The Sergeant Major let me buy a table saw, it being my birthday last week and all. I had been scouring the want-ads for literally months, and it just so happens that the deal (in my mind) of the century came up the week of my birthday. It was like, fate.
This giant piece of iron is a Grizzly 1023. I Bought it from an old guy whose health is failing and he is selling off his stuff. Handed over $350 for the thing, and it came complete and with 4 blades. The worst part of the whole transaction was getting the damn thing into the truck, because I had to dissasemble it to get it out the door. In retrospect, however, I don't think that my buddy and I could have lifted it whole into the bed of my pickup.
I had my neighbor help me get it off the truck and into the garage/shop. I levelled the base, bolted the fence and extensions back on it and called it a day.
The next day, Friday, it was all I could do to finish out the day at work. I almost clocked out early to go home and start fiddling with it. After an interminable day, I threw my hardhat in the gangbox and shagged ass for the house. I then spent the next 7 or so hours aligning and wiring my new boat anchor. At about 11 o'clock, I had gotten it about where I wanted it. I plugged it in, checked the breaker, ran the blade all the way down, said a prayer and hit the green button with the 1 on it.
Hot damn! I got it right! Tomorrow, we cut wood.
Saturday, I watched Norm, then ambled on into the shop to make sawdust. I fired up the saw and pushed a 2x4 through the saw. Prior to this, the only table saw I had ever used was a POS bench saw we had on the jobsite that wouldn't pass the nickel lying flat test. The difference was, how should I say, dramatic. The large flat table and the smooth running was amazing. Not to mention the fact that the big daddy 3hp motor is a _freaking_hoss_. I pushed a piece of dunnage (3" thick red oak heartwood) through the saw just as fast as I dared, and I barely noticed the difference between that and a pine 1x4. The cut was like I had planed it smooth. This saw is simply amazing. I spent an hour or so literally cutting bladewidths off of scrap I had lying around.
I waxed the top. I made pushsticks and featherboards. I honed my miter gauge so that it would slide in the slot easily. I blew out the sawdust. I waxed again. I think I'm in love.
That's all I wanted to say about it for now. There are a few little dings in the finish, so to speak, but it's nothing major. Thanks for listening, and happy birthday to me!
-Phil Crow
P.S. If you don't have a cabinet saw, stop what you're doing right now and go get one. Today.