Getting a new table saw.

[digitalwanderer]

My friend Harry pissed me off a bit yesterday, and today I sit here pounding coffee like a mofo trying to get my head clear so I can get a shopping list together for putting in a new Pergo floor.

Here's a quote from the above link that shows what I'm looking at:

The link that got me confidence up, and now I'm trying to pick out a portable table saw.

Chrissy was trying to talk me into a circular saw, but I HATE doing long cuts with a circular saw and figure a table with a miter will make the quarter rounds that much easier.

10" for $87 at the same place we're picking up the flooring don't look bad at all to me for what I think I'll be needing. Although they have another similar one for for $97 that I want to compare it to first.

So any carpenters in the house want to give me any recomends on buying a table saw or installing a Pergo floor?

 

[nelg]

This is the best tool kit, for the money, for all your home uses. The circular saw has a guide for perfectly straight cuts. Using a table saw for miter cuts is no better than the cheap miter box and saw that you can buy for <$10.

 

[digitalwanderer]

I dunno, that kit is $169 and I'm gonna have a lot of loooong cuts to make...that's kind of why I wanted a table.

I have a lot easier time cutting long runs on a table than using a circular saw.

Besides, I already got a Milwaukee full-strength industrial Sawzall.

I am thinking of picking up a cheapy little jigsaw for the detail work, they're only $15.

 

[nelg]

I have 2 corded circular saws plus that cordless one and a portable table saw. Since having the cordless I have not used the table saw and only used the corded saws to cut 6x6 timbers. The cordless is such a great handling saw I even used it to cut some kitchen cabinets. My brother in-law, who used to be a cabinet maker, could not believe how straight and clean the cuts were. IMHO a table saw is only as good as its fence. On long runs using a portable there is to much hanging off the ends causing flexing and then binding on the blade and usually the fences are hard to get exactly parallel to the blade.

 

[digitalwanderer]

Hmmm, fair points. What kind of battery life can I expect from a portable circular? I only gotta lay about 120 sq ft today which ain't much, but I don't want the saw crapping out on me.

My experience with battery powered tools isn't really that good, but I was playing with 'em back in the late 80s/early 90s and they've probably improved a tad since then.

 

[Frank]

Hmmm, fair points. What kind of battery life can I expect from a portable circular? I only gotta lay about 120 sq ft today which ain't much, but I don't want the saw crapping out on me.

My experience with battery powered tools isn't really that good, but I was playing with 'em back in the late 80s/early 90s and they've probably improved a tad since then.

It really depends a lot on the make and quality. Around 1990, the cordless tools from Makita (drills / screw divers) and Hilti (drills / saws) were already very good. Although the cheapest ones would cost you more money than that complete set above.

 

[digitalwanderer]

I love Makita tools, but there is no way I could justify spending that much on this project.

Does this one look too cheap? I want to try and get everything at Lowes if I can. (Although there is a Home Depot just down the road along with a Builder's Square I believe.)

 

[digitalwanderer]

Oooh, this Ryobi at HomeDepot looks a lot nicer to me for some reason.

 

[Frank]

I really don't know what is good today, I still have the old ones and they still work perfect (although I had to replace the things like batteries a few times).

That's why you're normally better off in the long run by buying Makita / Hilti, etc. And it makes using them much nicer. No hassles. But yes, they're not cheap.

Edit: At that time I was a mechanic: electrical, machines and networks. I started out with the cheap ones as well, but you know how it goes.

 

[RussSchultz]

Hmmm, fair points. What kind of battery life can I expect from a portable circular? I only gotta lay about 120 sq ft today which ain't much, but I don't want the saw crapping out on me.

I haven't bought any, but I did some research and the general consensus was battery powered saws were good for a carpenter who was going to a small job and only needed to make a few cuts. You just can't store enough energy in a battery to be making full length cuts on 1" plywood, for example.

For your job, it doesn't sound like a lot of cutting, but ask yourself: what do you personally get out of a cordless saw vs. a corded one?

If you can't find a good answer for that--buy the corded one. You'll get a better tool for the same money and never have to worry about batteries.

 

[gb25]

For what you're doing, you'd be better off getting a miter saw. Even a cheap one like this would be good enough, and wouldn't be much more than a circular saw. Plus it would be a lot faster. Once you set the miter saw square, it's just a matter of marking the length, then cutting, and it'll be a square cut every time. The only reason you'd really need a table saw for flooring is if you were planning on buying rough lumber and ripping them down to width by yourself. For a premade floor, get a miter saw.

 

[RussSchultz]

I second that.

I helped a friend install jatoba (brazillian cherry), and the only tools we needed for the simple pieces was a miter saw.

For the pieces that needed compound cuts, he (a much more experienced wood worker) did those and I don't remember what he used.

 

[digitalwanderer]

I got this one along with this jigsaw....and all the materials I'll need to do my hallway and living room. (My Pathfinder was hanging a bit heavy on the way home. :? )

Now I just gotta unload it all.

 

[Chris_T]

For the pieces that needed compound cuts, he (a much more experienced wood worker) did those and I don't remember what he used.

A coping saw perhaps?

BTW, I would also go for a corded vs. cordless saw.
While a cordless seems a good choice doing small projects. Think about the amount of use you are going to use the saw for, then the amount of storage its going to be in. I suspect you are not in any construction trade, or doing constant wood projects where you would get your *bang for the buck* buying the cordless. Point I'm trying to make is, in the long run, you can always pull out your dusty corded saw and have it work wheras you may pull out the cordless at a later time only to find the batteries are dead, and the company several years back decided to change its battery style. *coughRYOBIcough*

BTW, I apply to the school of thought that your tools are an investment and only worth the amount of money you are going to make with them. This is also coming from someone who's current ripping saw cost 9$ from Big Lots with a 30$ ripping blade from Teh Depot. Which is fine for me, because I've only used it for 2 home projects in the past 2 years.

Oh yeah, 2 spring clamps and a straight 1x works good enough for me not to have to drag the table saw down from the barn. YMMV

 

[nelg]

I’ve done many home improvement projects through the years and I still have found very little use for the table saw. My suggestion for the cordless was based on cutting Pergo flooring. For heavier wood I would use a corded circular saw with a jig, like I did for my bedroom. Cutting through ¾ jatoba is to taxing for cordless tools. For finishing carpentry a compound miter is a necessity.

 

[Martin Eddy]

I got this one along with this jigsaw....and all the materials I'll need to do my hallway and living room. (My Pathfinder was hanging a bit heavy on the way home. :? )

Now I just gotta unload it all.

You just need to be carefull with those cheaper table saws. Don't assume that
the parrallel fence is "parrallel". Always check the fence against a square before you cut.

 

[digitalwanderer]

Funny story, true story....

So I'm out in my garage trying to undig my industrial extension cord for the table saw and find my square when I'm digging thru my work bench and I come across a corded circular saw that I spaced my Father gave me about 7 years ago that he picked up at a garage sale for $2.

On the brightside, I now have lots more options. (And I found my square too, I was planning on using it since I can feel a bit of play in the rip guide)

 

[linthat22]

The wife and I installed our laminate flooring last week and it was a bitch to put down. The first row was easy, it was the second row that was the test. If you bought the tapping block, you'll quickly find out that there's no tapping to it!!! You literally have to smack the shit out of the wood to get it to lock. :?

After a couple of boards and 1,300 sq ft later, it looks a lot better than carpet.

 

[digitalwanderer]

The first row was easy, it was the second row that was the test. If you bought the tapping block, you'll quickly find out that there's no tapping to it!!! You literally have to smack the shit out of the wood to get it to lock. :?

I didn't buy a block or mallet and was using a hammer & scraps and it was a royal biatch! :?

I had it all figured out by the time I did the dogleg to my son's room in the hall, but I'm gonna go buy a mallet & block now and relay the bit I did by the kitchen.

I figure it's still easy enough to pull 'em up and relay them, the bitch for me was getting all the doorways figured out and trimmed. I have 8 doors and a large archway in this tiny little hallway. :?

The saw works superbly, I have no bitches. It's done it's job and I don't use the ripping guide much as it's mostly odd cuts and I found I prefer to just cut it by hand. The jigsaw has also been a lifesaver, highly recomended to get one if you decide to do this.

The bit I did right I love, and I'm pretty sure I can fix up the other bit easy enough...then it should be downhill for the rest of the hall as I'll have gotten all the hard bits out of the way. 8)

Off to Lowes for some tools, and I did remember to take pictures for before/after.

 

[digitalwanderer]

I love my saw, but I hate bloody flooring!!!!

It's actually not at all bad now that I got the hang of it, but fixing the first bit I did before I got the hang of it is really a biatch....once that's done I should fly.

1/2 hour until todays workday starts, criminy I hope I make more progress than yesterday! :?