Thread: Making an entry-level cabinet portable vs. a good contractor/hybrid?

Originally Posted by yellingduck

Hi,

Pretty new to woodworking though I like to learn by doing so I've made a few pieces of furniture and projects.

I have a small garage (renting) and I have to move my car out & all tools in to work, so I'm torn between:

• Mid or High-End Jobsite/contractor saw
  
  • I can easily move it or put on a little table with castors
  • Sacrifice quality, straight & accurate rip fence, dado compatibility for portability
  • Would still be a big step up from the Ryobi that I'm borrowing!
  
  
• Entry-level cabinet saw with a custom dolly base / mounting castors to the side & tipping it
  
  • I'll need it to be on the smaller side to even fit in garage
  • Conscious they're heavy machines with powerful motors, may not be wise to mess with its stability
  • Really keen for a good quality table saw for the next 5+ years, straight and accurate rip fence, dado compatibility, etc

I've googled and surprisingly, nothing came up for making a cabinet saw portable, so I'm thinking it's a stupid idea!

Appreciate any help.

Thanks

portability is easy, just put the cabinet saw on a dolly with castors. i've done this. even some of the sawstops have a dedicated mobile base you can buy.

A standard contractor saw and a small cabinet saw will take up about the same footprint as each other. Having just upgraded from a contractor to a cabinet the difference is like night and day. If you can afford a cabinet saw I'd recommend it.

Originally Posted by havabeer69

portability is easy, just put the cabinet saw on a dolly with castors. i've done this. even some of the sawstops have a dedicated mobile base you can buy.

Awesome thanks mate! Considering the Sawstop from a pure finger-value POV. Don't mind the initial cost, but bothers me is every attachment/accessory is also super expensive. Correct me if I'm wrong but they seem like the type to make their saws not compatible with universal items/parts, but specific Sawstop branded items only. Do you know if this is the case?

Originally Posted by Biggus

A standard contractor saw and a small cabinet saw will take up about the same footprint as each other. Having just upgraded from a contractor to a cabinet the difference is like night and day. If you can afford a cabinet saw I'd recommend it.

That's a great point - I'll keep an eye out for ones with compact/expandable tops. Not knowing anything about the brands - are there any you'd recommend / should stay away from?
Entry-level I've noticed Sherwood & Carbatec, and higher end of course the Sawstop for safety, except unsure if that means expensive ongoing costs too.

OK, I'll show you what I got.

1) Carbatec table saw ($1,999.00) Carbatec Professional 250mm Cabinet Saw with 30" T-Glide Fence Kit | Carbatec

Some posters who have had this saw previously have stated that it took a fair amount of fiddling to get it set up properly. Maybe I got a good one, but mine went together like a dream and so I would recommend it, with two caveats, the first is that it doesn't come with a blade, but given that most standard issue blades with table saws are pretty ordinary one tends to buy an after market one anyway. The second is that the table insert is absolute crap, so bad that it makes the insert on my contractor's saw look good. It amazes me that they'd ship it with such a sub standard item given the fit and finish of the rest of the saw is in general excellent.

So, you're up for a blade and an after market insert

2) 10" Combination blade ($115.00) CMT Industrial Rip and Crosscut Blade - 250mm - 60 Tooth | Carbatec
3) Zero clearance insert to suit ($159.00) Zero Clearance Insert to suit Carbatec TS-C250P | Carbatec

And you'll want to be able to move it around

4) Heavy duty mobile base ($125.00) Bora - Heavy Duty Adjustable Mobile Base | Carbatec

So all up you'd be looking at $2398 for a 10", 2.5hp saw that runs on 10a plug and you can move around at will. The dimensions are 1525mm wide and 980 deep. By contrast my Hafco SB-12 contractor's saw is slightly less wide at 1460mm but much deeper, almost 1300mm when you take into account the motor hanging out the back. To be fair that's a 12" 3hp unit but just offered as a comparison.

Have you considered dust control?

Owners of Harvey table saws here have also expressed very positive opinions on their gear, so another brand to consider.

Originally Posted by Biggus

OK, I'll show you what I got.

1) Carbatec table saw ($1,999.00) Carbatec Professional 250mm Cabinet Saw with 30" T-Glide Fence Kit | Carbatec

Some posters who have had this saw previously have stated that it took a fair amount of fiddling to get it set up properly. Maybe I got a good one, but mine went together like a dream and so I would recommend it, with two caveats, the first is that it doesn't come with a blade, but given that most standard issue blades with table saws are pretty ordinary one tends to buy an after market one anyway. The second is that the table insert is absolute crap, so bad that it makes the insert on my contractor's saw look good. It amazes me that they'd ship it with such a sub standard item given the fit and finish of the rest of the saw is in general excellent.

Thank you so much for pulling that together for me! Really appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Biggus

So, you're up for a blade and an after market insert

2) 10" Combination blade ($115.00) CMT Industrial Rip and Crosscut Blade - 250mm - 60 Tooth | Carbatec
3) Zero clearance insert to suit ($159.00) Zero Clearance Insert to suit Carbatec TS-C250P | Carbatec

And you'll want to be able to move it around

4) Heavy duty mobile base ($125.00) Bora - Heavy Duty Adjustable Mobile Base | Carbatec

Probably a silly question - the zero clearance insert has no gap for the blade, is this because you essentially cut it in with the blade so it's a perfect fit?

Originally Posted by Biggus

So all up you'd be looking at $2398 for a 10", 2.5hp saw that runs on 10a plug and you can move around at will. The dimensions are 1525mm wide and 980 deep. By contrast my Hafco SB-12 contractor's saw is slightly less wide at 1460mm but much deeper, almost 1300mm when you take into account the motor hanging out the back. To be fair that's a 12" 3hp unit but just offered as a comparison.

Have you considered dust control?

Owners of Harvey table saws here have also expressed very positive opinions on their gear, so another brand to consider.

The dimensions of the table is a bit of a concern, particularly the length but that's my problem to solve.

Zero consideration for dust control! With a very small garage (renting) I'm limited in anything large scale/permanent, I've got by so far with a shop vac for clean up - Ryobi 1250W.

Yes, you fit the blade you're going to use, wind it all the way down, fire it up and bring it up slowly through the insert. Dust control could be an issue but you can always clean up afterwards with the shop vac I guess. In the long term you'd be well advised to consider something like this Economy Dust Extractor - 2HP | Carbatec as one of the nice things about cabinet saws is they generally have good dust removal with an appropriate dust collector attached.

If you need to move the saw in tight spaces, I recommend a mobilty base with braked swivel wheels on each corner. It will allow you to make tighter turns. Timbecon sell this version for $179. Carbatec's version is almost $100 more.

Originally Posted by KahoyKutter

If you need to move the saw in tight spaces, I recommend a mobilty base with braked swivel wheels on each corner. It will allow you to make tighter turns. Timbecon sell this version for $179. Carbatec's version is almost $100 more.

Good point, nice looking base too.

Originally Posted by Biggus

Yes, you fit the blade you're going to use, wind it all the way down, fire it up and bring it up slowly through the insert. Dust control could be an issue but you can always clean up afterwards with the shop vac I guess. In the long term you'd be well advised to consider something like this Economy Dust Extractor - 2HP | Carbatec as one of the nice things about cabinet saws is they generally have good dust removal with an appropriate dust collector attached.

Thanks again for linking me - I'm saving all these for when the time is right! However, will have to wait for that awesome dust extractor until I have a bigger place!

Originally Posted by KahoyKutter

If you need to move the saw in tight spaces, I recommend a mobilty base with braked swivel wheels on each corner. It will allow you to make tighter turns. Timbecon sell this version for $179. Carbatec's version is almost $100 more.

Great tip - really appreciate it! It's a bit funny to see these recommended on a woodworking forum, rather than making your own timber base + some castors. I'll take that as a clear warning for safety.

Thank you all again.

Nothing wrong with making your own base, many do and they would likely assert that you end up with a better base in the end. They're probably right. People buy off the shelf bases for convenience, not because home made stuff is unsafe.