| Well, it only took me a year and a half to outgrow the Ryobi BT3000 table saw. When the time came to upgrade, there was a whole new world of table saws out there. Since I have very limited shop space in my basement, So I only looked at those with short (30") rails. That still gives me many choices. From Powermatic's PM66 at $1899 to the Jet contractor saw at $599. I don't like the contractor saws' style with the motor stick out at the back. So I focused on the cabinet saw that most of them starting at least $900 except the Grizzly's. But for something that important to one's shop. Seeing is believing. Forget the Grizzly! There are basically four left Powermatic, Jet, Delta, General. There also bunch of off stream brand names like Bridgewood, Sunhill, etc. But I would get a popular brand name that I can easily get accessories for and parts from local store. General is Canadian made. One local shop carries them. At $1699, I don't see the big advantage over the same priced Unisaw or Jet Xacta starting under $1200 (2HP). So, scratch that one. Delta Unisaw, can get one for about $1400 if you look hard enough. But the color is definitely not for me - too depressing. I wonder if they started making Unisaw since 1920's. Anyway, for that amount of money, a better color is very much desired. So, scratch that one too. Powermatic PM66 is a monster and super nice mirror like tabletop. It's just like what you get is what you paid for. But there is no way I can move that thing down to my basement. Okay, forget PM66. I stopped by local tool store that they have a floor model for sale at $1299 (regular $1499). It is no less than the Unisaw or General 350. But still a big saw. Then there was this DeWalt DW746. The cast iron tabletop looks as nice as the Delta Unisaw or Jet Xacta or the General 350. It's got its own style. Motor is concealed in the half opened "cabinet" with a hood on the right side like the PM66. It is as sturdy as a real cabinet saw. The hand wheels are nicely laid out on the saw and the gigantic switch is very unique. I never asked that other saws could be sold without rails and fence, but this DeWalt has a few configurations that you can buy. One of them is just the saw with rails and fence. Plus I could get 10% off. So I went ahead and got the saw at $750. The reason for not getting the rails and fence came after I saw the super station at www.woodshopdemos.com.I want the similar setup. Enough said, here is the setup I have today. |
