I am looking to purchase my first table saw. I used my Sears circular saw for my very first project. Needless to say, it was difficult especially cutting straight edges.
I have a small garage that just fits my car and really no other place to work except my kitchen. When I do woodworking, I move my car out of the garage.
I wanted to purchase a portable table saw with fold-up legs that can handle
4x8 sheets of plywood.
Any suggestions? I saw a Bosch on Amazon for 500 bucks that looked decent but since it's a big investment, I wanted to ask the experts.
Contradictory requirements, I'm afraid. I don't even like doing 4x8 on an $800 contractor saw.
You can get a BT3100 for $300, $400 if you go for the accessory package. I'd be leery of doing 4x8's on it--I'd want good infeed and outfeed tables and an assistant--but the saw itself is well-spoken of by its owners.
What I've seen of the Rigid and DeWalt small saws looks generally positive. I think the Rigid has a better fence, but I'd worry about its durability. Lotta folks will say, "Sure . great saw, but you need . . . " with a list of add-ons that bring the price to that of a Unisaw.
Now, if your GOAL is to cut plywood, all you really need is a decent straight edge.
The factory edge on hardwood plywood is Good Enough. Here's how:
Slice off one long side of a piece of birch plywood that's a bit wider than the distance from the blade to the motor on your circular saw. Freehand is find for this, though following a pencil line is better.
Flip that piece over, clamp it to the remaining bit of the sheet. Using the factory edge as your guide, cut a piece about half in inch wider than the distance from the blade to the back of the bottom plate. Too big is better than too small.
Now place the smaller piece atop the larger, with the freehand edge more or less aligned with the back side of the larger piece. Attach with wood screws.
FINALLY, with the whole thing securely clamped in place, put the saw on that little shelf you just made and cut off the excess. Voila! A custom straight edge.
I find it as accurate as the time I spend setting it all up.
IMHO, it's hard to deal with 4x8 sheet stock with any table saw setup. If you have a large outfeed table, it's a bit easier, but I think a lot of people here would recommend cutting large sheet stock with a circular saw anyway. If cutting 4x8 sheets is important to you, you might look at building or buying a better guide. There are guides available that attach to the sole of the circular saw that will keep the saw cutting a straight line. To be clear, there are lots of very good reasons to have a table saw around, I just don't think cutting sheet stock is one of the better ones.
Hi Jay, I can share my experience with you. I have been in business for myself since 94. My first portable table saw was a Delta sidekick. I was doing quite a few cabinet jobs at the time and the saw died in about a year. The next saw was a 10" Makita which i have had since
96.(Model 2703 i think) I think you can get them for about $329.00 or so now. It has performed very well and has withstood the abuse of many trips from jobsite to jobsite. I'm not testifying to it being the best on the market but has done well for me. Now the best money i spent was for a Rousseau (not sure of that spelling) table that the saw drops into, you might be familiar with these already. If you get one spend the money for the table extension and outfeed table. The entire setup will cost as much as the saw, but it will turn a small saw into a big producer. I really love mine, it folds up and stores great. I rented a shope space about 2 years ago for building cabinets and it was a great set up for the shop. I work alone and with a home made dead man i handle full sheets of plywood with no problem. I could go on, but for the money i think that's a bit much for the Bosch...I'd put the money in the Roussaeu table. Tony Holland - snipped-for-privacy@bellsouth.net
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