Thread: After a 10" contractor saw, anyone knows about Carbatec CT-10ST or Hafco's ST-10SD?

Hi and welcome Ross, try searching the forum and have a look at this thread I started regarding the Hafco Saw http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...ad.php?t=20870

As the wallet will not yet allow me to upgrade, I am still stuck with the Triton (backwards and forwards to adjust fence ), so i cant give you any advice on these new toys

Thanks for the thread, Martrix.

It doesn't appear that too many people have use these Tables Saws. Well, in this forum anyway...

Good luck with your trusty Triton. I am keeping my set up for routing only.

I was recently looking at the 10SD. it was a good taiwanese built mahcine. i couldn't (and still don't!) understand y the fence goes so far past the table top. The rails aren't really used at the far end as the rails bends when u tighten the fence, so i am guessing it would be inacurate. also the quoted rip capacity doesn't have it going all the way out either. the Slide mechanism is really a bit of a gimmck too! it might only be useful when docking. having said all that it is one of the few contractor saws with dust extraction, and is taiwanese made, which generally have a better finish.
I guess it all comes down to your budget. After all my sleepless nights, i decided to go for the Carbatec 10HB. it does cost more, but the difference in built quality is huge! i didn't realsied just how much better it was till is opened up the cabinet and looked inside. IMO if you can afford it, the 10HB is a far superiour machine.

Hello NewWoody,
If you are interested the hafco in brisbane is on sale for $895 or $899, I can't quite remember, but it is $100 cheaper than carbatec at the moment.

I just bought the delta and I am stoked, the fence is great, the machine is solid and it is as quiet as a mouse, here is a link that I started when I was considering the Ct10st as well.
http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...ad.php?t=24628

Shame about the delta in the shop, if the fence leans at the rear it just means it was not set up properly, the screws at the front of the fence inside the rail need adjusting. I was suprised to hear the casting broke, I hope it is from abuse and misuse and not a sign of the future, maybe someone dropped it previously in the showroom.
I got the delta because it was unbeatable in my opinion of a price/cost comparison in that range.

Anyway - goodluck.

New Woody,

I've had the Hafco saw for about a year and I have no complaints. It is reasonably quiet, and if you take your time setting it up will retain its accuracy. I haven't found much use for the sliding table, but I did add another worksurface to take advantage of the extended fence rails. I believe that the Sydney store also has a "special" price on them at the moment.

Throw away the blade that comes with it - useless. A decent quality blade makes a world of difference, and you can use a dado set on this saw if you like. The riving knife is adjustable and quite strong, but I replaced the clear plastic shield with sturdier, DC connected unit.

Tony

Thanks for your feedback tony, felix, inferno,

With my budget of around $700, the price was going to sway the decision. I was more or less locked on the Delta deal, mental noting that I could get a CMT blade with the change...

Until the Fence Casting broke during the assistant's attempt to adjust the screws to tighten the clamp. The guy was very helpful, he tried his best to demonstrate the saw and initially even recommended the Delta over similar Carbatec saws... then this happened.

I gave it a quick inspection and the broken casting showed that it was all rather crumbly... it looked to me like poor quality either in the material used or quality control.

It was a real put off. I hope this is indeed a once off and those of you that already have the Delta 36-650 will not have the same problem.

Decisions.... decisions...

My choice has just been made easier.

The HAFCO ST-10SD is on special for $729, check out page 15 of the latest edition of The Australian Woodworker (issue #125, Feb 2006).

This seems like a very good buy.