small table saw

[wildewood]

greetings & a happy new year to everyone

I am looking for a small table saw to cut pieces of hardwood up to two or so inches thick - mainly for longbow stave laminates - so clean straight lines - i have looked at the dwalt & makita saws & they are way to big for my small space - i have seen the proxxon Fet & it looks small & fragile - does anyone know of something in between ideally something around 18 x 18 "- i see that Draper have 1800W table saw & a few other makes not normally associated with quality.

any help would be great many thanx S

 

[Ttrees]

Have you considered a flip up tablesaw like this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaeZ17O_MEI

Someone here has done a nice job of it and made nice HDPE casters for it
I think he may have used a heavier machine than that in the video.

I would want an induction motor personally
On the bay, I recall seeing an old makita (i think) that was a really industrial wee thing
that's what I would look for,
I'd say it could probably be done with the ts200 or 250 if you welded a nice frame up

Good luck

 

[marcros]

greetings & a happy new year to everyone

I am looking for a small table saw to cut pieces of hardwood up to two or so inches thick - mainly for longbow stave laminates - so clean straight lines - i have looked at the dwalt & makita saws & they are way to big for my small space - i have seen the proxxon Fet & it looks small & fragile - does anyone know of something in between ideally something around 18 x 18 "- i see that Draper have 1800W table saw & a few other makes not normally associated with quality.

any help would be great many thanx S

how big are the starting pieces, and what are the sizes of the finished pieces that you are cutting?

you may also consider a well tuned bandsaw. I am wondering whether there is a way to make a tracks work for this. if space is limited, a table saw is not ideal.

 

[MattRoberts]

Agreed - without knowing exactly what size wood you're dealing with and what type of cuts you want to make, a benchtop bandsaw does sound like a better fit

 

[Orraloon]

I used to make bows and a bandsaw is by far the better tool. I would look for at least a 14'' saw as the smaller benchtop bandsaws will struggle. Making bows was the reason I got my first bandsaw. You can rough out a stave on a bandsaw and also do things like the splice joint to join 2 billets. For laminates a bandsaw is also a better way to go as the narrower kerf results in less waste wood. It's way more useful than a tablesaw for bow making.
Regards
John