I am so new to woodworking that I would still say that "I am thinking about getting into woodworking." I have built a a couple of very basic bookshelves that require little more than a miter & circular saw, a brad nailer, some glue and clamps. I have been wanting to build my little girl a toy chest for quite some time now, and would like to get started on it soon, as she is about to have her 1st birthday.
My wife jus had her car backed into and in addition to getting it fixed I talked the offending ladie's insurance company into giving me $750 for loss of value. I spent $150 on having some new door panels made for my IH Scout, and have $600 left.
I am trying to figure out what would be the best way to spend this small amount of cash. I was thinking about getting the:
Hitachi C10FL table saw and nothingelse
Ridgid R4511 table saw & Bosch 1617EVSPK Router
Cheapo Skil bench saw, Bosch Router and an asortment of tools
I have: Orbital sander, Belt sander, Miter saw, Circular saw, Dremel, and variuous clamps.
Hi welcome to Ljs
The absolute must have tool for woodworking is a table saw. The best one I know of is a Ridgid in that price range. and then a router.
I actually think the new Model # for the Ridgid is the TS3660. HD has it on sale for 499 plus a 15% rebate and I think you get another 10% off if I were to open an HD Card. So that would put it at $400 and the Bosch Router is about $180. This seems like it would probably be my best bang for buck scenerio. THe Hitachi Saw looks pretty nice though. I am having trouble finding many options in this general price range. Sub $600 sems to be high quality worksite saws like the Bosch 4100 or cheaper Contractors saws. The Hitachi and Ridgid definitely seem to be the best of the this price range.
I echo the comments before me, go with the Ridgid, I am not a big fan of Hitachi tools, I think they are over priced for what they are, Ridgid makes good stuff.
I have never dealt with Ridgid as we don't really have a Home Depot close by, so most of my tools come from Sears, Lowes, and Fastenal. I do know that Consumer Reports loves all things Ridgid, and Consumer Reports has never let me down in the past. Oh, and I am not sure what the model# is as they don't list them on the HD website, but it has the Granite top.
I have the Ridgid 3660 and love it. Downside is poor dust collection but that can be dealt with adequately. It cuts everything I want, recently did a 8/4 butcher block with maple and walnut, cut like a champ. No regrets and probably comparable to saws in higher price brackets.
With that said, I would attempt to stay with a cast iron top like the 3660. I have never used the granite top but I have not heard great things so far. Some with granite tops would maybe disagree, but I am confident I am not going to break my cast iron top in my life time. My top can see some abuse from time to time and with granite I would be more cautious. Also, I use a magswitch featherboard, mostly on my shaper though, but from time to time I might use it with my 3660. That would not be possible on a granite top.
So, go for a 3660 or a comparable to that. You would likely need to get the 3660 used but well worth it. My best advise would be the Ridgid and a router and off of CL if you can be patient. I have 6 PC routers and all but one (that one off of CL) was bought on Ebay at great deals, they are a dime to a dozen and found cheap with shipping. PC is the biggest name for routers and should be your most flexible as most jigs and such are designed with PC routers in mind. If you buy right you will never loose, we could probably sell most or all our tools for a profit over what we have invested and we have bought quality.
Also, stay away from hitatchi TS and certainly not the skil bench saw.
Hitachi doesn't seem to be getting ayn love, but I have the middle of the road Miter saw and the Reciprocating saw and they were a great product for the price paid. Features are comparable to the upper end brands at 30% less. I like all I am hearing about Ridgid and definitely like the price, my only issue is that the closest HD is 30mins away.
I would look on craiglist / ebay local, for a used saw, you can often find a quality contact saw in near new condition going for $250, just my 02 cents
I echo Craigslist, look for one of the Emerson built Craftsman table saws, Ryobi BT3000/BT3100 or older style Ridgid. They typically sell in the $100-$200. Just make sure to power it up before loading it into your vehicle.
Depending on the condition you may need to purchase a new belt or rail, but in my opinion the limitations of a portable contractor saw outweighs the risk/reward of buying a used saw.
Whatever you do, I wouldn't spend all my money on a tablesaw, Better to buy a slightly lesser cost saw, a couple of better quality blades, and a quality router if you don't have one…..
You can builder a lot of stuff with a tablesaw, a router, and a random orbit sander…...
I'll ad another vote for the Ridgid 4511 and Bosch router - both are excellent machines that will serve you well, and many years.
do prepare to spend more soon on some other tools though, as getting into this world requires you to stock up on some necessities. squares, marking tools, bits, blades, sharpening tools, and the likes
I'm not a fan of the granite table tops, I too recall a thread about them breaking.
And I suggest a Porter-Cable router, the 690 series over the Bosch. I have Bosch, DeWalt, and PC routers from 1-1/4Hp to to 3-1/4HP and the PC 1-1/2HP & 1-3/4HP routers see the most use.
Don't focus on the HP rating of these routes, it's not true HP. When you get into the HP rating of these routers they're all inflated. If that Bosch 2-1/4HP were truly 2-1/4HP it would draw about 20A and I'll guarantee you it does not draw 20A. In fact it draws 12A so at best it's a 1-1/2HP router. The PC 1-3/4HP draws 11A, so that 1 extra amp that the Bosch draws adds 1/2HP? Not.
You can pick up a 690/693 for around $133 and the combo kit with the plunge base for around $187.
I use the PC 690 series 1-1/2HP and 1-3/4HP routers the most and I find they have more then enough power. The PC 690 design is tried an true and has been around for many many years. In fact so much so that all the other manufacturers finally started copying the design, DeWalt, Bosch, Milwaukee, etc. And that includes the 1617EVS. I'd say go with the original.
Your best friend is a solid and reliable tool. I would go for quality over quantity. Focus on the best table saw you can find that fits into your budget. Tim
I will add to getting the best table saw you can afford but… Your project of building a toy chest could be done very nicely with a circular saw and a good blade. Just my 2 cents… I would go for a good router and save up to buy a table saw that will be very accurate and last for a lifetime. The table saw will be your center of the shop. Another 2 cents… after the table saw go for a band saw…
Here's what looks like a UniSaw, a little higher then you have to spend but you could talk him down a bit and you wouldn't be sorry. Read Brad_Nailer's blog about the UniSaw he's picking up this Saturday off of Craigslist: http://nashville.craigslist.org/tls/1462126274.html
I won't get involved with my opinion on brands except to say, don't get a "cheapo" anything. Get the best quality you can afford. Go for quality, not quantity! I would rather have fewer decent tools than a shop full of worthless junk.
Thanks for all the great advice guys. I have checked out Craigslist and ebay and they both have some options. I especially like the Powermatic 66, I am not sure why except it has a very industrial look that I find pleaseing to the eye. One of my problems is I do not have a true shop as of right now. As soon as I can find it in me to let go of the IH Scout I rebuilt my uncle and I are going to build one behind my house. He is the one that got me interested in the whole thing to begin with. He has a 1953 Delta and a newer shopsmith, so I have been going to him for advice as well. All that being said for now I can't really fit my Pathfinder and my wife's car into the garage along with all my other stuff so I have relegated the Nissan to the driveway and have made the 2nd half of the garage my space, so I need something that is semi-portable. I don't know when I will let go of the scout so I would like to get the best mobile hybrid table for the money I have.
I like alot of the attributes of the Hitachi but I think for the money I am going to have to lean towards the Ridgid. I am waiting to see what Sears is going to do for the Holiday sale season as they have a couple of Jet saws in the $700-$900 range, with a good sale they could easily come down a bit and I can always ask for a Router for Christmas.
As far as the Porter Cable router goes I have heard some bad things about the NEW models they put out. I have a buddy who owns a Lumber Company in Knoxville and he said that since Dewalt bought them the quality is not as good as it is slowly becoming the price point tool. I have a couple of the compact Bosch drills, and I have asked them to some things while rebuilding the Scout and Brit Bikes that they were not meant to do, and they always did it with no complaints. I have some medium grade Skil stuff and it's alright, I definitely wish I would have held out for something a bit better for $30 more. The Hitachi Miter and Reciprocating saw have been more than adequate and I have always been pleased with the performance of my Dewalt drill and Orbital sander. I am still learning what I like and what is good, as I gain some experience I will figure it out. I am just completely lost when it comes to the Table Saw. I am not sure why maybe it's the size of the tool that intimdates me but it has been the first item I have really been stuck on purchasing
For those who suggest CL, you must live in an area with lots of opportunities. Here in Maine, CL covers the entire state and the majority of CL offerings are Craftsman benchtop, direct-drive saws. Seldom see anything worth taking a second look and if I do, the seller wants an arm and both legs!
^Yeah, I am pretty lucky here as I am 45 mins south of Knoxville and 45 mins north of Chattanooga plus Nasville and Atlanta are less than 2.5 hours away. I have listed some things on Craig's List but never bought anything, I am an Ebay guy. My Dad loves Craftsman stuff, but I think he remembers Craftsman when it was more of a highend brand and mostly mechanics tools anyhow. This is off topic but back in the beginning of the summer I wanted to upgrade my toolbox and Craftsman couldn't touch the Cobalt quality for the price.
What about this wrinkle? I have a friend who owns a lumber company in Knoxville and he doesn't carry saws because he is more into supplying home building materials, anyhow he thinks that he can get Jet products and I could probably get a good deal (at cost) and they seem to have some smaller "hybrid" motels, like the Pro-Shop 708482. Just something I might look into. All the saws I can find in my area seem to be cabinet saws and I am just not quite ready for that yet regardless of the deal. I will probably just go with the Ridgid as there seem to be a lot of happy owners on here.
i third the going used route for the TS, then spending the savings on nice blades and router bits…
However: I would also consider/add to that the rest of the budget and your needs. You didnt mention owning any of the assortment of hand tools that many (most? all?) of us here would use to complement the power tool arsenal. The top ones being:
Combination square
Straightedge
calipers
protractor/angle finder
1 or 2 bench planes (jack, smoothing, and block get the top votes)
3-4 chisels
did i leave out anyting critical? tape measure? some general stuff you probably already have?
ALL of which i highly recommend going the used/vintage/ebay route and can be had for less than $100. you'll also need some sharpening supplies for those - i'll recommend the scary sharp (sandpaper on glass) method for that.
Finally - a bench! depending on your preference for power or hand tools this'll take different forms, but you will need something no matter what.
Anyway, $600 seems like a great budget to start with. it sounds like a lot of fun to start off with a nice pot of $!
Boy, if that's really happening with Porter-Cable that's really a shame. Most of my stuff is pre-B&D takeover or at least before B&D's influence became apparent.
But, I can't say I'm surprised, I expected it. B&D is quantity not quality orientated. They want you to replace your tools every 3- 5 years which is depicted by their product lines only lasting that long. Even when it's something fairly decent.
I was really sad to see Delta and Porter-Cable sold to B&D, B&D's goal is $$ while sacrificing quality, quite contrary to what got Delta to where it is today.
My only hope now is Stanley's going to put a stop to that and hopefully reverse it, and dump Archibald what ever his name is. My impression of Stanley was that quality has always been important to them, not like B&D. So I'm hoping.
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