Budget power tools.

[ozzpoz]

Hi.
I've been looking though all the available table saws in my budget. I don't need or can afford high end.
From what I can see from the pics at least they all look like the same saw.
In the £120 - £200 price range , Parkside , titan, ainhell, parker, lumber jack , evolution. Are they all the same saw with different branding. Of is there one that stands out above the others.
There is a guy selling a parkside and a titan for £50 each on FB. For what I need it for, a weekend hobby, I can't decide if to take a punt. I know there not the best built and dangerous so not knowing how they've been looked after puts me off buying second hand.

My other option is to spend double and get the Rutland for £300. It gets good reviews but don't know if I can justify they extra spend.

I've also the option to get the below bandsaw for £40. I can't find much info on the brand or quality. Anyone give me any info on it.
Thanks

 

[Bingy man]

I don’t know much about jet but they have been around for years . As long as it’s in good order for £40 I don’t think you can go wrong but it’s probably only suitable for small work ( a new blade or 2 will help ) as for the tablesaws tbh unless you know the history I too would avoid 2 hand , ghe budget brands you mention will all produce mixed results at that price range and I’m not knocking anyone who has a budget saw but for myself I at lease want it to be accurate, well made and designed. Aside from what info you can get from other members then researching all these saws will give you a decent idea of their quality etc ..

 

[Sideways]

One saving grace of cheap supermarket powertools like LIDL Parkside is that they often come with a 3 year warranty.
The tools are cheap. Full stop. Their designers aren't aiming for lifespans of 8ours a day, 250 days a year, 3 years life. They are aiming for 10 or 20 hours total runtime to total failure. In bursts of 5 to 10 minutes at a time.
The only way they can offer a 3 yr warranty is that buyers don't use them hard or often. And people lose receipts or can't be bothered to claim on the warranty if they do fail.

For the few people who do push them hard, wear them out and do claim on the warranty, you can basically get 3 years use of a tool at modest cost.

So, if you look at budget tools, buy the one with the long warranty.
Buy the brand that has a reputation for actually honouring that warranty.
And buy new.
If the only reason to buy it is the warranty, don't buy used from someone on facebook to save a buck and lose the warranty because that's only valid for the original purchaser and almost never transferable.

Lastly. When you buy it, get out and work it hard in the first week. Like properly hard.
Infant mortality is a real thing in tools and machinery. You want those issues found in the first week you buy it, not the first time you use it properly after it has sat unused on the shelf for three years and the warranty has timed out.
That nearly caught me out with a good tool, never mind a cheap one. It was 2 1/2 years before I really worked a big grinder properly and an armature burnt out within the first 20 minutes run time. 3 year warranty still had life on it and it was repaired FOC. You can be sure I leant on it hard for a few hours when I got it back because if there are any more faults, I only have 3 months left to flush them out and claim again.

 

[Superduner]

Evolution is different in that the "universal" blade runs at a much lower speed. I've had mine for about 5 years with no problem.

 

[HamsterJam]

IMHO Jet kit is pretty solid.
Reckon if that bandsaw is in working condition, it is a good deal for £40 although it looks like the rip fence is missing.

 

[ozzpoz]

I got it up yesterday. It's ok. Needs a bit of fettling and a new blade. Doubt it would cut cheese at the moment.
I'm going to strip it down over next few days , give it a clean up while I wait for a blade to arrive.
Hopefully nothing is broken as I don't think spares are available.
Am I right in thinking a 1510 1/4 10tpi will be ok.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

10tpi is OK for thin ply, plastic etc. but a few less will be be better for wood. Look at https://www.tuffsaws.co.uk/ for info. on blades.

 

[stuart little]

One saving grace of cheap supermarket powertools like LIDL Parkside is that they often come with a 3 year warranty.
The tools are cheap. Full stop. Their designers aren't aiming for lifespans of 8ours a day, 250 days a year, 3 years life. They are aiming for 10 or 20 hours total runtime to total failure. In bursts of 5 to 10 minutes at a time.
The only way they can offer a 3 yr warranty is that buyers don't use them hard or often. And people lose receipts or can't be bothered to claim on the warranty if they do fail.

For the few people who do push them hard, wear them out and do claim on the warranty, you can basically get 3 years use of a tool at modest cost.

So, if you look at budget tools, buy the one with the long warranty.
Buy the brand that has a reputation for actually honouring that warranty.
And buy new.
If the only reason to buy it is the warranty, don't buy used from someone on facebook to save a buck and lose the warranty because that's only valid for the original purchaser and almost never transferable.

Lastly. When you buy it, get out and work it hard in the first week. Like properly hard.
Infant mortality is a real thing in tools and machinery. You want those issues found in the first week you buy it, not the first time you use it properly after it has sat unused on the shelf for three years and the warranty has timed out.
That nearly caught me out with a good tool, never mind a cheap one. It was 2 1/2 years before I really worked a big grinder properly and an armature burnt out within the first 20 minutes run time. 3 year warranty still had life on it and it was repaired FOC. You can be sure I leant on it hard for a few hours when I got it back because if there are any more faults, I only have 3 months left to flush them out and claim again.

According to someone on here, Lidl won't honour the 3 yrs in UK, applies only in Germany?

 

[stuart little]

Evolution is different in that the "universal" blade runs at a much lower speed. I've had mine for about 5 years with no problem.

I found that they are not accurate enough for precise work, my first burnt out, but was replaced under warranty..

 

[ozzpoz]

Thanks. That's where I've been looking. Would you say this one is ok. Options were 6 or 4tpi. I won't be using it for ripping though anything thick.

 

[ozzpoz]

Also. I ordered the Rutlands. Hopefully it'll be ok. Anyone using one. Few reviews I could find were positive.
Appreciate everyone advise. Hopefully I'll get set up and making a few projects. And try not to annoy the neighbours to much with all the noise.

https://www.rutlands.com/collections/table-saws

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Tuffsaws are excellent. Order two or three blades (make the most of the P&P charge), slightly different though your choice will be limited with such a small saw - you will either blunt or snap one at the most inopportune moment. The standard advice is that three teeth should be in contact with the material being sawn - it's good rule to go by. It can get snatchy if the blade is too coarse.

 

[curryjunkie]

Also. I ordered the Rutlands. Hopefully it'll be ok. Anyone using one. Few reviews I could find were positive.
Appreciate everyone advise. Hopefully I'll get set up and making a few projects. And try not to annoy the neighbours to much with all the noise.

https://www.rutlands.com/collections/table-saws

Rutland is a rebadged skill brand sold in the states, it seems to be good according to reviewers, maybe other tools I'd go second hand but a site saw I'd always go new because of the safety aspect, different with a well cared for cabinet saw providing it's not so old you can't find spare parts, the cast iron saws seem to go on forever, congrats on the jet looks a bargain

 

[thetyreman]

aldi make a good budget one by ferrex, it has around 120mm depth of cut and WAS about £150 but is likely going to be more due to inflation now, well worth it especially once you set it up and put a tuffsaw blade on it.

 

[Sideways]

The skil brand belongs to Chervon.
They are indeed quite decent. I've seen their Devon brand in asia and it's one of the best brands outside of the big names we all know.

https://global.chervongroup.com/en/what-we-do/our-brands

Just a little caution over their cordless. There have been issues of brand new lithium packs having leaking cells straight from the box. That apart the tools are well built.

 

[ozzpoz]

Hay everyone. My saw arrived yesterday. I've built a little table for it. Put some levelling feet on as my garage is a bit wonky. I think it all looks pretty good. Might have to rethink it as it's heavy so could do with some wheels. Just don't know how to go about leveling and casters without spending anymore. As I'm already in trouble. .
I've only run one piece through as I'm knackered so prob not the best time to practice. I'll wait till tomorrow. Plus it's noisy. My small garage is closer to the neighbours than it is to mine so I'll have to choose my times wisely.
I've still got to check everything is set up correctly but anyone got any tips. Must admit I was a bit nervous Pushing that 1st bit though.

 

[Bingy man]

Check everything is tight but not over tight. Read the manual especially anything safety related. Read other table saw safety threads using the search function. And never take your stresses out using a power tool especially a table saw . Set up your own safety regime and Ensure others around you understand the importance of not distracting you while you are using the saw .. never get complacent- but after all said and done enjoy your projects..

 

[Ttrees]

Without seeing a workbench or planing beam on trestles, in order to hand plane
the face and edge of the material to be processed, it suggests you might be in danger.
Very much so IMO.


Two pushsticks per UK or EU rules, 450mm long, not those baby shoes you see on youtube,
must be long enough that you can feed past the blade without hand coming close to the front.
Lots to read up on in the archives, like some suggested videos,which might actually be compliant/safe, as you'll read about it if it isn't.
Outfeed, short fence for ripping, likely need infeed with such a short thing,
too much to mention really.

Don't take my word for it, I could be forgetting important stuff.!
Angry face emoji to explain,
This being the attitude that you should aim to have with any advice/articles you find.

I wouldn't be expecting to get the best advice, or should I say comprehensive if looking
for the works regarding a similar big box store machine.
A start might be Steve Maskery's vids, you'll need to fish around in order to take a little of everything, Roy Sutton's wood machining, whilst making note of what's missing
or what needs checked off the list for the job at hand.

In a nutshell, to the HSE regs/suggestions in a workshop environment, some bits might be omitted if it might conflict what might be said for a different cut, take shaw guards and crown guards ...
For instance, you might see an article that was written with the presumption one understands
that for safe working it's a case of everything being instrumental in use,
leave one thing out, and the system fails.
That's a big difference between stuff from US and this side of the pond.

For the wheels, look up Carl Holmgren's retractable castor designs, very simple and effective.

Good luck!
Tom