Benchtop Tablesaw Recomendation

[stav]

Mike,

I posed a similar request here about a year ago, and though I have a Festool track saw, I needed a table saw for small pieces that were repeatable.

I received a number of suggestions including Rigid, DeWalt, and others, but I settled on the Bosch job-site saw because it had a fold-up capability and took up minimum
m floor space when not needed. It has met all my expectations.

BTW, I moved from a basement shop in Ohio to a garage shop in the Florida panhandle.

r2

Welcome to FL.

[Mike 55]

Mike,

I posed a similar request here about a year ago, and though I have a Festool track saw, I needed a table saw for small pieces that were repeatable.

I received a number of suggestions including Rigid, DeWalt, and others, but I settled on the Bosch job-site saw because it had a fold-up capability and took up minimum
m floor space when not needed. It has met all my expectations.

BTW, I moved from a basement shop in Ohio to a garage shop in the Florida panhandle.

r2

As always some great replies and good advice. Right now I'm between the Bosch or the Delta 36-725. I was in Lowes and while it's not portable, the mobile base was nice. I found a video review and it sounded good. That, and it has a cast iron top, all for $599. I also looked at a Jet contractor saw but that was $1,400. Nice but might be more that what I need. The Sun City community where I live has a 9,000 sq ft shop. Even with 25 years experience you have to take the 8 day class and build a small cutting board to pass and get your user card. Today I completed and pass the course. Yea!

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

Have you considered an older, cast iron saw such as a Delta Model 10?

[Mike 55]

Have you considered an older, cast iron saw such as a Delta Model 10?

It has to be mobile with a small footprint. My garage needs to be storage, work space and every thing in between. We are not allowed sheds or any out building. I brought my bandsaw, chop saw, mortise, spindle sander and workbench. That already takes up a lot of wall space. Leaving a 3,500 sq ft basement shop that was designed for it was a hard choice.... but I love it here and now I'm retired. All good!

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

It's a contractor saw that can be put on a bench. It's what contractor saws should be. Look it up.

[EvilTwin]

As always some great replies and good advice. Right now I'm between the Bosch or the Delta 36-725. I was in Lowes and while it's not portable, the mobile base was nice. I found a video review and it sounded good. That, and it has a cast iron top, all for $599. I also looked at a Jet contractor saw but that was $1,400. Nice but might be more that what I need. The Sun City community where I live has a 9,000 sq ft shop. Even with 25 years experience you have to take the 8 day class and build a small cutting board to pass and get your user card. Today I completed and pass the course. Yea!

I saw that saw (har har) too, and for the price I was impressed.  Not much more than the portable versions.  It's what nowadays is called a hybrid since it mounts the trunnions to the bottom of the top but keeps the motor tucked inside like a cabinet saw.

It's a contractor saw that can be put on a bench.  It's what contractor saws should be.  Look it up.

The thing with older contractor saws is that they are older contractor saws.  No riving knife and they hang that motor all the way out in the back.  Plus they are heavy to move around.  There's a reason they don't really make them anymore.

These new portable machines have decent dust collection via a shroud around the blade, riving knives for safety, reasonable footprints and portability via the stands with wheels.  The blade guards work well enough if you use them and the fences are square without that much fiddling.   The downsides would be the noise from the universal motors and the limits of what size pieces of stock you can cut on them.  But if you aren't cutting large panels or only intend to use if for occasional work as most homeowner types do, its a great alternative.

[Mike 55]

I saw that saw (har har) too, and for the price I was impressed.  Not much more than the portable versions.  It's what nowadays is called a hybrid since it mounts the trunnions to the bottom of the top but keeps the motor tucked inside like a cabinet saw.


The thing with older contractor saws is that they are older contractor saws.  No riving knife and they hang that motor all the way out in the back.  Plus they are heavy to move around.  There's a reason they don't really make them anymore.

These new portable machines have decent dust collection via a shroud around the blade, riving knives for safety, reasonable footprints and portability via the stands with wheels.  The blade guards work well enough if you use them and the fences are square without that much fiddling.   The downsides would be the noise from the universal motors and the limits of what size pieces of stock you can cut on them.  But if you aren't cutting large panels or only intend to use if for occasional work as most homeowner types do, its a great alternative.

Well, while reviewing info on the Delta 36-725 it may be a discontinued saw. I aslo found an article between this and a Ridgid R4512. I plan to take a ride down to Home Depot to check it out. For the most part the reviews have been good. I need to see the cast iron top and how the mobile base works.

Does anyone have this Ridgid model?

[EvilTwin]

Well, while reviewing info on the Delta 36-725 it may be a discontinued saw. I aslo found an article between this and a Ridgid R4512. I plan to take a ride down to Home Depot to check it out. For the most part the reviews have been good. I need to see the cast iron top and how the mobile base works.

Does anyone have this Ridgid model?

Here is a pretty comprehensive review of the delta: https://www.lumberjocks.com/reviews/3822  It has a T square fence, a blade shroud for DC and a riving knife.  Really reminds me of a jobsite saw built into a shop saw.  

The Ridgid saw looks pretty good too for the price.  It has a riving knife, but the differences that would matter to me are the extruded fence vs. the T Square and it doesn't use a shroud around the blade but instead has a large dc port that makes up the bottom of the saw box.  So all the dust falls down and gets drawn out of the saw that way.  For all the years I have been working wood, once that dust gets past the blade, you never capture it all.  I think a shroud with good suction is the best way to do it,  but this is certainly adequate too.

For the money, I dont think you could go wrong with either saw.  Both have stamped wings and fairly standard miter gauges.  Both will run on 110.  But if you want to maximize space, the jobsite saw will still win out since it probably uses half the floor space stored.

[daddo]

For some reason, most folks here hardly mention Makita, but I've been using their tools both hobby and professionally for well over 30 years and I have never been unhappy with them. They've always outlasted most other brands I bought. I still have a power drill I bought 34 years ago and use it professionally- it's still on the truck. I still have the power planer and belt sander which are about 18-20 years old now.

The two I would consider most are the Makita and possibly the Ridgid.

[museumguy]

First of all, I don't want it to seem like I'm anti Ridgid, in fact, my shop is full of Ridgid orange stationary tools. I have a TS 3660 table saw, contractor style.
I am a member of the Ridgid forums and suggest that if you are considering buying a R 4512, check the reviews. Most of the issues are with the 2 piece fence rail system. If this is a non issue with you, then I recommend the saw.