On 12 Nov 2003 13:27:33 -0800, (KirkH) wrote:

This may sound like flame bait at first, but it is a serious question.
Exactly what is everyone's problem with Craftsman table saws???

I started saving for a table say with a $500 limit in mind. After
reading back posts from this group, I looked at a Delta 36-650 at
Lowes for $498 and thought it was a pretty good option. Just for
comparison, I went to Sears and looked at their saws. One of their
saws (forget the model number) was $499 and appeared to be very solid.
Based on what I have read, I paid particular attention to the fence,
and it seemed much more solid and easier to adjust than the Delta.

Now, since I have exactly zero experience with either saw, what
exactly is the problem with Craftsman??? I have read enough of the
"they're all crap!" posts; but I would like to hear exactly why people
feel this way.

I plan to buy one of these saws (or something else in this price
range) in the next few weeks, so I would really appreciate the advice.

Thanks,
Kirk

My 2 cents - I use a Craftsman saw that's around 17 years old. It's
been fine all that time and has received all the usual upgrades save
the motor. I also had a 6" Craftsman jointer of same vintage. Both
were made by Emerson.

The jointer is gone now, replace by a Delta DJ-20. The saw is still
with me, but is likely to be replaced by a Unisaw at some not far off
date. The fact that I'm willing to replace them is *not* a matter of
them being junk, but more a matter of capacity. What I build has
simply gotten beyond what they can easily do, particularly that
jointer. And the saw really struggles going through thick hardwood.
The motor is simply not up to sawing 3" maple or oak.

IMHO, the real problem is with Craftsman hand held power tools. They
paid more attention to cool styling or geewhiz features than actual
performance. And sometimes not even that. I had a jigsaw from them
that made the appropriate noises, but wasn't actually very good at the
actual severing of wood fiber. One day it simply emitted a curl of
smoke and that was it. I replaced it with a DeWalt and learned what a
jigsaw should really do. Night and day different. Same story with a
router. Lots of plastic, PITA to change bits, would stay locked at a
particular depth (self adjusting depth setting). It was replaced with
a Makita. That machine also showed me what router can and should do.

I came to think that Craftsman hand held power tools were probably
best considered to be single use items to be discarded after the job
at hand. That sounds harsh, but my experience bears this out. Now,
did I really throw them away prior to complete failure? No, but after
those two experiences, it was obvious Sears chose to make compromises
that sold lots of tools based on "macho posturing" rather than
actually doing the job, and doing it well for a long time.

I still have two Craftsman hand helds - the router and a 3/8" drill.
The router has been permanently set up to make 1/2" half blind
dovetails. The drill still works, but maybe not for long. The
bearings (sleeve) scream like a banshee when first started up. The
chuck had to be replaced along the way.