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View Full Version : MBS 300 table saw on special - is it worth it?



spbookie
17th May 2005, 10:33 PM
Major Woodworking Machinery have the MBS 300 on special for $2500 including GST, this is $13 cheaper than the MBS 250, or $500 less than the Jet cabinet saw with table options.

I have heard that the MBS range are good tools. Not as pretty as the Jet but better engineering.

MBS 300 Specifications (http://www.majorwoodworking.com.au/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=52_66&products_id=228)

After saving up for a year I can afford this one or a Jet cabinet saw. If you had the money would you buy one?

Charles

Groggy
17th May 2005, 10:42 PM
Another equivalent machine is the Leda TC-12

numbat
17th May 2005, 10:51 PM
Carbatec also have the MBS-300 p48 of the 2005 Cattledog. List price is $2695 - but I am sure there is some negotiation room there.

Cheers

Cliff Rogers
17th May 2005, 10:56 PM
Good one Groggy, the poor buga is looking for help & you go & confuse him even more.... :D

Charles mate, I think you'll have to toss a coin 'cos I doubt there'll be anyone here who has owned/used or even tried both.

The best you can hope for is a couple of mates in the same area with different machines who may have compared notes.

I haven't heard any bad reports about the Jet but I haven't heard anything at all about MBS or the Leda....

Anyone else want to try confusing the poor buga? :)

numbat
17th May 2005, 10:59 PM
I think Soundman has the MBS-300.

Cheers

Groggy
18th May 2005, 09:19 PM
Good one Groggy, the poor buga is looking for help & you go & confuse him even more.... :D Fair cop Cliff, mea culpa - I was in a hurry and thought I'd drop the Leda in there too to assist with the head scratching.

Anyway, since he is scratching his brain with this stuff, here's my simple 2c worth.

I have looked long and hard at table saws, particularly the MBS300 and the TC-12.

I decided the difference wasn't much, and in the end, it was a choice of cabinet style (I am convinced they come out of the same castings and factory) and accessories for the price.

Personally, I chose the TC-12 because I knew I would get very good support (personal luck here, it may not apply to others) and the sliding table plus a blade was in the deal.

The price I paid was competitive with C**** T** et al, and I can bother the dealer whenever I want since he lives nearby.

Charles, I would not worry about the quality of either the
MBS300 or TC-12, they are the same. You would do better spending your time working on the total package:

-delivery
-blade
-setup help
-overhead guard
-dust collection connectors
-magnetic switch
-sliding table (be aware that the guide rail is different for the sliding table on the TC-12).
-dado blade maybe?
-dado extension arbor perhaps.

cheers,

Greg

numbat
18th May 2005, 09:30 PM
The other key consideration with the MBS-300 is whether to get the 3 phase or the single phase motor. That will depend on what you have to your shed.

Cheers

MajorPanic
18th May 2005, 10:51 PM
I've got a Woodman TS222 & it's the same saw, I reckon.

I couldn't live without the sliding table. :D
It can be a bit of a job to setup the swinging arm but ones that is done you are home & hosed. ;)

The only complaint is that it won't cut to the depth they say. I can only cut up to 94mm & they reckon it'll cut 105mm deep. :mad:

All in all a good robust saw, I've had mine for about 8 years. http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com.au/images/icons/icon14.gif

Caliban
18th May 2005, 11:05 PM
At the www sydney show last year Major Woodworking Machinery had the MBS300 with overhead suva guard, blade and extension table (fence side) for $2100. I remember because I drooled over it for months and wished I was (financially) better endowed. I still want one but you can only get away with so much. I don't think it included the sliding table though. I remember thinking it was cheaper than the other supplier of the MBS300. I also remember the guy telling me that theirs was slightly better than their competitors and I figured if the Jet dealer reckons it is a good saw who was I to argue.
Hope this helps, maybe they'll be cheaper at the show, maybe not.

sandman
18th May 2005, 11:25 PM
I have owned this saw for approx 6 mths. I purchased it through a great mob in S.A!!
I ordered it with the sliding table, o/h suva guard, tenoning jig & 3 CMT blades.
(one of each for ripping, crosscutting & melamine)
Only hicup I had was the emergency stop button wouldn't work!
Had a friend (sparky) bring over his multi meter etc and found the problem.
Wherever or whoever completed the "fit off" of saw arbor tilt scale on front panel of saw drove the screw right through cable to switch & caused a short.
Sparky told me not to bother with anymore "tatts" tickets as I'd used my share of luck! I didn't get any "zaps" from saw & my RCD on shed didn't kick in either, so I know how lucky I was!
With all that said, I am very happy with it and would NOT be without the sliding table. It will cut a 4' sheet no worries. Fence is very very good & accurate.
What I would like to do is to have a pro set it up to acheive it's max accuracy as I have found that it is a beautiful machine to use and accurate to about 99.5%. I guess if I spent the time I could get it close to spot on myself but time is the thing.
The dealer in S.A told me that these saws are the "industry std" model used for education dept.
A very good machine despite it's early dramas.
Good luck with your choice. The price is GOOD!!!!! $2500 inclusive... Wow!

spbookie
18th May 2005, 11:50 PM
Thanks guys, you have helped.

Basically it is a good saw and the price is good. Unfortunately the sliding table question is moot as I don't have enough room. I do want to go one step better than the generic carbetec et al 10" saw without pi$$ing my dollars away. So I was picking between the Jet and the MBS, the MBS being better priced but not as pretty. Groggy's list is interesting, especially the dado comments as the MBS is much better for dado heads due to the length of the arbor.

At this stage I may well plug for the MBS and see about hunting for price

Charles

soundman
19th May 2005, 11:23 PM
The mbs 300 is a great saw.
I don't have the slider (yet).
One big advantage is the size of the machine, the case & footprint is larger than the unisaw or its clones and the tabletop is huge.
I strongly recomend you get a 20 amp outlet wired as the motor is BEEEFFFY. It should run on a 15 amp ok, but I loaded mine up with a bit of 90mm kd hardwood with a peak holding clamp meter & it sucks juce.
Its delightfully smooth and GRRRRunty.
the motor is the size of a 2 gal bucket.
You wont regret it.
If you want to run a dado make sure you can get the appropriate arbour.
The standard 30mm arbour wont run a dado. The arbour can be changed, its not just the end of the shaft machined its a bolt in arbour.
cheers

spbookie
19th May 2005, 11:42 PM
Thanks Soundman.

I have checked and you can get an 5/8 arbor adaptor. From what the salesman said I think you unscrew the 30mm and screw on the 5/8.

Regarding power, I have a 15amp plug on a seperate circuit, so I should be fine.

Well I think I will start ringing MBS dealers.

Charles

sandman
19th May 2005, 11:50 PM
Correct! You simply unscrew 30mm arbor & screw in the 5/8" arbor.
Problem is with 30mm arbor being too short for Dado.
The 5/8" is plenty long enough though.
I purchased the CMT dado set but, have'nt used it yet.
Personally I don't have a problem with the appearance of mbs300 unit.
I don't care too much for make up as you can't polish a ! :D :D :D :D
Good luck!
Regards Sandman. :D

Groggy
20th May 2005, 09:28 PM
Groggy's list is interesting, especially the dado comments as the MBS is much better for dado heads due to the length of the arbor.
I'm intrigued by this comment. Why is the MBS 'much better' due to the length of the arbor? How long is it, I thought it was 30mm, the same as the TC-12? There was an interesting thread on arbor lengths a while ago,

(...shuffles off to look...)

(...shuffles back...)

ayup, here it is:

http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com.au/showthread.php?t=14378&highlight=arbor+length

I also note the discussion about a 5/8" arbor being available, you may want to make sure you get the right one with the saw, as the price may (unpleasantly) surprise you.

soundman
21st May 2005, 12:09 AM
bookie, consider that the wood show discounts will be comming your way soon. Might be worth a trip to sydney with the trailer round wood show time.

on the arbour length the 30mm (diameter) arbour is very short & is only suitable for one blade. I can't comment on the 5/8.
cheers

spbookie
22nd May 2005, 04:26 PM
Been checking some brochures just received.

Under standard accessories is Arbor extention for saw blade.
Under optional accessories is Arbor extention for dado and dado insert.

But the Suva guard and riving knife are also shown as optional and I know they come with the saw.

I had better check price but I will be driving to Sydney on the 3rd of June, hopefully to return with a saw but definitately to collect a UBueat foily cap or two.

But the Suva guard and riving knife are also shown as optional and I know they come with the saw

'nother question for you MBS owners, how good is the fence and mitre gauge?

Charles

soundman
23rd May 2005, 11:50 PM
The fence that came with mine is quite good. Its a prety good "T" square coppy & seems solid enough & holds well. The scale comes in & out of cal by about .5mm over its length. If I'm wanting fine fits I always use a steel rule anyway.
The mitre guage is prety damn good for a simple slot & protractor type.
I use sleds a lot though.
Different suppliers supply in difrernt forms some include the overhead guard some don't. I have seen two types of overhead guard. The frame is the same but the guarg box differs.
The one I have (which I think is better) has the extraction straight out the top & perspex both sides & at the front. The alternative has the extraction out the right hand side at an angle & only the left side perspex the visibility in this guard is poor.
Some suppliers only supply this unit complete with sliding table & overhead guard.

cheers

bjn
25th May 2005, 05:56 PM
[QUOTE=sandman]I have owned this saw for approx 6 mths. I purchased it through a great mob in S.A!!

Who are the great mob in SA?

regards Brenton

spbookie
15th June 2005, 04:47 PM
My brand new MBS 300 arrived today :) :) :). Now I have to set it up and start play^H^H^H^H working hard.

One question what is the best solvent to remove the rust preventer that coats all the cast iron? I am about to try kero.

Any other setup advice is welcomed.

Happy me :) Toys are good, big toys are better :)

Charles

Groggy
15th June 2005, 06:17 PM
One question what is the best solvent to remove the rust preventer that coats all the cast iron? I am about to try kero.Turps works better than kero.

MajorPanic
15th June 2005, 06:27 PM
Don't use turps!

It will soften the finish on painted surfaces.

Just use kero, I did on my new 20" thicknesser.

Cliff Rogers
15th June 2005, 07:16 PM
...the best solvent to remove the rust preventer that coats all the cast iron? ...
Subject has been covered elsewhere on the wood forums.

Kero has the most votes I think.

Groggy
15th June 2005, 10:14 PM
Don't use turps!

It will soften the finish on painted surfaces.
Since it works a lot better than kero, he may want to use it on bare metal but kero on the painted areas. Reading the original post I got the impression he was only cleaning the metal surfaces, but yes, you are correct, don't use it on painted surfaces.

soundman
15th June 2005, 10:49 PM
Big isn't it :D

If it was like mine it will be prety straight out of the box.

No you can't fit the standard guard & the riving knife at the same time.

If you have the suva guard don't bother with the clippy stabaliser thingy just bolt/ clamp the arm to the underside of the side table infill.

Order extra riving knives you may want to trim one or two up for some uses.


Quiet isn't it :D

A 20 amp circuit is a good idea.
A 20 amp extention cord is a good idea. the cord is very short.

if you want to improve the extraction of the case fill up the gaps between tha case & the table with strips of foam. but don't cover the "smiley slot" at the front you need this air flow.

cheers have funn :)

spbookie
15th June 2005, 11:14 PM
One of those "you are all correct". I am cleaning the wings of the saw, which are all metal but they are surrounded by painted surfaces. So I used Major's warning and Groggy's advice.

I used some turps on the upper face, using a small amount applied with a rag the rust preventing gunk was softened but no risk to the paint. Then slopped on a liberal amount of kero to clean up and to remove the gunk from the edges. For rust prevention I applied a coating of Lanotech 3000.

I was impressed when I removed what appeared to be a neatly packaged small plastic tool case, only to find that it had 3 tool and heaps of bolts and nuts in a case. Next steps are to assemble the (approx) eleventy million bits. I do find it funny that you pay $2,500 plus and receive what is basically a tablesaw kit. Heck ( safe word) I even had to go and buy a 15amp plug as the saw terminates in three wires.

But all that moaning aside I got a table saw and I'm happy :D. I'm just worried that I will now have to cut up messy wood and dirty my nice new Freud blade and scuff up my new saw. ;) ;D

Charles

PS My version of the saw is off white, so I get all of the advantages of Jet with the Mikiway engineering and price. All good.

Simomatra
20th June 2005, 05:42 PM
Thanks to all for the contributions to spbookie's thread.

I too have been doing the rounds and at the moment think I have decided on the MB300. Will post when I ahve decided and how the deal went

Once again guys thanks for all the info the wood show only complicated things too many toys to look at

Sam

tappgm
30th December 2007, 12:27 PM
I am in NZ and wondering if I could get a manual for this saw here.
Do you knw if I could get one.



I have heard that the MBS range are good tools. Not as pretty as the Jet but better engineering.

MBS 300 Specifications (http://www.majorwoodworking.com.au/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=52_66&products_id=228)

After saving up for a year I can afford this one or a Jet cabinet saw. If you had the money would you buy one?

Charles

MajorPanic
31st December 2007, 08:29 PM
Does it look something like this???...........

http://www.grizzly.com/images/pics/jpeg500/g/g9957.jpg

The best place to get manuals you can actually understand is HERE (http://www.grizzly.com/manuals.aspx)You'll have to do the comparison of specs yourself but you WILL find what you are after!