Cabinet V track saw.

here we go the old old q. maybe I couldnt find anything that answered my question.

Due to a very unexpected move from beautiful landlords, we sometime in the next 6-8 months need to move We know them as personal friends and after telling us the news all 4 of us were in tears.

Lets put aside housing etc. It will do us good to downsize the house both in our 60's/70's. Living on a bock is not negotiable.

One of the things I am looking at is the shed. I currently have a 2 bay farm shed 7.5 x 7.5 with the following
cabinet table saw, SCMS, 14" band saw, lathe, sander, jointer/thicknesser combo and router table plus a large timber rack of stuff I'll never get through.

all the above flap trap comes down to this..... If I needed to sell the cabinet table saw, could I get by with SCMS and a DECENT track saw. The only disadvantage I can see is cutting on 45* angles and thick timber 75mm+ going through.

I would guess its all in what you want to do V what I am doing now..
cutting half sheets ply MDF etc cutting thicker timber to size.

you can probably do 90% of the stuff with a track saw but it will just take ALOT longer

want 4 lengths of timber the same width, setup your TS fencer and rip them down.... with a track saw you will be measuring each cut and moving the track and praying your not a mm out. you'll also need somewhere to setup a bench or saw stands to use the track saw anyway, space you might as well use for a TS. There are a number of track saw jigs on youtube where they practically use them as TS so that might be a point of investigation.


as you said it comes down to what you intend to make, for me personally from your list of tools I'd ditch the SCMS, sander and lathe (assuming you don't use it much) for tools that you can really live with out

Tony, look up MFT … multifunction table. This, together with a flip over track, will effectively turn a track saw into a table saw. BUT .. it will take up the same space as a table saw. However, the MFT could double as a work bench.

Regards from Perth

Derek

There are many ways to skin a cat, but ultimately the need for a table saw boils down to what a table saw is designed to do, which is to:

- Rip/breakdown goods AND
- Cut material >2-3" with minimal effort AND
- Repeatable cuts with high accuracy AND
- Facilitate excellent dust extraction

If you need all of the above at any point then a table saw is a keeper.

Sure you could get away with a track saw, but then again you could also do away with a track saw as well. To me my woodworking journey started with my table saw albiet a small one and has been the starting point for pretty much all my projects since then. If i were to need to sell my equipment the table saw would probably be the last to go. To me breaking down material is the most boring part and i'd want to get it out of the way as soon as possible. Like others have posted i'd get rid of the SCMS first and potentially the bandsaw depending on what you use the least. As both of these tools can be replaced relatively easily with smaller tools with the least drawbacks.

I would look up the channel 10 minute workshop run by Peter Millard on YouTube. Pretty much anything you want to know about tracksaws and all the accessories and bench options available can be found on his channel. He is mostly shorter videos and usually straight to the point. He works from one of the smallest commercial workshops anywhere.

Cheers Andrew

I would also recommend Peter Millard. Short and to the point.

Note that he has plans for a flip track jig for sale. I purchased this.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Quote:

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Originally Posted by havabeer69

you can probably do 90% of the stuff with a track saw but it will just take ALOT longer

want 4 lengths of timber the same width, setup your TS fencer and rip them down.... with a track saw you will be measuring each cut and moving the track and praying your not a mm out. you'll also need somewhere to setup a bench or saw stands to use the track saw anyway, space you might as well use for a TS. There are a number of track saw jigs on youtube where they practically use them as TS so that might be a point of investigation.


as you said it comes down to what you intend to make, for me personally from your list of tools I'd ditch the SCMS, sander and lathe (assuming you don't use it much) for tools that you can really live with out

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before this blew up I had been planning on retiring full time, no going back again and lathe work was going to be a big interest (hopefully)

Thanks others for your thoughts, its all hypothetical at this time, may find a house and a huge shed with room to dance in, but at least you have all suggested good ideas.

FWIW:

I have addressed this several times on the forum previously. I have a set of tool guides from 4' to 8'. I use them a lot. I have a saw with a router wing and incra fence. It is my go to machine. My shed is 9x7.5 and is full of all sorts of stuff. Since the strokes and selling the car there is no longer room for a car. I really need to clean up.

So for your situation specifically your first issue is what are you using your shop for ? Small job bring the work to the tool. Big job bring the tool to the job. Cutting a piece 6" long is different to cutting something 3m long. The tracks are absolutely the better option for breaking down 8x4, but if I'm shaving a sliver off something 3" long they are useless.

A table saw isn't just a saw. Make a timber top and it's a work surface, even a bench. Add a wing and it can mount an upside down jigsaw as well as a router. It can be the centre of your shop.

It really depends on what you do and how you prefer to work.