting large panels.
The 2 most important things I looked for was the solid cast iron table and extentions and a solid fence. The fence is self-explanitory, but the table surfaces are important as well. I felt it met both criteria perfectly. The caster platform is so nifty that it alone would have sold me, but the price, warranty (3 years) and quality of the unit were definately a bonus as well. The stamped steel tables are not easy to clean. It you spill glue on it and try to scrape it off you will likely score the surface. If you score the surface the workpiece will not slide across it correctly. Not only that, but it you are using a fine wood and slide it across a burr you may scratch the surface so deeply as to make repairing it a nightmare. With a cast surface you can scrape it with a putty knife or razor scraper, and even sand the excess off without worry. The surface will simply not score. A quick wax (simple car wax will do well) allows for a nice slick surface that should outlast the motor...
It's also very smooth... You can stand a nickel on it's side, on the table surface, turn the switch on to fire the saw up, and the nickel not only won't fall down, but it won't even wiggle. B)
You were right chris, this is easy to set up. I am an hour and a half into it, and all I have left to do is the motor assembly. I lined up the pitch gauge and the blade/fence and did everything. I'll bet I'll have this done inside 2 hours. The guy at the store told me "This is a 12 pack job". So I called Chris and he said WTF? It's not that bad at all... Well, Chris was right. No issues. Yeah, I saw the outfeed tables. I might just get one of them too. I got a hundred bucks to play with, so what have I got to lose
Hell yeah, buy two then! One for each side of the outfeed... I generally center mine with the blade, but definitely have cases here and there where I could have used two, or just a wider one. B) The motor assembly isn't tough either...it just hangs on a pivot point, gravity holds the belt taught just right (of course, good saws have used that sort of mechanism since the 40's at least).
Nice toy you got there! What will your first project be? I wish I had room for one, but maybe in our next house. My dad does woodworking as a hobby and picked up one of these bad boys at a craft show a few years back. I love the way it sounds.
I'll bet that has a 6 foot ripping capacity. That table is HUGE. Mine makes almost no sound. All you hear is the blade rotating. It sounds like "SSHHHH". The motor is totally enclosed and the belt is also covered. It is remarkably quiet... even moreso than my good friends Craftsman Professional table, which is what I was going to buy.
Yeah, it is a very capable saw - the reason he got it, among others, was so he could rip some cherry and oak he had milled and dried. My folks own some land in East Texas and they cut down a cherry tree and some oak and turned it into lumber. Some of those cherry pieces are simply gorgeous and are as long as 10' and 8-10" wide. Right now he has most of the lumber stacked in a bedroom, which I am sure my mom loves. But the sound table saws make are awesome. Just that quiet "sssshhhhh" sound you mentioned. It's almost like music. I watch the New Yankee Workshop all the time and drool at the tools that guy has. Maybe someday I will have a shop 1/2 that nice.
Ooops, sorry... First project will be my new HT sub which will feature a Koda 10 ported. Some of those show with those guys are amazing. The things they are contracted to do, and the knowledge, talent, and skill involved are intimidating.
Nice project to chrsiten in the saw! Post pics when done please! But you are right about the guys on those shows - it's like they can pull a 6 drawer armoire with hidden sliding door hinges out of their ass in a few days time. I greatly admire people who create and build things like that. It's a true talent to be able to create something out of raw wood, glue and nails.
Will do. I am still trying to design it in my head. I know the important stuff, like size and tuning, but I need to think about asthetics. I have about 4 ideas running around in my head right now. I have the amp, sub, wood, veneer, grill cloth, grill push pins and recepticles, finish (I will use tung oil)... everything. It is just a matter of what it looks like when I am done. :bag:
Glitter in a table-top epoxy suspension. Anyway, that Delta saw and the Rigid saw are nearly identical in size, the Delta probably has about a 12"-24" longer table out to the right had side there, and the extra legs to help support it. The Rigid has a nifty caster system, with pedals that operate it, that allow you to rest the saw down solidly on it's feet when you need stability, or jack it up on it's casters to roll it around to a location more suitable to the cutting currently on-hand. I keep mine parked in the garage, out of the way, and then roll it into place (or even into the driveway) when I am ready to use it. B) My father in law is a big Delta fan.. but more the classic Delta tools, the professional and institutional tools. He hunts them down and restores them, from the 60's - 80's mostly. He's talked me into several Delta tools... I've got a Delta table saw in my basement workroom, along with a Delta drill press, Delta jointer, Delta 14" bandsaw, and I just got a large Delta woodworking lathe from him as well. Some nice stuff... all cast metal, they just don't make them like that anymore. Solid.
i dont know I put together a Few Display Delta Peices back when I was doing assembly for Lowes They have some Nice Cast Peices, and HEAVY SONS A BITCHS too
