Craftsman Table Saw

[mikester]

Anyone here have this model Craftsman table saw ? I have a bunch of Azek to cut and the old Ryobi that Ive had for years wound do it. Something in the mount for the motor is screwed up and the blade wobbles. Not the bearing, something in the mount.
Long story short, I dont want to buy another new saw since Im just about done with house projects. This stuff just came up and I need to rip some of this trim board. Went on market place and someone is selling this saw. Brand new in the box. 15 amp. Never opened. Started at $250 and dropped $100. It doesnt seem like a bad deal for a new in the box saw unless its a real piece of ****. I figured I'd use it and after the projects are all done I'd just sell it again. Anyone ??

 

[The Cobbler]

sounds like a deal if it is as advertised

 

[mikester]

sounds like a deal if it is as advertised

I saw one review and the writer said the things flimsy and the fence is terrible. Now Im wondering if I should pass on it

 

[The Cobbler]

try to figure out why yours is sloppy, maybe it can be tweaked .

 

[mikester]

try to figure out why yours is sloppy, maybe it can be tweaked .

Did that last year. Something must be missing in the mount. Looked at a schematic and it all looked okay. Took the thing apart and couldnt find anything broken. I wound up pounding two ice cream sticks into a gap and at least I could make a few straight cuts but it got worse. From what I could find out there arent a lot of replacement parts for the thing.

 

[signcrafter]

I bought that same saw when I was 19, back in 2000. I did a lot of research before buying because money wasn't falling off the trees back then and it seemed to be the best bang for the buck back then. Think I paid 175 or so for it brand new, it came with the stand but not the mobile base yours shows. It wasn't anything special but it was a decent saw for the price. Had the most power of the cheaper saws out there back then. I used it mostly for cutting down 4x8 sheets for speaker boxes for car audio and for house remodeling. I ran hundreds of sheets of MDF mostly through it and it did good. I bought a bosch back in 2010ish and it was a big improvement. I sold the craftsman for 100 bucks about 5 years ago.

The saw had decent power if you kept a good blade on it. It also was one of the only saws that could rip 24" left or right of the blade. Was kind of a funny system to be able to do it but it worked if you were on a budget like I was back then. The fence did kind of ****. Couldn't just move it and lock it and expect it to be straight. I usually would use a tape measurer and line up the fence to the blade side closest to me and then also measure from the other side of the blade and that did pretty good and was the quickest way. If I need more precision I would use a 2' carpenters square. If you're just looking for a decent saw for cheap to get the job done it should be fine. Not fast or user friendly but I did a lot with it over the years.

 

[mikester]

I bought that same saw when I was 19, back in 2000. I did a lot of research before buying because money wasn't falling off the trees back then and it seemed to be the best bang for the buck back then. Think I paid 175 or so for it brand new, it came with the stand but not the mobile base yours shows. It wasn't anything special but it was a decent saw for the price. Had the most power of the cheaper saws out there back then. I used it mostly for cutting down 4x8 sheets for speaker boxes for car audio and for house remodeling. I ran hundreds of sheets of MDF mostly through it and it did good. I bought a bosch back in 2010ish and it was a big improvement. I sold the craftsman for 100 bucks about 5 years ago.

The saw had decent power if you kept a good blade on it. It also was one of the only saws that could rip 24" left or right of the blade. Was kind of a funny system to be able to do it but it worked if you were on a budget like I was back then. The fence did kind of ****. Couldn't just move it and lock it and expect it to be straight. I usually would use a tape measurer and line up the fence to the blade side closest to me and then also measure from the other side of the blade and that did pretty good and was the quickest way. If I need more precision I would use a 2' carpenters square. If you're just looking for a decent saw for cheap to get the job done it should be fine. Not fast or user friendly but I did a lot with it over the years.

Thanks for this info ! To be honest I just came back to the forum after looking at all the ads for table saws again. Tons of saws for sale but most are pretty well used or rusty. I really hoped I could just nurse the Ryobi along until it dies but I need to make some straight cuts. Maybe even some bevels. I know the Ryobi will just piss me off and waste material. Hopefully I can get most of my money back after Im done with the Craftsman. The Ryobi is on a folding wheeled stand. I can put it in the corner of my basement or stick it in the shed. This other one doesnt have that option so I dont think I'd keep it that long.

 

[signcrafter]

Thanks for this info ! To be honest I just came back to the forum after looking at all the ads for table saws again. Tons of saws for sale but most are pretty well used or rusty. I really hoped I could just nurse the Ryobi along until it dies but I need to make some straight cuts. Maybe even some bevels. I know the Ryobi will just piss me off and waste material. Hopefully I can get most of my money back after Im done with the Craftsman. The Ryobi is on a folding wheeled stand. I can put it in the corner of my basement or stick it in the shed. This other one doesnt have that option so I dont think I'd keep it that long.

No problem. Not sure your exact task but 99 percent of my sheet goods ripping is with a track saw. Has all but replaced my table saw and they store really nice. Not sure if it would work for what you are doing and it's going to be a lot more for one vs this craftsman saw, at least for a good one. But it's very versatile and crazy how much I use it over my table saw.

 

[mikester]

No problem. Not sure your exact task but 99 percent of my sheet goods ripping is with a track saw. Has all but replaced my table saw and they store really nice. Not sure if it would work for what you are doing and it's going to be a lot more for one vs this craftsman saw, at least for a good one. But it's very versatile and crazy how much I use it over my table saw.

Ive been working on stuff for this old house since we bought it back in '87. I just did some more interior work after we had the siding redone at the end of '23. I had to make some pine extension jambs for doors and windows. Thats when I noticed the issue with the Ryobi. I was able to get by with it but now I have to replace the ACQ frames around 4 basement hopper style windows that I made back in '13. It all started with a sash that was leaking in heavy rain. I can replace the sash but the frame split about 3/4" out from the frame of the window. A friend of mine suggested using Azek. Problem is I have to thin it out to 5/8". I had to do that to the ACQ when I did it originally.
So now I have to cut the old caulk, pull each window out, remove it from the frame, clean the old vinyl caulk off the vinyl frame and install them all over again Its going to ****. It would be easier to just buy new windows and start fresh but it seems like theyre an odd size (32 x 19 1/2). Ive been to multiple lumber yards and both big box stores and it seems theres not many choices for basement windows. Mine slide in and screw in from the sides. HD and Lowes windows all have nailing flanges and are smaller in size.
After making a removable section for a wall upstairs I thought I was done with the pain in the *** jobs here. I wanted to get out to the garage and focus on finishing my two cars. Guess theyre still going to be on the back burner again. UGH.

 

[dscheidt]

It would be easier to just buy new windows and start fresh but it seems like theyre an odd size (32 x 19 1/2). Ive been to multiple lumber yards and both big box stores and it seems theres not many choices for basement windows. Mine slide in and screw in from the sides. HD and Lowes windows all have nailing flanges and are smaller in size.
After making a removable section for a wall upstairs I thought I was done with the pain in the *** jobs here. I wanted to get out to the garage and focus on finishing my two cars. Guess theyre still going to be on the back burner again. UGH.

the vast majority of windows are custom sized. Talk to your lumber yard about getting them made, not just what they stock. With modern CNC machines, there's little difference in the effort required to make a window of the required size, so the price difference is just the material cost.

 

[mikester]

the vast majority of windows are custom sized. Talk to your lumber yard about getting them made, not just what they stock. With modern CNC machines, there's little difference in the effort required to make a window of the required size, so the price difference is just the material cost.

None of the yards here stock windows of any kind. Its usually a weeks wait from their distributor for normal sizes. Basement windows usually take 3-5 weeks. Downside is when I put these in back in the day there were quite a few companies offering vinyl hopper style windows. Now only a few out there. The other thing Ive noticed is getting one without a nailing flange is special order only.

 

[mikester]

FYI, I just posted a thread about the Ryobi saw that I was about to junk. Wont be buying this Craftsman after all. LOL

 

[NUTTSGT]

I had one of them. Fine for 1x stock or such. However 2x material did it in.

It's a direct drive, no belt, so there's no slippage when the blade starts to bind. I'm sure that is what killed it.