Hello folks,
I'm new to this forum, I've Just taken voluntary redundancy and thought I might take up woodworking again (after a short 40 year gap since O'level!)
I had a crappy old Macallister table saw from some one off project I did 15 years ago. The tabletop was obviously shot so I put a malamine top on it and cut a zero insert with a new Freud blade. Then I used a temporary fence to build a John Heisz wooden rail and fence system ( See the Picture below). Built a couple of cross cut sleds and all of a sudden I'm able to accurately rip and cross cut. Had a go at building the Mrs a sewing desk with drawers for her "she-shed" with birch plywood. It turned out really well and now I'm completely hooked !
So, now with a few quid in my pocket to spend from my redundancy I'd like to get some propper gear. I'm half considering getting a free standing saw bench like the Axminster AT254SB or something similar, but I think what I'd really like to do is build a large heavy duty workbench (maybe 6-7' by 4') on castors and incorporate a table saw and router lift into it. That way I can roll it out of the way in the garage or even to work outside.
I've found a Router motor and lift which look pretty good on the Rutlands website but I'm struggling to decide on a cast iron table saw that I could incorporate into a corner of the bench. The Axminster AC216TS looked like an obvious candidate, but there's no available fence rail extension so pretty pointless putting it in a 7' long bench, unless I scrap their fence and build a longer rail for my John Heisz fence.
The Charnwood W629 or W650 models look as if they can be assembled without their lower base section so might fit nicely, my plan would be to install in the left corner of a long side of the bench and use the bench top rather than the supplied extension tables for support.
Any thoughts or suggestions would be very much appreciated.
I'm new to this forum, I've Just taken voluntary redundancy and thought I might take up woodworking again (after a short 40 year gap since O'level!)
I had a crappy old Macallister table saw from some one off project I did 15 years ago. The tabletop was obviously shot so I put a malamine top on it and cut a zero insert with a new Freud blade. Then I used a temporary fence to build a John Heisz wooden rail and fence system ( See the Picture below). Built a couple of cross cut sleds and all of a sudden I'm able to accurately rip and cross cut. Had a go at building the Mrs a sewing desk with drawers for her "she-shed" with birch plywood. It turned out really well and now I'm completely hooked !
So, now with a few quid in my pocket to spend from my redundancy I'd like to get some propper gear. I'm half considering getting a free standing saw bench like the Axminster AT254SB or something similar, but I think what I'd really like to do is build a large heavy duty workbench (maybe 6-7' by 4') on castors and incorporate a table saw and router lift into it. That way I can roll it out of the way in the garage or even to work outside.
I've found a Router motor and lift which look pretty good on the Rutlands website but I'm struggling to decide on a cast iron table saw that I could incorporate into a corner of the bench. The Axminster AC216TS looked like an obvious candidate, but there's no available fence rail extension so pretty pointless putting it in a 7' long bench, unless I scrap their fence and build a longer rail for my John Heisz fence.
The Charnwood W629 or W650 models look as if they can be assembled without their lower base section so might fit nicely, my plan would be to install in the left corner of a long side of the bench and use the bench top rather than the supplied extension tables for support.
Any thoughts or suggestions would be very much appreciated.