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Its better than the one you have now.
Glad its my shop I am responsible for - I only have to make me happy.
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Joined: Oct 2003
I got mine from my dad in 1978.
After B&D took over Dewalt they reduced the weight of the saws to compete with Sears, Montgomery Wards and others. The 7790 was the commercial grade saw. The 7740 (740) is the baby brother. It was designed to spin a 10” blade, but that is really pushing it. Its capacity is 3”, but it will bog down some in 8/4 hardwoods. I could go through a dry 2x4, but wet pressure treated, not so much.
Once set up and aligned via Jon Eakes book (Eakes used the 7740 to illustrate all the alignments so it was a piece of cake to follow) it held its settings for near 25 years. Well, that is not completely accurate. I changed table to a Mr. Sawdust table with a 1/2” sacrificial top after about 6 years. But after re-aligning it held the settings. I would try to “tweak” it every few months, but really didn’t do anything. Always went back into its 90* indent after making a mitered cut.
That indent is a bone of contention, though. On the 7790 the 90/45 settings are indexed by a V-shaped indent and a v-shaped lever. Even if it wears, the center of the v's forces an accurate alignment. When needing to cut a hair different than 90 or 45 you disengage the lever and the arm is free to rotate on the column, then lock it down.
On the 740 there is a spring loaded pin that shoves into an indent. If you need to cut that 44.5* to fix that outside cove for that out-of-square corner, you are so close to the 45* indent that the spring will fight you and try to seat. My work-around was to leave the saw in its indent and put a playing card or two along the fence.
I was aware of the motor’s limitation so I cut accordingly. When ripping 2x4’s I either slowed down or made two passes. It was a yeoman saw, though. Saw me through two remodel projects. I gave it to my BIL a few years ago when I bought a 7790. He used it to remodel his daughter’s kitchen.
If you tune it accurately and keep a sharp blade on it , it will be a good saw for you.
(I started with a cheap BORG brand- what a difference when I bought a Woodworker I ATB. Call Forrest direct and ask for the RAS blade. If you join Delphi’s Dewalt forum -free- and mention that, they give you a discount).
or... hold out for a 7790 or an older round arm model...
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Location: Wapakoneta, OH
Arlin, a crummy RAS will make you curse the day you heard that acronym. That is one reason (in my opinion) the RAS has such a bad rap these, the lousy Craftsman saws didn't do much very well, and soured folks opinion (there were other reasons as well, but that was the main one). Another thing that happened with the Craftsman was that Dewalt (now owned by B&D) did some less than smart "cost engineering" on their otherwise solid design and came up with saws like the 740. Probably better than the Craftsman, but not the equal of the older models. Any of the older ones that have the solid cast iron arm are really nice machines. Many of the smaller models (the ones with 3/4 HP motors) do need a little care when cutting thicker wood, but they still work. I'd say it's a wise move to pass on this one, especially if you have another one lined up.
I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.
