My local Woodcraft has had a floor model SawStop table saw for about a year now and I finally stopped to take a look at it. The fit and finish is top notch, it look like a really well built machine.
I think the company made a good move going for the high end of the market. The safety mechanism is nice, and I know I’d appreciate it if my finger ever hit it, but the thing that would cause me to buy one of these saws is the quality.
Big flat top, comfortable handwheels, nice big magnetic switch, riving knive, good fence, and some heft. About the only thing that would make it better is a sliding table.
Apparently they are selling quite a few of them in my area, the guy that owns the Woodcraft says he sells 4-6 a month, mostly to cabinet shops. I drove around the back of the store to leave and there were 5 empty SawStop crates, so they do indeed look like they are growing.
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Hi Woodman ,
If your buying a saw anyway , is it like a thousand dollars or so more then the competition for a SS ?
The extra money spent , spread over a lifetime of use would amount to a huge value should you ever need it .
I have not seen one in person up close but have read they are finished nice .
regards dusty
I have a 66 but I've seen them (the SS)and would probably go for one. To me, the safety is the big bene in conjunction with the quality. Cost be darned. I had a house quest who needed the ER in middle of night and the ambulance charge alone was $900. This is new tech and the others will be relicensing it sooner or later.
John
Woodman,
It seems to me, and if history repeats itself, if you turn around in 5-10 years and sell it you'll more than likely get all your money back anyhow...so why not?
I'll be those cabinet shops that are swapping out their powermatics aren't loosing money either...
With the cost of steel going the way it is, it's entirely likely that I could sell it in 10 years and make money.I'm not in the market for a new TS, I have a 6 year old Unisaw that works fine, and it and I have sorta figured out how to work together over the years. I only wrote about the SawStop because I've seen so much written about this saw that goes to the safety aspect and when I actually looked at the machine I realized that was only half of the story. So I thought I'd give the SS folks a positive feedback plug.Oldusty and Boilerbay, I hear you. I almost cut my index finger off at at the first knuckle this summer trimming a tree. 15 stitches, no feeling at the end of my finger anymore, and $1,500 at the ER.
My decision to go with the SawStop I recently purchased is three-fold: First of all, the quality of the machine is top-notch, and I plan for it to be the last Table Saw I purchase. Secondly, the preceding having been said, not only will I be using it for many years, but I have a two and four year old...and numerous nieces and nephews who may come into contact with it either with my supervision or accidentally in the future. Finally, with both of the above reasons in mind, I think that this type of safety device will inevitably find its way onto all saws soon, and I do not want to purchase a Saw without it only to have it be "standard equipment" in five years.
I've used the SawStop table saw at the local C.C and was very impressed. When I have saved enough change I will replace my old jet contractors saw with one.
Troy
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