Best table saw for around £1000?

[Deadeye]

My head hurts. I've viewed Sips and Charnwoods and Records and Axminsters and Kitys and Jets and Sedwicks and Xcalibers and God-knows-whats.

I'm heartily confused. My #1 criterion is accuracy. Oh, and power. Oh yes, and durability. And of course flexibility. And at a reasonable price...

What would people go for? And are there any decent deals on?

 

[MattRoberts]

I'd get this : https://www.scosarg.com/itech-01332-250 ... -saw-bench

It's the same saw as my Axminster AW10 but cheaper.

 

[MikeJhn]

I went for the Axminster TS-250-2 and am very happy with it, I have managed to get it more accurate than it needs to be for cutting timber to make doors, drawers and anything else I need to make, (within 0.2mm) power is adequate to rip 75mm oak with the right blade fitted, had it for two years nearly and its still as good as new, the complete kit is £726.96 at the time of writing, enough over to buy some decent blades for it: http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-ho ... w-ax943888

Mike

 

[deema]

I believe the old rule of thumb was 1hp per inch (25.4mm....I’ve been told off for using British units!!) of thickness the saw can cut. However, I’ve use a Startrite Saw for many years that had a 2hp motor and would cut steadily 4” of very well seasoned English oak. Unless your into production most saws available will have sufficient power for every day use.

For accuracy you want a Saw with mass, this cuts down on vibration. You also want a Saw with big bearings, trunnions and a rock steady fence. These are characteristics you will find on modern day Sedgwick saws, and on older machines such as Wadkin. From the list of saws you’ve given, IMO the Sedgwick Saw will meet all of your criteria. Equally an older Wadkin, Multico and Sedgwick will achieve what your after. There are other extinct brands that are available secondhand that will also meet your requirements.

I had a Startrite DS275 fo a number of years, fabulous machine, very accurate, nothing to go wrong and very versatile. I also had a Sedgwick Saw. The sedgwick was a far more robust machine and produced a better cut. I now have a SCM which is a step up again, but it’s a far larger machine.

I would recommend going for a Saw with a sliding table. They are incredibly useful. For compactness, flexibility and capability the Startrite DS275 takes a lot of beating. The Sedgwick TA315 or older LK (max 16” blade) are brilliant the only down side I found was that unlike the Startrite the fence for the sliding table has to be removed when not in use and doesn’t store on the machine .

 

[Ttrees]

Sorry, duplicate post

 

[Ttrees]

You have not mentioned what supply you have...
Single phase 13a or 16amp plugs or three phase?
Guessing you have single phase...
How big is your MCB or RCD and what type (B or C ?) and what wire and how far is the shed from the unit?
Have you got anything else with a motor, to have a comparison ?

For a third of the money you could buy a startrite 275DS
I'm fairly happy with mine

I have a bad single phase supply, and am fairly frugal, so went the three phase route as its much easier on the leccy,
using a VFD for around a hundred quid.
An example is my 1HP drill draws more amps than my 3HP saws on startup...
The reason this is possible for me to run a 3HP machine, is because the startup time can be easily adjusted in seconds, so it suits the supply with a VFD,
It runs smoother and won't bog down as easily, as there are another two "legs" with three phase, to keep spanking that momentum at 2, 6 and 10 o'clock
instead of just 12 o'clock, with a 12 hour wait till the next spanking :?

The reasons I considered when buying the Startrite for me was ....
Dual voltage motor on these machines ....meaning you can run these on 220/240v supply (delta configuration meaning/also called low voltage mode)
I'm not sure, but I think the Sedgewicks use a fixed star wound 400v motor ???? (needs clarification)

A miter slot on each side of the blade for crosscut sleds (only one on the Sedgewick)
12" blade to fit ..or possibly 14" for full height cuts only
Riving knife
Tilting arbor
I made a mobile base for mine, and think these machines need to be level to work without issue.

Features that the Startrite doesn't have ..
A long arbor for dado blades
I can't think of anything else....

A lot of those new machines have dual voltage 3 phase motors
Worth knowing about
Look up Bob Minchin induction motors PDF for more info
No looking back now 8)

Good luck
Tom

 

[MikeJhn]

A miter slot on each side of the blade for crosscut sleds (only one on the Sedgewick)
12" blade to fit ..or possibly 14" for full height cuts only
Riving knife
Tilting arbor
I made a mobile base for mine, and think these machines need to be level to work without issue.

Crown guard?
Decent dust collection?

Mike

 

[Ttrees]

Indeed, I could do with a dust extractor
I plan to get a proper Pentz system, or similar, and it will serve me well.
I don't use the saws much at the moment, but when I do, I get suited and masked up.
I tend to do a lot when I do use them, and leave the dust to settle after.
I use planes mostly so the dust isn't bad.
This is only temporary.

Dust extraction on the machine is a matter of cutting a hole in the saw
On the Startrite, it would not take long as its a biscuit tin underneath.
The arbour is mounted onto the table by one trunion only so, theoretically
the blade could nip away at the zero clearance insert in some cases.
I have not found much movement in the blade I must admit, but when the blade is tilted I
noticed some skewing on something ...
I will take a piccy and do some tests on this sometime as I keep waffling on about this,
I can't now for the saws are tables for the lengths of this bench build at the moment.

About the crown guard ...
I'm looking at getting some correct plastic for the job...something like a clear HDPE
and using this plastic as templates.
Some other wee bits of this system need some work also.

And the 14" blade part I've heard this from another member, and don't have a 14" blade,
The riving knife mounting is cast into the trunion mount and is very easily adjustable though.
I would take a guess, my riving knife may work for a 14" but if not, I could just make another.

I advise the OP to get one of these and an extractor as you really get filthy.
I have overalls that are covered front and back.

I did hope to get a proper boilersuit which I found, locally... but not in my size.
I had to ring them up, paid a lot for it (75 quid), and got screwed over by the O'Connor Group Limited Demesne, Newmarket, County Cork company
who sent me a very different, inferior boilersuit, and denied the garment I had tried on a month or two earlier existed :shock:
I couldn't send it back as they only delivered it to a farm shop far away, and I had to pay postage.
I was on the phone to them and they blatantly lied and lied to me..
What a shower of ....

I have sourced some other parts for my diy respirator since, and will update that thread when I get round to it.
Tom

 

[MikeJhn]

Look on the first page here for a Perspex Crown Guard: axminster-ts250-2-modifications-t102284.html the Perspex take's set screws readily, they cut their own thread, there is also some ideas on dust extraction.

Mike

 

[Deadeye]

You have not mentioned what supply you have...
Single phase 13a or 16amp plugs or three phase?
Guessing you have single phase...
How big is your MCB or RCD and what type (B or C ?) and what wire and how far is the shed from the unit?
Have you got anything else with a motor, to have a comparison ?

It's a normal household 13a supply run to the garage, which is maybe 5m?
I'm quite taken with the iTech 01332, which is 16a - would I be able to run this from a VFD? I don't know much (=anything) about electics!
The biggest thing I have currently is a 1.5kW single phase planer.

 

[MikeJhn]

At 2200watts using 220volts nominal its a 10amp machine, but the start up current may trip your MCB this may mean changing it to a machine rated unit Type "C" if its not one already, I am assuming that your workshop is already supplied by an RCD Consumer unit.

Mike

 

[MattRoberts]

You can run that particular saw from a 13amp plug by lopping off the 16amp one, as long as you don't have a flaky RCD. I did exactly that with my Axminster version

 

[cammy9r]

Hi, I bought the record power ts 250c pk/a with the sliding table it was a bit over budget at £1200 at time of purchase. As I tend to do more sheet work I find this saw quite capable and keep a fine tooth blade in it. Overall I am happy with it but it did throw up an issue I had not thought of. The blade tilts towards the fence and with the sliding table assembly I cannot move the fence to the other side of the blade. I would normally make relief cuts on raised panel door inserts before moving to the router table, it helps speed up the task. Now I cant figure a way to do this using this saw. I did over come this by not selling my Makita site saw as I had planned and use this instead for the cut.
Just thought I would point out the blade tilt issue if a sliding table is fitted close to the blade. Dust extraction seems very good when connected to the axminster fm300bc.
While some people dream of these divine cast iron hulks of a bygone age they really are just impracticable for most hobby users with their weight, logistics and power needs. Don't get me wrong, I like these old machines and love the restoration threads but they just would not work out for me at home.

 

[MikeJhn]

You can run that particular saw from a 13amp plug by lopping off the 16amp one, as long as you don't have a flaky RCD. I did exactly that with my Axminster version

Matt do you know something we don't, he said he only has a 13amp domestic supply into the garage/workshop 5m away?

Mike

 

[Ttrees]

Thanks for the link MikeJhn
I was thinking perspex was a bit brittle ...

Deadeye
A machine that comes with a blue plug is a 16 amp supply single phase only., meaning you will need to make some changes
to make this machine run.
This could mean getting an electrician to wire in 16a plugs from the consumer unit, depending on if you have a consumer unit
in the shed with probably at least a 20a MCB type C or a higher rater type B .....
and a decent wire to main house consumer unit/circuit breaker.

I've heard that RCD's don't like VFD's as there is a phantom earth that comes from the drive because of the simulated phases.

Probably a good idea, if it makes sense to upgrade your supply...
For me that's not fee-sable, and I rather like having the choice of a huge range of industrial machinery, way better than
cheap far east stuff for the same price if you want flashy ...like SCM
Or someone like me who wants a good machine for a good bit cheaper again, but a third of that price, a Startrite 275DS

Three phase dual voltage motors is just less faff in the end, if you have to move

Its very easy to wire and program an inverter/VFD...like wiring a plug easy.
make sure you run by the parameter settings before us, before you hit run.
You don't want to try and start a tablesaw at 400Hz instead of 50Hz (50hz is the speed of a European motor)

I have settings here for two main Chinese VFD's the Huanyang HY02D223B and the newer Isacon/askpower drives which also has
the same model number.
The new ones are quiet because the fan has an auto switch off.
You will need switches with these that will cost about 3 pounds or less
and a relay that's about 4 pounds...
I have a light switch on the bandsaw at the moment as I don't have a relay for the newer drive...

I have made a kick switch for my tablesaw using a start NO (normally open) button and a stop NC (normally closed)button
...and use the older Huanyang VFD with the humming fan for the tablesaw.
these wires for the VFD controls are not dangerous to touch, unlike the input and output terminals.

Tom

 

[MattRoberts]

You can run that particular saw from a 13amp plug by lopping off the 16amp one, as long as you don't have a flaky RCD. I did exactly that with my Axminster version

Matt do you know something we don't, he said he only has a 13amp domestic supply into the garage/workshop 5m away?

Mike

Not sure I understand what you're asking. I just confirmed that I run that saw off a 13amp domestic supply...

 

[MikeJhn]

Thanks for the link MikeJhn
I was thinking perspex was a bit brittle ...
Tom

Hasn't proved to be the case in use, the set screws just self tap into the perspex so its resilient enough, I used 10mm perspex with 4mm set screws, but you can glue/polish perspex/polycarbonate with Methylene Chloride.

Mike

 

[MikeJhn]

You can run that particular saw from a 13amp plug by lopping off the 16amp one, as long as you don't have a flaky RCD. I did exactly that with my Axminster version

Matt do you know something we don't, he said he only has a 13amp domestic supply into the garage/workshop 5m away?

Mike

Not sure I understand what you're asking. I just confirmed that I run that saw off a 13amp domestic supply...

Your post has assumed the OP has a 16amp supply to loop off, I just wondered if you knew something we didn't.

Mike

 

[Ttrees]

Regardless the supply that Itech tablesaw states it uses a 250mm blade.
Can that saw not take a 12" blade?
It's the same weight as the Startrite 275, so likely of similar construction.
Is a dado blade important to you atall ?

I would want a sliding table also if I was looking again, I find it useful
Tom

 

[transatlantic]

Your post has assumed the OP has a 16amp supply to loop off, I just wondered if you knew something we didn't.

He means cut off the 16A plug