quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:

quote:

Originally posted by SOTAR:
If I have the option to replace it someday then a https://www.sawstop.com/ would my choice. I've seen them demonstrated by the sales rep. They are the safest on the market bar none.

Sawstop is a great product. That said, 'if' you get a finger in the blade, the cost to return that saw to duty again is going to be expensive. Sawstop or not, your best protection from injury is strictly adhering to best practices when using the saw.

It's $60 to get the saw back up and running. I have three Sawstops in my shop, we've had 3 activations. In all three cases the blade was actually still fine, although I still sent it out to be sharpened/inspected.

quote:

Originally posted by Seamus:

quote:

Originally posted by bigdeal:

quote:

Originally posted by SOTAR:
If I have the option to replace it someday then a https://www.sawstop.com/ would my choice. I've seen them demonstrated by the sales rep. They are the safest on the market bar none.

Sawstop is a great product. That said, 'if' you get a finger in the blade, the cost to return that saw to duty again is going to be expensive. Sawstop or not, your best protection from injury is strictly adhering to best practices when using the saw.

It's $60 to get the saw back up and running. I have three Sawstops in my shop, we've had 3 activations. In all three cases the blade was actually still fine, although I still sent it out to be sharpened/inspected.

Everything I've ever read about Sawstop indicated that the blade would likely be damaged or destroyed in the process of the safety being activated. Given the blade in my Jet saw right now is over $100, the cost to replace that blade and the Sawstop stop device equates to pricey in my book.

And I get the purpose of the Sawstop safety. I really do. I just believe, after using my old saw for upwards of 25 years, that discretion and proper procedures around the saw are even more important. I do not wish to build any reliance whatsoever on the saw saving me, instead I want to make sure I'm cautious and not doing something stupid around it. I once saw the aftermath of a guy's hand after the blade on the table saw he was working on grabbed his flannel shirt sleeve and drug his hand/arm down into the blade. Ultimately the saw wasn't the cause of his injury, his negligence was.

Every time one has activated, I've fully expected the blade to be toast. Always a pleasant surprise. I'd still take a $200 bill over a workers' comp. claim any day of the week.

The Sawstop is also a beautiful saw. They replaced two Unisaws and a Powermatic. Everyone seems to like the Sawstops quite a bit more.

quote:

Originally posted by Seamus:
The Sawstop is also a beautiful saw. They replaced two Unisaws and a Powermatic. Everyone seems to like the Sawstops quite a bit more.

Safety or not, I'd personally love the opportunity to work with one for a week or two. I've always heard great things about their build quality and fit and finish.

quote:

Originally posted by c1steve:
Watch it on the power of the motor. The very strong saws can throw a 4x8 piece of plywood across the shop if you are not careful. I would go for 2 hp, personally.

That's laughable. throw a 4x8 sheet across the shop.

this is my 10 hp Altendorf I bought in new in 2000, I have cut thousands of sheets on it and thousands of board feet of lumber in the craziest angles you can imagine and never had it throw a 4x8 sheet across the shop.

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Originally posted by XLT:
never had it throw a 4x8 sheet across the shop.

I was a cabinetmaker like you, for 25 years, but in a different era of no computerized machinery. I cut many miles of plywood on a Unisaw, and the worst that ever happened was a 4x8 sheet kicked back into my belly, and didn't even hurt (not enough oomph in the saw to push such a heavy piece very far).

quote:

Originally posted by XLT:
this is my 10 hp Altendorf I bought in new in 2000, I have cut thousands of sheets on it and thousands of board feet of lumber in the craziest angles you can imagine and never had it throw a 4x8 sheet across the shop.

What a damn cool saw. No need for a buddy to hold pieces when cutting. How awesome.

What does the sander that uses those huge belts look like?

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Originally posted by XLT:

I've said it before and I'll say it again...No fair!