Ryobi Table saw...

[Tarkin]

Hi all, been reading these boards for ages, they're just great, but decided it was time to start contributing. Having said that, my first post is less of a contribution and more of a question...

I've decided it's time to replace my table saw, mainly becuase it's awful (It's a Ferm Job, don't ask). I spent several hours salvating over at woodford's website, but then grounded back to reality when I realised I have a £250 budget.

So far, the only one I've found which I think might be any good is the Ryobi ETS-1825, mainly because it has extending sides and back for work support and a 2ft ripping width. The stand loks a bit weedy, but i can fix that myself. Unfortunalty, I can find preciousl little info on it other than the basics. If any of you guys have any insight into this saw, or can suggest an alternative, that would be much appreciated!

Cheers!

 

[RogerS]

Hi Tarkin and welcome to the forum!

I have had the Ryobi RTS-1425 for a few years now. I'm not sure whether it is still available or not but cost me roughly the same price as the one you mention.

I guess my first question would be...do you really need the wheels? Are you intending to use it on site or as the cornerstone of your workshop? If the latter than I would suggest that either the 1425 or 1525 is better (certainly it has a larger cutting support surafce plus a decent stand).

I'm not sure how much better/different the fences are between models. The fence on the 1425 is adequate...just be prepared to fiddle around a bit for repeatability.

The 1425 is a good 'early' woodworker table saw but I've now got to the point where I can see its' weaknesses and so I am looking around to replace it with something else. You might want to think about trying to stretch the budget upwards :lol:

 

[Tarkin]

Thanks for the info, I get the feeling the 1825 is a bit of a replacment for the 1425...however I may be wrong about that. If i were to ge the 1825, the wheels and rather flimsy looking stand would be disgarded, I have a home made (normesqe) saw station which I would fit it into.

I'm not convinced on the Ryobi, but my budget is pretty strict(ish). What are peoples views on the scheppach t2010, because I see the base unit for that (with no stnad or extensions etc) for £350, if it's as good as I think, I may extend to that, and use my saw station to act as the extending tables, at least until I could afford extras for it. Althoguh, what is the mitre slot on a scheppach? If i recall correctly, it's not standard 3/4" by 3/8" is it?

Cheers people!

 

[Adam]

Welcome to the forum.

In your situation, and if it was me, I'd go for the scheppach (I'm biased as I have the TS2500). You can always make some extension tables for free if neccasary - the number of times I see nice bits of timber/ply in builders skips is amazing - so if you could stretch to the extra ££ I reckon it'd be well worth it. In the future, you may be able to purchase the accesories you missed out on now.

You could make something to run in the Scheppach mitre slot - or a sled, or use their supplied mitre guage. Overall, I think the Scheppach base unit takes you into the next "league" of table saws over the Ryobi.

Adam

 

[judder]

Yotasurf has the ts2010 and the mitre slot is not three quarters. However it's only alluminium and have suggested to him to mill it with a 18mm router cutter with the guide rail - ok it's a bit of a thought and the bit will be bu@@ered but if it all goes pete tong, you can fit the t track slotting sold by Rutlands / Axminster.

Stephen

 

[Newbie_Neil]

Hi Tarkin

Welcome to the forum.

Cheers
Neil

 

[Waka]

Tarkin

Welcome to the forum.

 

[Tarkin]

Cheers all!

I really do like the ts2010, however, routing a mitre slot channel in it, with a hand router? That could be fun! I can picture it now: 'Thwomp!.....Oh my god, my £350 table saw!!!.....OH MY GOD MY FINGER!!!!' :lol: Having said that, I do know someone who I think has a big milling machine...

I also have just seen a review of a saw I've liked for a while, the SIP cast iron one. I do like it alot. I know where I can get one for £450. It's very tempting to just make do with what I have and save up for it....hmmm

Oh well, life's all about difficult choices!

 

[devonwoody]

My pennyworth. Remember that all these saws only rip these days, not much else. dadoes are taboo, riving knife quite oftern stops any rebates and shoulder cutting.
So why spend a lot of money to rip, because at the end of the rip you are going to have to put the timber through a P/T.

Bandsaws are at your price range and can cut to 6" depth for that money.

I'm heading for the bunker now.

 

[Sonic]

Here's my bunker-buster !

Surely a tablesaw can do a bit more than rip timber ? - For instance accurately cutting sheet materials, square cuts for panels bevels, mitres etc. Not to mention rebates, tenons and so on (with a few home-made or bought jigs). I have the SIP CI saw, and I think it is very good for the money. I also have a bandsaw, and I know which saw gives reliable, square cuts (edit - I know that a bandsaw cuts square, but the cut does wander a bit, on my saw anyway :? ).

Colin

 

[devonwoody]

Out of the bunker for a mo.

Yes but your SIP cost more than £250 which was the original budget, and a table saw might cut panels but a panel saw is really needed with the extra blade under to obtain clean cuts, but then we are approaching £3000.

I was commenting that many table saws now have the riving knife fitted so it extends above the blade and manufacturers manuals state dire consequences if you make any alteration to their equipment.

 

[devonwoody]

By the way I cut 24 tenons on my bandsaw yesterday (cheeks only) and used the triton to cut the shoulders.

Looks though I might have to wait another week before going back into the workshop seen the forecast. (Windy & Wet)

 

[Tarkin]

Interesting ideas all.

devonwoody wrote:

Bandsaws are at your price range and can cut to 6" depth for that money.

I already have a bandsaw, true its an Axminster Perform one (albeit the big one), but with a bit of fettling and a deacent blade I got it cutting square and true. Thats said (and I've used much more expensive and better ones) a bandsaw will never have as straight a cut as a table saw, even my cheap as s*** Ferm can cut straighter than most bandsaws, well sometimes... :roll:

For things like sizing pannels and ripping a table saw is unbeaten. Plus with some inguinity it can do lots more. I've even raised pannels on mine before, althoguh to do that you have to ignore vast sections of the safety instructions...

 

[LyNx]

For things like sizing pannels and ripping a table saw is unbeaten

I have used many methods for sizing panels and have to say the festool and guide rail is far the best. Try cutting an 10x6 of 38mm MDF on a table saw without a second pair of hands.

Andy

 

[devonwoody]

Yes Tarkin but even with a table saw you will still have to finish off on the P/T to get a decent finish and that involves the thicknesser so a band sawn cut still finishes up the same after coming through the thicknesser.

 

[Adam]

Out of the bunker for a mo.

Yes but your SIP cost more than £250 which was the original budget, and a table saw might cut panels but a panel saw is really needed with the extra blade under to obtain clean cuts, but then we are approaching £3000.

Devon,

You've seen many pieces of amazing of work posted here and not one of the members is using a £3K panel saw. The items displayed often have large sheets of material, and people do manage to make the cuts even with a "normal" tablesaw.

Although I can't comment on the Ts2010, the Ts2500 does allow the gaurd to be removed with the riving knife left in place for trenching cuts etc.

Many people use a cheap table saw and a home made shooting board and achieve great accuracy. My experience is that with budget equipment, if you carefully setup and check and recheck any fences etc each time of use, you can achieve more than sufficient accuracy. You can also build afterwards sleds, jigs, upgrades etc.

Also, you can make a jig for cutting tenons etc, and make suitable guarding on it - the possibilities are endless. If you check the forum users table saws list - you'll see the TS2000 (the version prior), has 6 owners, and the TS2010, has 1 (making a total of 7 - of this "size" of saw from Scheppach). That puts it in joint second place with the Kity 419, after the Scheppach TS2500. Thats a pretty good recommendation.

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=527

As I see it, the more you pay, the less time you spend setting up your machine - just plop the wood on and cut. With a budget saw, it may not hold it settings, the adjusters and thumbscrews aren't as robust, the vibration makes things shift etc. So additional time must be spent setting up and checking. Nontheless, the TS2010 is a worthy upgrade as its in the "next" band of tables saws than the Ryobi - it has the adjustments to bring it to full accuracy, which is a minimum for someone who wants to start some more serious work projects I think.

Adam

 

[RogerS]

Yes Tarkin but even with a table saw you will still have to finish off on the P/T to get a decent finish and that involves the thicknesser so a band sawn cut still finishes up the same after coming through the thicknesser.

But if the blade wanders a lot then you'll have more work to do to get a straight edge?

Lynx...couldn't agree with you more !

 

[tim]

DW

You are putting across a fair amount of misinformation.

I use a TS2500 day in, day out. I use it for a whole pile of stuff including ripping and cross cutting. I have used it for full size panels in the past although I often rip them down first to be manageable weight wise. It has no scoring blade. I rarely have to put anything through the PT to clean it up.

The key is to use the best quality (and appropriate) blades. Eg cutting laminated or veneered boards I use a triple chip blade and go slowish- very rarely is there anything other than a clean finish with (sometimes) the tiniest tearout. For ripping and crosscutting I either use specific blades or a general purpose one.

Tarkin: as long as you go for for a decent quality saw and use good blades then you'll be fine. The TS2010 would be a good option

Cheers

Tim

 

[Trigger]

Hi Tarkin,

I started out with a cheap table saw and have struggled with it for the last few years, mine was the Draper that was about £100 at the time. I finally had enough of it and went looking for a saw that was accurate, easy to physically move (as my workshop space is restricted) and with a good warranty and spares support. I considered many different makes and models but opted for the Bosch GTS10 at £522.

It took me 10 minutes to set up out of the box and has worked flawlessly over the last month or so cutting with extreme accuracy I'm very pleased with my purchase.

The only downside is a lack of a rear table extension but this I have overcome with a couple of roller stands (£16 each Screwfix) :wink:
Regards,
Trig

 

[devonwoody]

Sorry about any mis information but the thread started off wanting to purchase a table saw for £250, and I said you might as well have a bandsaw for that money. The writer later state he already had a bandsaw.

I believe there are woodworkers around who only have a bandsaw and they also turn out good work.