Radial arm saw

Bonnan

Member
Who has bought one recently and do they like it? I haven't bought a saw in years and not keen on the big box stores; what's the alternatives?
 
I use Radial arm saw but they are dangerous. They will 'walk' across a piece of wood quicker than you can move. I prefer to use a Table saw. If I have to make a compound miter cut, then i'll use the Radial arm. Otherwise, I try to avoid them.
 
I picked up a used radial arm saw this summer and I like them very much and will not use a table saw but that is a different story.
Payed $25 for it but it did need a blade which I happened to have on hand. Never had any problems with them doing as the other guy says and have been using them since I was 8 or so years old
 
A good new radial saw is going to be very expensive! There are a lot of precision moving parts on a radial that have to be well built in order for the saw to function reliably, as in make straight cuts.

If you have a special need for a radial, best bet would be to check out the used market, but be sure what you get can be repaired and parts are available. Typical problems are the friction locks that position the blade angle get worn. The blade tends to not hold true position, then the locks get over tightened, get stripped or broken.

I've got an old Montgomery Wards radial I bought when I was a kid. I loaned it to a friend about 20 years ago, he still has it. I told him to just keep it until I need it, it's been that long and I haven't needed it! LOL

Between the table saw and the miter saw, I manage to get just about everything I need done. They are nice for doing dado cuts though.
 
Craigslist. Several will be for sale, very limited buyers. There are many real nice ones down here and I'll bet they are in your area. If you get one, put a load balancer on it to pull the motor back and keep it back. Also having a foot switch is real nice.
 
Sliding miter saws have replaced the radial arm saw market, due to safety issues. Lots of used radial arm saws are available at low prices, watch Craig's List. Plan on squaring up the setup on any saw, new or used, maybe do a tune-up also. Owner's manuals are still available if the manufacture is still in business. Many good how-to books were published into the 1990's, you can find them used for around $1.
 
I think most folks prefer to use a compound miter saw these days. Much more versatile than a radial arm saw. and the new sliding compound miter saws have pretty well made the radial arm saw obsolete for most folks. If you have a need for a big stationary saw, a table saw is probably more practical. In addition to a compound miter saw, I have two table saws: A cast iron Craftsman in my shop that I upgraded with a 30" fence, and a cheap Skil portable I use at jobs.

Used radial arm saws can be picked up for a song at garage sales and on Craigslist.
 
Helped a friend build a small house with one a few years ago. Mostly using a generator.
When we started, he shopped and could only find an expensive Craftsman 10" because
the saws pull themselves into the work and this one had a feeding mechanism
that limited the out feed rate. We used that thing A LOT!!! Ripping, crosscutting,
mitering trimwork, etc. Like three blades and wheelbarrows of sawdust. Plywood, dimension, framing, and even ripping rough 1" board & batten siding. Took a lickin' & kept on tickin'.
 
40 years ago my first saw was a 10 inch craftsman. I'll take a good 10 inch table saw over a radial arm any day. Radial arms don't give precision cuts. I just gave my radial arm to SIL, he only has a miter saw and circular saw. The reason Sears doesn't have them in store is because they don't sell. Special order.
 

Like others have said the sliding compound miter saw is very nice and safer.
I had wanted a power miter box saw but never bad enough to go out and buy a new one.
I was working on a multi story office building. Each office had cove moulding in it. The contractor that did the finish work bought nice compound sliding miter saws for that job. When they were done with those saws, they sold them to first come. I got one of them. I've NEVER regretted that buy.

Dusty
 

I bought a use 10" Craftsman at an auction many years ago. It is from the era when Craftsman still meant something. Actually has "Sears and Roebuck" on the I.D. plate. I use it mostly for making precision cross cuts.

A radial arm saw does have a tendency to pull itself into the work, but a good, sharp blade greatly minimizes that effect.
 

Made a wooden stepladder once using a radial arm saw. Put dado blades on the saw, adjusted the depth and proper angle, cut the grooves for the steps, still have ladder. Couldn't do that with a compound slide miter saw.

KEH
 
Like others have said, they are kind of outdated. One thing I still use mine for, is vinyl siding and aluminum soffit. Attach an 8' wing on both sides. Good, and fast for most cuts except gable cuts on siding.
 
With a radial arm saw, you can pretty much do whatever you can do on a compound miter saw... but I'd say not as well, or at least you have to work more at getting good results.

At least that's been my experience with a fairly expensive (at the time) craftsman radial arm saw my dad bought years ago. You could do good work with it, but it just wanted to be re-adjusted quite often. it was very easy to burn wood that was susceptible to it - like cherry.

You had the added convenience of being to rip with it - so if you don't have a table saw, and don't plan on getting one - you almost NEED the radial arm saw over a miter saw. But again - just because you can rip with it doesn't mean you should. It was dangerous when it caught and kicked, and it wasn't as easy as a table saw to get perfect results, and overall it was just kind of a pain to use for that.

I view the radial arm saw as a "does it all" tool - and like all "does it all" tools, it does all, but doesn't do any of it well.

If you're at all serious about your woodworking - do it right from the start. Get good compound miter saw - I'm partial to the dual slide makita - love mine. And a good table saw. For all around use, the Bosch portable one is hard to beat if you need portability. But if if you're wanting serious accuracy, you should get the best possible cabinet saw you can.

In fact, depending on what you feel your needs are, I'd almost go with the table saw first. Gives you a lot of capability.

Either way, these are the kind of tools ou don't want to try to save money on - get the best you can. Go cheap and you'll just lose interest in using them.
 
The Craftman or Sears radial arm saw has a recall. If you contact them they require you to send certain parts in and they send you a check for disabling the saw. I have a tool consignment store doing this with a Sears saw right now. It will take about six months to recieve thye check.
 


I have been using radial arm saws, table saws and various forms of miter saws for 40 some years professionally and as a hobby. None of them is any "safer" than the operator. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a radial arm saw if that's what someone wants. Far more versatile than a miter saw or table saw, but yes, you have to check your settings more often and they aren't real useful on larger sheet products, but neither is a miter saw. I will not be giving up my ancient Craftsman 10" anytime soon. It's my saw, my drum sander, my shaper, my heavy router, my moulder, my re saw, and my surface grinder if I have to. Yeah, it's not a perfect tool, but it's not anywhere near as antiquated as some would think.
 
I have two of them. One is a 10" Craftsman home model saw and the other is a antique Dewalt 16" professional saw. The home model saws work fine however they lack a lot of power so you have to take your time cutting with them. Although they are designed to cut a multiple different angles I would set the saw up to cut at 90 degrees and leave it that way. They are too difficult to get adjusted back cutting accurate when you start mitering with them.
 
I have an older Delta radial saw. It was bought used years ago and used it to build several homes and still comes in handy.
 
Like others, I have an old Craftsman and love it. I generally leave it for square cuts and it will cut square every time without being checked. Also use it for dados. Built a bench on the right side of it so I can lay a sixteen ft board on the bench but only use the saw's fence. I use a 100 tooth Freud carbide blade but you still have to respect it and pull with a stiff arm. Very accurate cross cuts. But it is just a supplement to the table saw.
 
Whatever brand you look at, check for weakness or side to side/up-down movement of the arm. Push up on the arm and sideways. You don't have to act like a gorilla but I'm sure you get the idea. Check for how smooth it glides. When you pull the carriage and let go it should glide a ways before stopping. How easy are the adjustments? How easy is blade replacement? When you change angles does it click solidly into whatever angle you chose to stop at, or is there still some slight movement after it has locked in.

I have a 50+ year old 12" Delta that glides nice, is easy to adjust and has ample power but I use it for rough cross cut 90 degree only. I tried dadoing with it once but the arm had just enough flex up and down to give me the feeling the dado depth might be varying just a bit. If I cut 45's and return it to straight 90 I have to check it with a framing square to be sure it really is at 90. The power mitre box is used when I want to make a finicky accurate cut.

Every power tool requires respect. My table saw sees the most use but if I make a dumb cut it will lash out at me. The skin on the top of one of my fingers is pretty much healed up from being torn up by a small board that was kicked back last August. My fault for not being safe.
 
fixerupper- About 8 years ago, I was ripping some boards on my table saw. Carbide tipped blade.
As my fingers kept getting closer to the blade I wondered what it would be like if my thumb was
to hit the blade.

So, I stuck my thumb into the blade (really STUPID move on my part). There was a THWINNNNNNG
sound from the blade. Cut the thumb to the bone bone and tore out a pretty good chunk of meat,
I hopped around around while squeezing my thumb waiting for the blood to stop flowing.

Then I shot my thumb full of Lidocane and sewed it up and wrapped in gauze.Kept giving myself shots of antibiotics. Took two months to
heal.

Still have no feeling in that thumb.
 
I agree, Craig's List has them from 50.00 to 200.00 in my area everyday,mostly 125.00 to 150.00. Anybody have a belt for a Montgomery Ward saw? mine is toast.
 
I have two radial arm saws set up in my woodworking shop. The ridgid is used primarly to cut boards to length, and then the 30yro Ryobi is built solidly into the work table and set up to ripe boards most of the time. I can also rip 4x8' sheet stock with the Ryobi. I also have a portable Ridgid 12" compound sliding miter saw which has ample throat to cut vinyl soffit material and wood posts up to 6x6" with a double pass.
Loren, the Acg.
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I have a 100 sires Sears Craftsman that i bought about twentyfive years ago for 90 bucks . Table was toast and it was out of square . Spent some time on building a new table and fence and squaring the table to the base first then i made adjustments to the saw . Put a new blade of good quality on it bought some of the accessory that it did not have and a dado set , added a dust collector to it and for a few years it did all that i wanted . Then i found a big Craftsman contractors saw with the big table and accura rip system and bought that. Do i want a check from Sears to disable my radial arm NO , just because some idiot did something STUPID i am careful with any power tool . It is like with farm equipment , you do not stick your hands arms or legs into moving parts , you do NOT crawl under a head on a combine with out first putting the saftey lock on , you do not get in a grain bin with out a safety harness you do not get in a freshly filled silo with out lots of ventalation and someone out side holding on to a rope tied to you . When useing power tools kept your pinkys away from moving blads, router bits . Never use your fingers as a DRILL STOP like my one buddy did , yep plum drilled a hole thru his finger . Myself i have push blocks push sticks , feather boards that are mounted to the rip fence on the table saw a second set that will mount to the table and a set for the radial arm and the router table . Yep they take a little time to set up but they will keep a board from coming back at you at 985 MPH or flipping up and smacking you on the beenny or the chops . Made all of them out of white oak and stained then in a red oak stain and sealed them with urathain , they are fully adjustable with thub knobs and body washers . One must be safe while playing so one can play another day..
 
I have all 3- compound miter saw table saw and radial arm saw and use all 3 of them. Would hate to be without them. If I had to buy another radial arm saw I would get a professional Dewalt.
 
Wow! Where else but on this site can one get such various view points and experiences and with no bs. Deal is done.
 
If you find a Craftsman RAS with the electronic readout, run away! I had one of those radial arm saws, seemed under powered and ate batteries. If you have room to set it up and leave it, they are not too bad. I sold mine 2 years ago and bought a sliding compound miter and stand. There is a reason why many are switching from radial arm saws to the portable sliders.

Mike
 
I have had the 10" sears ras since 1980 or so and replaced the motor once because a nice sweet brother of mine was impatient and ran the blade through the work to fast!
If you do not have the spring loaded resistance cable that returns the carriage to the rear then sweet brother will surely @ it up.
I still use it today with my super control grip!
Brother lives in another state.
Other thing, the startup cap activator contactor went out about 1990 and I decided to wire a manual switch in its place. Turn it on before startup and turn it off after running.
Well... Found out its handy to leave the switch on to have a run cap to have more torque when ripping or cross cutting thick stuff.
Works great, stays accurate for me.
And I am so careful, Mr. Safety!
Greg the safety officer
 

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