# dual table saws



## billye (Oct 6, 2011)

I'm always struggling with change saw set ups between a regular blade and a dado set up. I own a crafstman table saw from the 50's. I recently was given a model exactly the same.

My question is … do two saws side by side make sense? I have the space. Or would having them set up back to back more practical?

My shop is a 16×20 garage

Thoughts???

Bill


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## johnstoneb (Jun 14, 2012)

Yes. I have a friend has 2 Unisaws bolted together side by side one with a dado head. The table area alone is well worth it.


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## wormil (Nov 19, 2011)

Frank Howarth has 2 Powermatics set up back to back. But I think it depends on which way fits your work flow and style.


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## tomsteve (Jan 23, 2015)

i love to have the room for 2 table saws.
set up,imo,is what works best for the person.
seems to me side by side would be nice if the fences were set up one to the left and one to the right.


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

I would think one (of those saws) would be enough…...:-D


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## MinnesotaMarty (Jan 25, 2015)

i have two table saws. Not bolted together because they are different brands. I have my dado stack in one and my combination blade in the other. I wish I could bolt them together. 
Go for it. See how you like and let us know.

Marty


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## bigblockyeti (Sep 9, 2013)

I have two Unisaws and am planning on doing just that, the space taken up by both will be very close to what one takes up with a 52" Unifence.


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## Ripper70 (Nov 30, 2015)

Who wouldn't like to have a setup like this? Wish I had the room…


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## pintodeluxe (Sep 12, 2010)

Complicated projects require me to install and remove the dado set many times. For this reason alone two saws would be a time saver. It's kind of like having multiple routers with dedicated setups.


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## jesinfla (Apr 15, 2015)

I was in a discussion about this with someone else.

Here's their solution - wish I had room for iit (3 together):


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## 000 (Dec 9, 2015)

I have 2 saws, but not connected. 1 right tilt, and 1 left tilt, both have there purposes,


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## chiseler (Dec 20, 2015)

I'm looking for another Unisaw so I can set it up similar to the photo Ripper posted


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## MrRon (Jul 9, 2009)

Yes it does make sense when doing production work. Most cabinet shops use multiple saw setups.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

We all have to see what works for us,try it out and see how you like it.


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## billye (Oct 6, 2011)

Thanks for all the ideas! I'm going to try to mount them side by side with one wing between them and see how that goes first.

Will send pics and updates as I progress.

The entire shop is getting a makeover. A new dust collection system as well.


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## mtenterprises (Jan 10, 2011)

Yes I have two Craftsman saws mounted side by side just for that purpose.


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## JackDuren (Oct 10, 2015)

I wouldn't put two saws together. If your concerned about running dado's all the time put a router in and use the saw fence. I ran production in cabinet and commercial shops for 30 years and found the router fixed in the table saw replaced most dado work.

I worked in one shop that had two table saws in one base. the base was 12'x12' and neither could interfere with other when setup.


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## RibsBrisket4me (Jul 17, 2011)

> I was in a discussion about this with someone else.
> 
> Here s their solution - wish I had room for iit (3 together):
> 
> ...


That is incredible!


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## Robinson (Jan 11, 2011)

The way I work I would find 2 or 3 saws bolted together to border on silly (understanding that we all work differently). For me the biggest reason to have any multiples of tools is so I can make a setup and have another to make another type of cut without disturbing the original setup until I am totally done with it. The last thing I want to do is have to mess up a setup to cut something else because I don't have room to make the second cut because the two tools are too close together and something causes an interference.
I'm an old guy and the woodshop I am building up now is expected to be my last one. I have accumulated stuff for years for this shop and I pretty much ignore what everybody else thinks and am doing it my way. 
This one is in my basement which I made into a sort of a walk-out. I walled off a 24' x 40' shop room and have more space that I can borrow from for stuff that doesn't make dust and some storage. I also have a farm shop in a converted 36' x 50' barn for mechanical work, welding, blacksmithing, machining and a tire shop so the woodshop is mostly all woodshop. For most of my life my woodshop had to be a corner of another shop and always struggled for space.
Much of my woodshop is Shopsmith based (and no, I don't care to hear about how your brother-in-law's second cousin doesn't like them  ). I have 6 of them in the shop now along with a dedicated double drillpress of my design made from 2 of them. I have a 510 I bought new in 1988, an old Mark VII, 2 restored MarkV's, a Mark V shorty and a 10-ER. Most stuff sits around the walls and on wheels to pull out to where I want to use it. The bench sits out in the floor as does my primary table saw, a Ridgid TS-3650. (I love this saw, especially the fence but looked at a new one recently and was not impressed.). I also have an older Craftsman table saw, an old Rockwell tablesaw, a Craftsman RAS, a 6" long bed jointer, a Foley Belsaw 5 HP planer/molder/ripsaw along with a fair compliment of the Shopsmith special purpose tools like bandsaw, jigsaw, 6"x48" belt sander, small jointer etc. and a lot of giblets. I tend to jump from project to project and back again and want my setups to still be sat up when I get back to that project. Right now the main project is the shop itself. I have been forced to admit that most of the time the tools and the shop are the most important project and other things I might make are just to justify the tools and the shop. 
As I need a second tool in use I can wheel it out to use it alone or with other units and can even make a separate little work area just for that project then roll everything back to the walls when I'm done. Well, OK, maybe a week later when I decide it is in the way. 
Out at the back of the barn lot I have a little Woodmizer sawmill that I hope to fire up this morning and saw a few boards before I have to leave to work a few hours on a rental property over in the next county.


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## Robinson (Jan 11, 2011)

I did manage to get the little sawmill fired up yesterday morning and sawed up an old smallish 8' sycamore log. I trimmed off the weathered part and the center was still good. It wasn't a big log to start with but I still got 8 decent boards out of it 4/4+ thick and 8" wide. Not sure what I will use them for, I'll just sticker them in the stacks for now. Maybe I'll get some more cut today. It's harder to stay excited when it's 90 degrees out there.

Back to dual saws… Over the years a lot of the woodworkers I have known just kept a small bench saw sitting under a workbench so they could quickly sit it up on the bench top to make a few simple cuts without disturbing a setup on the main tablesaw.
Even with my abundant supply of power saws I find myself using hand tools for a lot of small jobs. Of course few of us would find ripping a 12' board by hand much fun but even that can be done. Even up into the 1950's many carpenters were still cutting everything by handsaw (and I am not talking about one with a power cord). Up until then a lot of new home sites didn't even have power until the house was up. Would I want to go back to that? Noooooooooo… But I do recall how slow many of the old school carpenters were to make the jump to power tools. Many of you older guys like me can probably remember just how amazingly fast some of those guys were with a handsaw.
My introduction into basic woodworking over 60 years ago was old school. You were to learn hand-tools first then move to power tools. At the time I didn't really appreciate it but I do today.


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## kizerpea (Dec 2, 2011)

I have 3.. Two I roll out when I need them. Two shapers to.. 1 for styles and one for rails .


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## Robinson (Jan 11, 2011)

Here is a big table (4' x 6') for a bench saw I made years ago. Back then I was using it as a primary saw and my 510 Shopsmith as its mate saw. I also added a Craftsman RAS about then. I used to say that you needed at least 1 tablesaw, at least 1 RAS and at least one Shopsmith. I still feel that way if you have the space.


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## fartymarty (Apr 30, 2017)

I plan on getting a Incra TS fence. The smallest one available will consume a lot more room than my current Sears TS uses and that's OK, as I've recently freed up some room. However In order to maximize things in the space required just for the Incra TS fence (72" rails) I plan on having a left side router table and a second Sears table saw just for dado work on the right side of my current saw (which will be for ripping and cross cutting). I haven't the room for back to back anything, so no need to recommend that to me. I'll be using an attached fold up out feed table when required. Both saws are left tilting but the blade angle adjustment handles are on opposite sides of the housing (not that I'd probably ever angle the dado blade) so I was thinking of just bolting the two tables together without a spacer (except if some slight shimming was required to get the miter slots parallel). The lower parts of the housings will be 4 3/4" apart if I bolt the cast iron table tops to each other.
I've noticed that those that do put two saws side by side usually put an extension wing in between them. I'm wanting to know if there is an advantage to that…or was it just to allow better access to an adjustment wheel located between the saws?

I'm not that experienced with a table saw yet but I have used it safely so far and still have all my fingers and haven't had any kickback yet. What I'm trying to say here (rather poorly) is that I'm not a beginner, but it's entirely possible that I'm overlooking something that many here will think of right away that is wrong or not optimal with how I propose to put these two saws together.

Thanks for your input in advance.
fm


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## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

Father and son LOL


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