Table Saw

I've known several shops that used a contractor's saw (usually Delta) with an after-market fence. If you're doing a lot of ripping of lumber or sheet goods, the fence is the most important part. Can cost almost as much as a saw. If you're mostly cross-cutting, any saw with miter slots and a homemade sliding table will work great. Ripping needs a lot more power. I routinely rip 2-4" thick stock and recently purchased a larger saw. Three guys at the auction came up as I was bidding to tell me it was 3 phase. Nice of them, but that particular saw easily accomodates a different motor. Not all do. My advice is to buy used and buy bigger unless you need portability. My successful bid was $390. Saw was too big for most (12-14").

Most any saw will do an adequate job if you're patient. If you won't use it much, you don't need much. Better ones make it a lot easier and encourage you to use them more. My compact tractor clearly told me not to bring home anything bigger. Barely got it out of the truck.

If you're looking at used Delta contractors saws, there was something about the bearing & shaft on the earlier ones that caused them to be less durable than the later ones(sorry I can't remember exactly what). However, they still hold up pretty well. If you find one with bad bearings and/or shaft the parts are available to fix it, but if you're going to do the repair the price you pay should reflect that.

Due to the location of the motor, direct drive saws have less adjustment & cutting capacity. All things being equal I would only consider one if the price was so good you couldn't refuse it.

I feel that Sears stuff is generally priced a little high for what you get. Most of the time I'll only buy from them when the item is on sale. Good luck...Al English

You should be able to buy a new Roybi BT3000 in your price range I have one and am very pleased with it, it is light and easy to transport and so far makes very accurate cuts.

I will inclued a link to a forum where they discuss this saw very frankly the good the bad and the ugly so to speak. Most of the guys here like it but some have moved up to Cabinet Saws (read that as big bucks).

You can look at the BT300 at most home centers such as Home Depot or Menards.

Hope this helps Tom R.

• Royobi

I just went through this. I spent a bit more ($500) and got a Delta 10" Contractor saw, and I'm VERY pleased.

Stay away from direct drive. That puts all the load on the motor bearings, and accuracy suffers greatly.

What you want to look for is a cast steel table. Stay away from pressed steel (except for the extension tables) or aluminum. Again, it's all about accuracy. Look for a fine tuneable trunnion (the assembly that carries the driveshaft for the saw arbor on belt drive units) so you can square and plumb the blade with the table and the fence. Look for a fence that locks on both front and rear rails.

Delta also has saws in your price range that aren't quite as heavily built. Much as it pains me to say something nice about Sears, Craftsman still makes a pretty good saw for the money. Other good names are DeWalt, Ryobi, Rigid (Sold through Home Depot).

You can frequently get a better saw for the same money by shopping the used equipment columns, IF you know how to check one for wear and abuse. If you go this route STAY AWAY from portable or benchtop saws. They get used hard and put away wet, and spend a lot of time bouncing around in the back of some bozo's pickup truck.