new table saw

Don't do the upgrade.

I think that it comes with the motor cover which is nice but only $29. It also comes with a supposedly upgraded fence which gets panned in all the reviews I've seen. It has some micro adjust that probably won't be as durable as the Shop Fox Classic.

Otherwise, I don't see any differences.

Buy the 1023S and get the motor cover. I can attest to the value of this machine. I have one and love it.

Eric T

Sam the Cat wrote:

I second Eric. In addition to the motor cover, I think they throw in the dust port hood (about $6) too with the "Z". I still think the 1023S is the best way to go.

I went through the same comparison 2-1/2 years ago but had some reservations about the 1023Z's fence because of the moving parts. We had the opportunity to visit the Springfield Grizzly store and received a first-class demonstration of their 1023 machines from one of their sales and demo representatives. Interesting thing was he did a lot of the demonstration on a older machine in the backshop where they build a lot of their displays. The older 1023S was dirty, the power cord was beat up from foot-traffic and forklifts but it passed the nickle test with ease. On viewing the 1023Z I will say the fence travel was absolutely smooth as glass - I don't think I have used one that smooth.

However (yeah, there is always a however):

I specifically asked about the Shop Fox Precision fence on the 1023Z vs the Classic on the 1023S (which is pretty much a Beismeier lookalike). Being a good Grizzly rep he just said something like 'They are both good fences but my saw has the Classic.' Since then, I have seen a couple of magazine reviews that speak pretty highly of the Classic and not so well of the Precision. A fairly recent WOOD magazine review compared the Classic directly with the Beismeier downgrading it only on a price higher than the Beismeier. They were more critical of the Precision citing some interference problems and, as I recall, less rigidness.

I have had my 1023S for about 2-1/2 years and couldn't be happier. The Classic fence is built like a fire plug, was easy to adjust, and has required very little tweaking since new. The S is cheaper even after you add the dust hood and motor cover and IMHO provides more value.