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0:00
In this video, I'm going to give you some ideas that will help you in choosing a table saw
0:06
And there's really five kind of main areas you'd want to look at
0:11
What are you going to build? What sort of work do you want to do? How often are you going to do it
0:16
Pretty important. What's your budget? I want to talk a little bit about motor, durability, maintenance, and power requirements
0:24
And then also some workshop, space, and mobility ideas. So let's get started
0:31
The photo on the left is the front page of one of hundreds of articles and projects that I had published in Canadian Home Workshop magazine
0:43
which was a publication that was a mainstay in Canada. I contributed to it for, I think, 16 years or so as technical editor before it folded
0:54
And that dresser set is made, believe it or not, exclusively from
0:58
construction grade spruce lumber, the kind of things you'd use for floor joists and whatnot
1:04
and yet it's a piece of fine furniture. On the right hand side, you'll see a Lego storage box
1:10
That's one of my boys. That's Joseph. And that also appeared in Canadian Home Workshop, but it's a much smaller project
1:18
And, you know, these requirements or expectations of yours will certainly affect the kind of saw that you buy
1:27
if you're interested in anything more than the smallest sort of projects and done casually
1:35
then I would suggest you look at at least a contractor saw, maybe a cabinet saw
1:41
The dressers here would have been a lot harder to build with a bench top saw, the smallest of the options
1:49
I used a cabinet saw in my shop, the shop you've seen in other videos. and, you know, the size and quantity of projects you plan to make really do affect the saw you want to buy
2:04
You know, at the higher end, if you're going to be doing a lot of projects professionally, seriously professionally
2:11
especially using sheet goods, which are naturally harder to cut because they're so much bigger than lumber
2:18
then, you know, certainly a cabinet saw, maybe even an industrial saw
2:24
I'll talk a little bit more about that later. So how often are you going to use your saw
2:31
That's a pretty important question. And here are some guidelines. You know, if it's just monthly, I would consider you pretty casual
2:38
and a bench top or contractor saw will be just fine. You're not going to run into the limitations of those at all
2:46
weekly use. I think you're still a hobbyist. So a bench top contractor or cabinet saw
2:54
if budget allows, and you're doing that kind of work. And you want to put that kind of investment
2:59
into your shop and, you know, the foundational tool, which is the table saw. If you're working
3:05
daily, then a contractor saw or a cabinet saw makes a lot of sense, depending on the work you're
3:12
going to do. If you're a contractor, you may use your contractor
3:16
saw every day and you can use that for your whole career and everything will be fine. If you're
3:21
working daily inside of a workshop that has sufficient space to make use of larger pieces of
3:28
water sheet goods, then a cabinet saw makes a lot of sense. If you're going to be working
3:35
daily as a professional with very high-end work, especially if you're dealing with sheet goods
3:41
then you might want to look at an industrial saw. They're larger, much more expensive
3:48
And the ones I like have sliding tables. So it's kind of like having a mitre gauge that will let you cross cut
3:56
you know, a full sheet of plywood, essentially. So those are the broad parameters that you want to consider as you deciding what kind of saw is best for you But before I go on I want to point out something that many people make a mistake on
4:14
And that is to fail to anticipate future needs instead of just present ones
4:23
And your future needs are something that you should buy for. because when you get a saw that's going to allow you to do some kind of table saw work
4:34
well, that probably will get you thinking about doing other kinds of jobs
4:38
Not so much if you're a professional, because if you're a professional, you know, this is what I'm going to build, this is what I'm going to sell
4:44
this is the service I'm going to offer people, and, you know, that pretty well defines the work
4:50
But if you're a hobbyist, then it's very easy to not lead the target sufficiently
4:56
if you know what I mean. And I do see many people say to themselves something like
5:03
well, I certainly don't need a saw, you know, I only need a saw to do what I want to do now
5:10
And that actually can be a very expensive approach because you'll soon run into the limitations of, say, a bench top saw
5:17
and really either get rid of that, sell it maybe, or put it in a corner and buy a cabinet saw
5:25
or a contractor saw or a hybrid saw, and you've basically wasted the money that you spent on the bench top
5:32
So don't underestimate how you're going to progress when you get, especially your first table saw
5:39
because if you don't anticipate future needs, you're not really going to save any money by being frugal
5:47
So next thing is, what's your budget? This is, of course, pretty obvious
5:51
and I've included some numbers here. They're ballpark numbers. You're probably going to find some saws out of these ranges, but this is just the general idea
6:03
And one thing you'll notice here is a pretty widespread in prices
6:10
$350 for the cheapest bench top saw worth owning that I've seen all the way up to over 2000
6:18
So why the difference? Well, one of the biggest differences for the wide range in prices
6:23
is because of a company called saw stop. And as I've mentioned elsewhere
6:29
they have pioneered a system that makes it virtually impossible to hurt yourself with the blade
6:36
They have a system where the blade is stopped in milliseconds as soon as it contacts any kind of flesh
6:44
and that sort of safety does come at a cost. So their saws tend to be quite a bit more expensive
6:52
than what, equivalence that used to be in place. I consider it worthwhile
6:58
especially when you consider how traumatic table saw accident can be. My great-grandfather was an English-trained cabinet maker
7:10
He came to Canada in 1902. He spent his entire working career as a cabinet maker and carpenter
7:18
And then when he was 70 years old, just a few days short of retirement
7:23
he actually lost a finger on a table saw. Now I never met him
7:27
He was gone before I was born. And of course the saws that he would have been using at that time are far less safe than they are now
7:36
I mean, there would have been no guards, no splitter. You know, I don't even think they wore safety glasses back then
7:43
So things are considerably safer than when great grandpa had his accident
7:50
But if you want the ultimate in safety, especially if you've got some kids or beginners and you know you worry about them hurting themselves
8:00
then certainly paying the extra for some kind of saw that really probably can cut meat at all is something to consider Contractor saws same thing saw stops got their own version so you know
8:14
they're at the high end of the price range. Same with cabinet saws. Hybrid sauce spreads are typically a little bit less, at least in my research
8:25
I could have missed something out there. Industrial saws are another matter altogether
8:29
I mean, they're massive, they're heavy. They weigh hundreds and hundreds of pounds
8:33
They have all kinds of high-end features, and you're going to have to pay at least $8,500 or something like that
8:38
So that's strictly for professionals and people who know what they want to achieve
8:43
and have a business reason for investing in that kind of song
8:48
You know, it's a lot of money, but if you're a professional and you're successful, it's just a cost of business
8:53
So it's not really an expense like it is for a hobbyist. Now, I want to talk now about motor durability, maintenance, and electricity requirements
9:03
I put this photo down here with a kind of a chuckle because you'll never see a table saw for sale with this design
9:11
And there are two reasons why. This is a contractor saw, at least I think it is from this photo, maybe a kind of a bench top
9:19
But you can't have any dust collection attached to this saw. You know, it's an older design, as I said
9:25
I don't think they sell anything like this anymore. And, you know, you can't contain the dust in order to connect it to a
9:33
the saw to a vacuum system, a dust collection system, because the whole back is open
9:39
So that's one interesting point here. Another is that the motor hangs out and the belt is fully exposed
9:46
So it's kind of dangerous if anyone gets around there while it's running
9:51
In terms of motor durability, I have never found that to be an issue in real life
9:58
After 40 plus years of using a table saw, the motor is just last and last
10:05
I've never burned out a motor. You know, sometimes I upgrade different saws and things
10:09
but they're still working fine. I've never found your ability to be an issue in the field
10:14
And the same with maintenance. And they're pretty well maintenance-free. On a, say, a cabinet saw with belt drive
10:21
you're going to have to replace the belts now and then, inspect them from time to time, maybe tighten them a bit
10:27
But it's not like the maintenance of the motor and a table saw is a really big. deal. Now, electricity requirements are another matter and it's something to think about. So you go
10:37
and buy a bench top saw or a contractor saw. Well, they're going to come with an electric cord
10:43
that plugs into a regular outlet. So super easy. You don't need a special circuit for that. Except with
10:50
some saws under heavy load, that 15 amps is not quite enough. You won't trip the breaker
10:57
under normal conditions, but if you're doing a lot of heavy cutting
11:02
a lot of prolonged heavy cutting, the breaker in your electrical panel will heat up
11:07
and it will trip. So sometimes you do need to prepare yourself
11:12
to have a higher wattage, higher power 110-volt circuit installed
11:21
And that would be instead of using number 14 cable protected by a 15
11:27
amp breaker, which is the standard sort of outlet, you'll need a number 12 cable protected by a 20 amp breaker
11:36
I've never seen a plug in, and oh, by the way, the plugs are the same. It's the same configuration
11:42
of wall plug that goes in. I've never seen any kind of a plug-in tool that would trip a 20-amp
11:49
circuit. So that's a possibility you might need a new circuit in that case. But once you move to
11:56
cabinet saws. Some cabinet saws will plug into a regular outlet and they almost certainly need
12:06
a higher amperage circuit in order to get the full use out of them So that would be a 20 amp circuit just like you might need for a bench top saw But then again some cabinet saws also have 220 motors So this requires
12:22
definitely requires, a completely different circuit. It has to provide higher voltage. And my
12:29
roll of thumb for say a three horsepower cabinet saw with that would be that you use
12:35
you have a 220 volt breaker that can handle the power in 30 amps with a corresponding
12:47
cable size now that may be more than you need for some cabinet saws but you are
12:52
delivering the voltage you need and you won't be limited by the amperage of that circuit not with a three horsepower cabinet saw
12:59
Now, these cabinet saws that have 220 volt motors, they never come with a plug-in cord
13:10
at least not that I've ever seen. They come with a cord, and there are wires hanging out, and you can't use it that way
13:17
You need to put on some sort of a plug-in, and the reason they do that is because there are many different ways to deliver 220 volts
13:24
Here in my own shop, I've wired my equipment with my 220 equipment with twist lock plugs
13:32
So I don't hardwire it in because I do like to be able to disconnect things if I want to move things around
13:38
My table saw is on a rolling base, for instance, and I don't move it around very much
13:43
but when I want to move it, I rotate the twist lock plug and it comes out
13:49
I actually have them installed in the ceiling of my shop. So the cables rise from the tool
13:55
They're out of the way. They're not on the floor. There's nothing to trip on. It's all very convenient
14:00
And the same goes for anything larger than a cabinet saw as well
14:05
So you need to be prepared to either do a little electrical work yourself or hire someone to do that for you
14:12
So a final word here on workshop space and mobility. As I said, my cabinet saw is on a rolling base because I do want
14:21
to have the opportunity to move it if I want to. And cabinet saws don't generally come with a base that has wheels, but you can get one
14:33
And that's what you see on the left here. The bases are a little different than you might think
14:39
They have wheels so you can roll them around. But they also raise and lower the saw because you really don't want the saw able to roll when you're using it
14:50
when you're using it. Not a big saw like that. So you'd raise the saw when you want to move it around
14:57
and then you hit a foot lever or some sort of a mechanism and then it lets things go down and rest
15:02
solidly on the floor. Now the saw on the right is one of my bench top saws and it has a folding
15:12
stand that's absolutely spectacular as far as I'm concerned. It folds up so it takes up very little
15:19
space between uses and yet it's got a wonderful wheels. They're large, they're kind of air-filled
15:26
and they're just a dream to roll around. So there are all kinds of rolling bases you can get
15:34
some come with the saws, some don't. And, you know, but that's something to consider as you're
15:40
shopping around and as you're assessing your shop space and imagining how you're going to work
15:45
not just now, but also in the future. And, you know, all towards the goal of helping you make an optimal purchase
15:55
Because purchasing poorly, which usually means under-purchasing, is actually a very expensive mistake to make
16:03
because now you've got to buy something new and bigger if you want to grow in the craft and succeed
16:07
So that's it for some of the most important tips on choosing a table saw wisely
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