Replies

1. 
   JohnWW | Sep 29, 2009 01:03am | #1

   TTI makes the Ridgid line of tools and has also made a number of the power tools sold under the Craftsman name for quite awhile, so it is likely that the two saws are basically the same.

   John White
   Shop Manager for FWW Magazine, 1998 to 2007

   
   

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   Edited 9/28/2009 6:04 pm ET by JohnWW

1. 
   Knotscott | Oct 17, 2009 11:44pm | #3

   John -  TTI/Ryobi made the TS3650/3660, but AFAIK, Steel City's Orion subsidiary is making the Ridgid R4511, or is at least heavily involved with TTI. 

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   Orion also made the Craftsman 22114:

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   The new Cman 21833 looks somewhat similar but doesn't appear to share the same traits as the Orion made saws.  Could that one be made by TTI/Ryobi?

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   TTI/Ryobi still makes the BT3100 clone for Sears (21829):

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   And I suspect their portables and smaller compact saws:

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   Edited 10/17/2009 5:00 pm ET by Knotscott

1. 
   jonnieboy | Oct 18, 2009 06:35am | #4

   Scott,

   Aha, there's a picture of said machine. It was weird, on the Sears site all they gave was a short description witht eh picture -- 10" left tilt table saw -- I couldn't find any model numbers. Probably just me.

   Thanks for posting them (all).

   --jonnieboy

2. 
   jonnieboy | Oct 17, 2009 03:25pm | #2

   Angel,

   I can't find the Craftsman 21833 on their website.  It doesn't come up on a search.

   The things I was looking for were some of the things I am unhappy with in my Craftsman saw.

   The blade inserts are only sold at Sears. They're such a funky configuration that I'm afraid to buy one from anywhere that says theirs fits my model of Craftsman. Today I'm going to try my hand at yet another zero clearance insert. The first one I made works, sort of, but it's made of masonitwe and when a board slides over it, it pushes it down. Hard to get a good cut that way. And hard to make one's own inserts.

   I'd say this is my #1 complaint. The miter slots are not standard 3/4 x 3/8. This makes it terribly hard, mostly impossible, to make any jigs or add-ons to the saw requiring a miter slider. You start to realize how important those jigs are, and how many different ones there are. You can't do those things, and it's highly limiting.  

   I know it's a matter of price, but the saw is very small. It's dangerous to try to fit a board of any size on the table, try to guide it with one hand and feed with the other. There's just not support to put a board on and get it started in the blade. I think there's something like 5" in front of the blade.

   Dust collection is horrible, even after I made a dust chute, and even though I have it connected to a dust collector, and even though I pretty much completely enclosed the saw and tried punching holes at strategic points in the enclosure to direct airflow downward and into the dust chute. I spent hours on that, and it still doesn't work.

   Capacity. The other day I cut 45 degree angle on a 23/32" piece of baltic birch plywood. The motor was bogging down halfway through the cut and the plywood started to smoke. I don't usually cut very large stock, but now I know the saw's limit, and it's not very much. I'd sure hate to be in the middle of a project and suddenly find my saw won't cut some necessary pieces.

   All in all, it's not a bad saw. but it's built for much smaller tasks than I'm asking it to do. I will be buying another saw as soon as I can afford it, and I will be sure it has the very basic features this one lacks. And it won't be a Craftsman. I'm very much soured on their products. Their attempts to make me buy only the add-ons they sell is simply tacky. It's like holding me hostage for owning one of their saws.

   You might take a close look a tthis 21833 and check for th efetatures mentioned above. Perhaps the model you are looking at is a bigger machine, and has none of those problems. It's sure worth checking before buying.  

   Good luck with whatever saw you purchase. I'd be interested to know your decision.

   --jonnieboy

    

    

   
   

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   Edited 10/17/2009 8:35 am ET by jonnieboy