Radial armsaws ????

[James98]

Hi ive got around £200 to spend on some new machines and was thinking of buying an old dewalt radial armsaw but is it worth while?? I currently have a bandsaw ,pillar drill, mitre saw, planer thicknesser, sanders and a wood lathe what's the next bit of machinery I should look to get? I do a variety of different things but mostly find myself doing furniture, I do often need something to do large cross cuts but don't have the space for a large enough tablesaw
What's your opinion of radial armsaws and is it right for me?

Thanks James

 

[Doug B]

The main problem with RAS is the depth of cut, the motor gets in the way if you are trying to cut planks of a decent thickness, much better with a modern chop saw IMHO

 

[pcb1962]

Presumably your mitre saw is not of the sliding variety, in which case I would trade that and your £200 for a sliding compound mitre saw which will be a lot more user-friendly than an old RAS.

 

[James98]

Hi thank you for the replies my mitre saw is sliding it cuts up to around 300mm it's just always slightly too small for really wide boards

 

[Doug B]

For sheet materials & wide planks a track saw would be my choice

 

[pcb1962]

Hi thank you for the replies my mitre saw is sliding it cuts up to around 300mm it's just always slightly too small for really wide boards

then my next choice for the job would be a track saw, such as http://goo.gl/IzwekN

 

[James98]

That sounds like a good idea to me, thanks for the help Doug

 

[JR147]

I've not touched my table saw since I got my track saw, brilliant for cutting sheet materials.

 

[jnw010]

I've got a Dewalt radial arm saw. A lot of the time it gets used as a chop saw, but it can also do a lot more. I like it, but they don't seem to be very popular these days. Chop saws are far more prevalent, probably due to their portability and consequently use by trades. I certainly wouldn't want to be trying to carry a RAS about!

 

[deema]

I have a Wadkin RAS and wouldn't be without it. They take a little time to setup, but once set they are IMO super accurate, far more accurate than any chop saw I've used. The column and rail that the saw runs on is completely ridgid without any flex. A 4" by 17" cut copes with must stuff you would put through, and the head and arm both tilt.

RAS saws have a bad reputation, but again IMO if used properly don't deserve their bad press. As said already I think their popularity wained due to portability and the space type you take up.

If you can fit one into your shop, i would get one.

 

[dickm]

RAS scare the sh-you-know-what out of me!

 

[Claud1]

Hi, I agree with deema, I have both RAS and SCMS and if I had to choose between the 2 I would go for the RAS. I would also agree with dickm that RAS can be scary I had a Dewalt for about three years and I can honestly say that I am lucky that I did not have any serious accidents but I can also say that I had just as many near misses using a Festool SCMS ( only because I was trying to do thicknesses that it was not meant to do ) in the end its a difficult decision and only you can decide but if you are like me I have made many bad decisions in the past so good luck

 

[custard]

I do often need something to do large cross cuts but don't have the space for a large enough tablesaw

A decent plunge saw with a track.

Get one where the track also fits your router and you're set for safe and accurate cross cuts, rips, trenching, mitres, rebates, grooves...

 

[worn thumbs]

If you are going to buy a radial arm saw,an older DeWalt is a good choice.Just use it for cross cutting as none of the other things you might persuade it to accomplish are really suited to the machine,even if they can just about be done.

 

[7sheds]

If you are going to buy a radial arm saw,an older DeWalt is a good choice.Just use it for cross cutting as none of the other things you might persuade it to accomplish are really suited to the machine,even if they can just about be done.

Interesting observation. I've always fancied a RAS but haven't figured out what extra capability it would give me as I already have a sliding mitre saw, table saw and table router.

 

[Grahammon]

If you are going to buy a radial arm saw,an older DeWalt is a good choice.Just use it for cross cutting as none of the other things you might persuade it to accomplish are really suited to the machine,even if they can just about be done.

Interesting observation. I've always fancied a RAS but haven't figured out what extra capability it would give me as I already have a sliding mitre saw, table saw and table router.

I think the biggest difference it would give you is the smoothness of operation, plus the ability to do rebates, it is a very natural operation to use. And especially if you have it set up inset in a workstation With some run off left and right of it, such that you can bring in to the garage workshop (with the door open) a long 4.8 mt piece of timber measure and mark cut and repeat.
I'm struggling to remember the name of the American manufacturer who make accessories for wood workers but one that transformed my use of,the radial was a an aluminium extrusion with an adhesive tape measure that is affixed on top of the fence, fitted to the left and right of the saw it has some swivel stops that have magnified markers so you can move about and lock down, you set the stop at say 18 1/2" flick the stop down and make multiple accurate cuts of that length. I also use it for making lap joints raising the saw to the appropriate height with the stops set up you can quickly scribe where the lap joint will end and then with the timber quickly cut the laps then nibble away the excess wood flick it end over end to cut the other end.
I use my radial for everything, I saw the same radial as mine going for £50 on eBay last week mines an old DW110 it has the same cutting ability as any of the newer ones, mine,owes me nothing very solid. And quiet, well relatively, chop saws are so noisy.
The only thing I find id like to do but can't is the tenon cutter attachment that you can buy for a table saw.
I originally made a shopnotes chopstation placed my radial saw on top put half an 8x4 sheet of ply i had left over from a job which incidently Wickes have 8x2 sheets ready cut for sale, fitted the ply on top of the saw as an extended table made two cuboards to support the ends sorted out the fence from some straight pine and have used it successfully for the last 10 yrs or so. Where the saw cuts into the wood I carefully routed out a 6mm rebate and put in a sacrificial piece of mdf which I replace every now and again.
Funny I hadn't seen any recent posts about RAS on this forum every one seems to be selling them off. I had a bit of a rant on another old post with people saying you shouldnt rip with them I regularly rip easily and safely
Btw those track saws other posters have referred to look wonderful for cutting sheet materials.
Sorry Bit of a ramble, Graham