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(03-06-2018, 01:12 PM)AHill Wrote: Some background:
I just moved cross-country and will be in a home where the garage is not a viable option for my complete shop. I have a PM2000 3HP TS with 50" rails. I have a lot of hand tools (planes, chisels, etc.). I have a BS, jointer, planer, router table, DC, miter saw, full size lathe, and a host of other power tools. My current plan is to put the larger stationary tools in storage and keep the workbench, hand tools, lathe and bandsaw in the garage. The jointer, miter saw, DC, and planer head into storage. Long-term solution is to find a cheap property where I can build a dedicated shop. But do I really need to? I'm 5 years away from retirement. Rental costs for storage for 5 years will add up quickly. I could just as well sell off the stationary tools that would go into storage. I have a Festool TS75 I can use to break down sheet goods. Money saved from selling the stationary tools could easily purchase an MFT, which together with the TS75 would accomplish probably 80-90% of what I could do with a TS. I can use the BS for ripping. I can use my hand tools for thickness planing (a lot of work, admittedly). I don't normally build large things. Mostly boxes and small wall cabinets and the like. Nothing like tables or large free-standing cabinets. I do enjoy turning, so keeping the lathe is not negotiable.
Thoughts? Suggestions? Is this a viable plan? Should I be more minimalist? No, you don't need a table saw.
If you have (as you do) the track saw then I think you're fine.
I don't have a table saw and I rarely wish I had one.
I do have a router table with a shelf on the bottom that holds my lunchbox planer. So I get two tools in the footprint of one. The router table covers the tasks which I would normally want a tablesaw for.
All my power tools are on wheels so I roll them around and out of the way when I need/don't need them.
The only tools that I would suggest that you keep are the planer and the dust collector.
I hate the time and effort that thicknessing lumber, by hand, takes. I only have so much time for this hobby so I don't want to spend it thicknessing lumber. I have a small lunchbox planer that works great for most of what I need. I also make a planer sled for the few times that I really need to joint/flatten a board.
I'm not sure how large your DC is but I would keep it. If it is very big then sell it and get a smaller one.
My $0.02
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Keep your thickness planer unless it is a floor standing model. Dump the jointer. Sell the Powermatic and use the funds to buy an MFT + Parallel Guide and other goodies. Ripping of hardwoods is what the bandsaw will do quickly and safely. Edge cleanup with a jointer plane. Use your jack to clean up a face well enough to sit flat on the planer bed and then run the bumpy side through until flat and then do the other face. You could then add a drill press if you don't have one.
Thanks, Curt
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When I moved to the Caribbean, I took my whole shop with me. When I returned to the mainland, I sold everything there.
Replacing the tools was pretty easy.
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Nobody "needs" any tool. People did woodworking long before power tools. Only you can know what is best for you. What is the magic number of people that you need to hear say that you can viably work without a table saw for you to sell it? A million people couldn't convince me to sell mine. Since you are already are thinking about selling it then you think you can. Sell it and move on. If you find out it was a huge mistake or situations change, buy another one.
"There is no such thing as stupid questions, just stupid people"
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Ditch the table saw and anything else you can't fit in the garage shop. If you have a track saw, band saw and maybe a small mitre saw there isn't a lot you can't do. Some jigs and a router will cover a lot of those too.
Personally I wouldn't be without my lunchbox planer and bandsaw. After that it's mostly handheld power tools, and a big old lathe in my garage shop.
Yes I know a table saw is more efficient for many tasks. But there is more than one way to skin a cat or cut a board. If it's a hobby, it doesn't really matter if some task takes 5 mins more....
So sell the stuff you don't want, and use the money to buy some nice portable tools, and save the storage rental into your "tool fund" for 5 years. Bet you will be able to pay for some nice replacement tools after that time.
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(03-06-2018, 07:24 PM)mike4244 Wrote: Do you have room for a storage shed?
The HOA does not allow sheds on the property. I could get around it by attaching it to the house, but then I'd have to make it look like the house (stucco, etc.), so the cost would be prohibitive.
Still Learning,
Allan Hill
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Is it purely a space issue or is there an issue of funds as well? The saw you have is rather large. You could sell that one and go with a job site type saw and add it to your current bench for added stability if you wanted to keep a table saw. You could also get an extra circular saw and build one of those table saw benches that are fairly common is Europe. I think Triton even sells one at Rockler if you would prefer a pre-built one.
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03-07-2018, 11:17 AM
(This post was last modified: 03-07-2018, 11:18 AM by rwe2156.)
It all depends on what kind of ww'ing you do.
For many like me, I couldn't do without one. In fact, I have two.
So for me selling that TS would be a mistake.
The TS is easily worth $2K. How many years of storage is that worth?
If you're keeping all the other stuff why get rid of the most valuable machine you own?
Personally, I wouldn't move anywhere I couldn't have a shop, but that's me......
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(03-07-2018, 08:47 AM)stav Wrote: Is it purely a space issue or is there an issue of funds as well? The saw you have is rather large. You could sell that one and go with a job site type saw and add it to your current bench for added stability if you wanted to keep a table saw. You could also get an extra circular saw and build one of those table saw benches that are fairly common is Europe. I think Triton even sells one at Rockler if you would prefer a pre-built one.
Mostly (95%) a space issue, and partly (5%) a 220v availability issue. A few years ago I considered going to 30" rails. That saves some space, but compared to a job site or contractor's saw, it doesn't save that much room. To be honest, with an MFT/3 table, the Festool TS75 will practically replace the PM2000, and the table folds up for storage, so that's a plus. I'll have a 3 car garage with the 3rd stall as my shop. Currently, there's no subpanel, so no available 220v power.
Still Learning,
Allan Hill
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(03-07-2018, 01:01 PM)AHill Wrote: Mostly (95%) a space issue, and partly (5%) a 220v availability issue. A few years ago I considered going to 30" rails. That saves some space, but compared to a job site or contractor's saw, it doesn't save that much room. To be honest, with an MFT/3 table, the Festool TS75 will practically replace the PM2000, and the table folds up for storage, so that's a plus. I'll have a 3 car garage with the 3rd stall as my shop. Currently, there's no subpanel, so no available 220v power.
You don't need the table saw unless you are used to cutting joinery with it. Would you miss a dado blade, or other Table saw joinery jigs? For me, No, I would not miss mine if I ever lose the space I am in now.
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