What table saw for a Dado cutter.

[johnemtee]

I got carried away when I was in New England a few years ago and bought a set of 6"Stacked Dado Head Cutters. - "Thanks Norm "
Weight and size limitations for Airline baggage dictated the size. I have used them on an old table saw a couple of times. It has since gone the way of all flesh.
I would like to set up a dedicated saw to take these.

Does anyone know of a small table saw that has a 5/8" or 16mm spindle and will take about 3/4" thick set of cutters and of course does not have a braking system. Either current or an old model that I can track down - Second hand is good as it helps to stretch the pension.

 

[Scrit]

Does anyone know of a small table saw that has a 5/8" or 16mm spindle and will take about 3/4" thick set of cutters and of course does not have a braking system. Either current or an old model that I can track down - Second hand is good as it helps to stretch the pension.

You won't find a current model saw bench without a brake - it's not legal to sell them in the EU. Neither should any saws manufactured in Europe after the late 1990s accommodate more than 16mm wide tooling on the spindle. Most of the table saws I know of (even old Brit iron) seem to have 3/4in, 20mm, 25mm, 1in or 30mm spindles - 16mm and/or 5/8in (they are slightly different) were always a rarity here as it was regarded as a bit undersized - anyone know if Startrites were that size? The only readily available saws I can think of with the correct size arbor are the deWalt 10in radial arm saws which in any case are a safer way to use dado heads than any table saw could ever be, however the even there the modern (post 1990) ones are specifically limited to deWalt's own safety dado sets, so if you go the RAS way you'll have to look for an earlier orange/green DW RAS which have the longer arbor and no brake. For that you will need to get a guard fabricated as DW OEM dado guards were withdrawn many years agoand the standard guard won't accommodate a stacked head.

Scrit

 

[johnemtee]

Thanks Scrit.
I guess you are right about going the radial route, it was pretty dodgy using the cheapo Ferm unit and it would'nt take all the chippers.
The cutters are still a usefull tool when cutting lots of joints.

 

[jasonB]

You will be quite limited to depth of cut on a RAS if the dado is only 6" dia, the motor will tend to hit the workpiece.

Jason

 

[johnemtee]

Good point, as I said size etc was determined by baggage restrictions, we had the max going over.
Back to the drawing board then!

 

[Jorden]

That dado set will fit on my Xcalibur 802

(5/8 x 3/4 spindle, no brake but stops in about 6 seconds)

Dennis

 

[johnemtee]

Jordon - You lucky being, looks a nice bit of kit.
Perhaps I could invest some of Mrs MT's pension in one of those.
I was thinking of something a little cheaper that I could leave set up.

 

[wrightclan]

[ Most of the table saws I know of (even old Brit iron) seem to have 3/4in, 20mm, 25mm, 1in or 30mm spindles - 16mm and/or 5/8in (they are slightly different) were always a rarity here as it was regarded as a bit undersized - anyone know if Startrites were that size?

Scrit

Yes, My TA175 has a 5/8" arbour. You have to remove the rear flange to accomodate up to a 16mm/5/8" (total width) stacked dado. With a minor modification, (PM me if anyone is interested as to how) you can achieve a 3/4" width.

Brad

 

[wrightclan]

johnemtee,

Startrites are regularly posted on the bay.

Brad

 

[johnemtee]

Thanks - bet it will be a long wait for on of those tho