Nascar Raiders wrote:
I'm 45 and just a novice woodworker and have finally got some extra
cash to rid myself of my "bench top" table saw that the wife got me for
Christmas 8 yrs ago....boy I think I did things on that thing that would
amaze even you pro woodworkers.
The wife says I deserve an upgrade (gee thanks hunny..lol) Anyway
I've checked at my local Harbor Freight and to be honest their selection
was way less than what I thought it would be.
I checked at Sears and of course they stock the CRAFTSMAN brand name,
and have what I thought to be a pretty good selection in my price range
of about $500.00 but not more than $600.00....now they do have what they
call the "professional" model at $1000.00 but I really don't want to
spend that much....wow.
Anyway, if you guys/gals could give me some sort of guidance on this
I'd love to hear the pro's and con's.of what you think, or your
suggestions.
You can mail me directly of post here and I'll check for
replies....thanks so very much for your help.

Paul

I've read some of the other responses. Sure, if you want to wait a
while until you can spend $1000 and get a cabinet saw, that's good
advice. However, if you're like me, the budget is the budget and even
six months from now it's still going to be $500-600 because that's the
amount that you're willing to spend. If that's the case, go with a
contractor saw but be sure to get a name brand and investigate the
specifications carefully. Jet, Delta, Powermatic, General, Grizzly etc.
Check out the Grizzly G0444Z. You can get it for about $600 including
shipping. Google that model number for lots of discussions from me and
other folks. The fence alone will rock your world after using the
benchtop and 2 HP is enough for most of us.

There are a lot of very accomplished woodworkers in this group with
extremely well equipped shops that are perfectly happy and do
incredible work with a contractor saw. I suspect many of them used the
money they saved on another machine or some exotic hardwood.

Tom