A woodworking shop simply has to have a table saw. The fundamental cuts that you do on wood, the squaring cuts, ripping, cross cuts and more, they form the basis which will guide just about every other cut and measurement that you do over the next steps.
A table saw also does more than just size wood accurately – you can also do miter and bevel cuts with this tool, as well. This is such a vital tool in any workshop that makes cabinets, tables, chairs, and furniture of all sorts. Picking the best type of saw for your work can make a big difference in the quality and consistency of the work you put out.
The Table Saw and Its Basic Configuration
A table saw has a circular saw blade secured inside a table, and the material is pushed against the blade in order to make the cut.
A rip fence, which is a bar on the table saw that acts as a guide for the workpiece, makes longer cuts accurate and consistent – this makes the table saw the go-to tool for making long straight rip cuts, or cuts along the wood grain. The combination of a table and a set of guides also make accurate crosscuts (the cuts across the wood grain) easy to do as well.
A table saw with a miter gauge and bevel system will also let you make precise miter and bevel cuts as well.
Most, if not all, table saws available in the market today come with a blade guard. Just like the blade guard in a handheld circular saw, it serves to protect the table saw operator from dust and debris, and also covers up the blade to prevent accidental contact with it.
Choosing the Right Type of Table Saw
When it comes to table saws, there are three main categories to choose from to suit your workload and your need for portability, if you are ripping wood on a job site instead of in your workshop.
You can choose from benchtop table saws, to the heavier contractor table saws, and on to the heavy duty cabinet table saws.
In addition to those, you also have a choice between two drive configurations: direct drive saws and belt drive saws. As the majority of table saws are run by beefy electric motors, you only have the electric corded type as your realistic option when it comes to the power source.
Bench Top Table Saws
Bench top table saws make for excellent job site saws. They are relatively light and easy to carry, and they are quick to set up as well. With a bench top saw all you need is a stable surface or portable stand and an outlet and you’re ready to go. Bench top table saws are perfect for outdoor use like deck building, and their portability also makes them a good choice for job site tasks like framing.
Bench top table saws use universal motors linked by direct drive to the blade to keep things simple and compact. That often means that a bench top saw will run a few decibels louder than a workshop model with a belt drive – it also means that their motor is a bit limited when it comes to power.
Features to Look For In Bench Top Table Saws
- Relatively lightweight builds and compact size lets you load the table saw right on the back of your truck.
- Foldable lightweight stands give you a stable platform to support the table saw. These can come with the saw or purchased separately.
- Rolling stands to help you move your portable table saw from one spot of the job site to another.
- Heavy duty tube steel frames help keep the tool stable and rigid and helps with carrying the tool around, too.
- Dust port and vacuum hook up ports let you attach a shop vac or a dust bag to minimize clean up.
- A portable design fence system lets you rip large sheet materials without needing a large table to support the stock.
- Portable shoe bevel designs let you do bevel cuts in a good range of angles (usually up to 45 degrees).
- Built-in cord organizer keeps the cord wrapped up neatly out of the way as you transport the bench top table saw
Expect a maximum of 15 amps, top, from a compact job site table saw model – that’s plenty even for hardwood boards, but expect to run into some resistance when you try to run wood stock that’s more than one inch thick. Their small tables also have a harder time supporting larger stock, as well.
On the other hand, a benchtop table saw is unlikely to overwhelm an outlet and can be used on an existing workbench – perfect if space is at a premium in your workshop or on the job site.
Contractor Table Saws
The contractor table saw is a great starting point for the typical woodworking workshop. They are capable tools that can handle larger and thicker wood stock compared to a bench top table saw, and they come with heavy duty parts that give them serious staying power, even with daily use.
Contractor table saws are also much heavier than their bench top counterparts – expect a typical unit to weight upwards of 200 pounds. This gives them extra rigidity and stability, which helps a lot in making consistent, clean cuts. Their size and weight also let them support larger tables, table extensions, and beefier fences as well.
Features to Look For in Contractor Table Saws
- Some contractor table saws come with new conductive safety features, and these detect possible contact with skin (skin and body parts are conductive) and deploys an emergency brake while immediately shutting off power to the motor.
- Induction motors and belt drives move the motor away from the blade, making for a quieter machine. The placement also often protects the motor from dust and debris better.
- Arbor and shaft locks lock the blade and blade shaft in place, making it easier to change the blade.
- Dado sets let you cut clean straight slots with just one pass, making them incredibly useful for making joints and for furniture work in general.
- A riving knife helps keep the workpiece from seizing the blade, preventing violent kickbacks which can be an issue with the more powerful table saw motors and drives.
One of the better features of contractor table saws is that they come with fences and miter gauges that are often so much better than those that come with the bench top varieties. A good fence ensures consistent, accurate cuts, and if you are sizing wood for a project, this level of consistency is important.
Contractor table saws have their limitations, though, and like most circular saw variants, their depth of cut is limited. Even these heavy duty saws can only slowly cut through stock over 1 ½ inch thick, especially if it’s a particularly hard species of wood.
Cabinet Table Saws
Cabinet table saws are the workhorse model of table saws. If your workshop is ripping and sizing wood all day every day, these tough machines are the perfect choice for your workload. They are powerful, stable, and come with superb fences and miter gauges that ensure accurate cuts the first time, every time.
That said, it takes some planning if you want a cabinet table saw for your shop. They are bulky, heavy machines made of solid steel or cast iron, and many of them weigh upwards of 400 pounds. They also typically come with large table extensions and outfeed tables, all of which take up serious workshop real estate.
Features to Look For In Cabinet Table Saws
- Sturdy miter gauges in good cabinet table saws can pivot to either side, letting you make miter and bevel cuts in both directions without having to flip the workpiece.
- Handwheel controls let you adjust blade heights, bevel angles and more within fractions of a millimeter.
- Precision ground cast iron tables and extension wings give you the flattest, most level surfaces to base your cuts on.
- Cast iron or heavy steel cabinet trunnion mounts absorb vibrations, making the tool comfortable to use while ensuring clean, chatter-free cuts every time.
- Extra long fences give you the straightest cuts possible with a table saw from start to finish
A good cabinet table saw is a significant investment, and they don’t come cheap. They will also be the backbone of your woodworking shop for decades to come, as most good cabinet table saw brands are made to last for generations.
These tools are serious professional-grade machines with sturdy fences that lock tight and stay immovable, and you will get more consistent results with a cabinet table saw even after thousands of cuts, compared to the other two types.
Direct Drive Table Saws
Direct drive table saws often come with universal motors that link directly to the blades, or via worm drives that do the same. This arrangement makes for a compact machine, and these are usually found in portable bench top table saws.
The motor directly driving the blade comes with some disadvantages, though.
One is the louder noise they produce – direct drive saws are usually a few decibels louder compared to a belt drive model. The proximity of the motor to the blade also exposes it to more dust and debris, and the vibrations of the motor are also more pronounced.
Belt Drive Table Saws
Belt drive table saws often come with induction motors, and in some belt drive models, these motors are offset away from the table and blade assembly. Power is transmitted by a belt, which helps isolate the motor vibrations away from the working surface – this arrangement also puts the motor out of the way of the dust and debris generated by each cut.
Belt drive models do need a bit more maintenance compared to direct drive table saws, though. Belts have to be periodically checked for tension and alignment, and worn-out belts also need to be replaced from time to time, as well.
Choosing the Right Table Saw
Choosing a table saw for your project or workshop can be something of a long-term investment for you. Expect to use a table saw for hours at a time for any substantial project – it pays off in the long run to get a substantial machine for the job.
Size and Cutting Depth
The cutting capacity of a table saw is determined by several factors – the power of the motor, the size of the table and guides and the blades the table saw can accept.
The depth of cut also changes depending on the angle you are cutting. For a typical job site table saw, you can expect a maximum depth of cut of just over 3 inches for straight 90 degree rips and 2 ¼ inches for bevel cuts at 45 degrees.
Most, if not all table saws use the standard 10-inch diameter blades, the same as many of the larger handheld circular saws.
Ripping capacity is usually limited by the extent the guide can slide out, and extension tables can dramatically increase the capacity of a table saw.
Power and Speed
Table saws are almost solely the corded electric type and come with electric motors rated for amperage (amps). Some manufacturers also cite motor power in terms of horsepower (HP).
Blade speed is given in terms of rotations per minute or RPM. The higher the rated power of the motor, and the faster the RPM, the more efficient the table saw is at cutting sheets and boards. Depending on the type of blade, power can also help indicate of a table saw is capable of cutting through harder wood near its cutting capacity, as well.
Weight and Dimensions
For benchtop and portable table saws, weight is an important consideration when it comes to their portability. The smallest compact saws weight as little as 17 pounds, although heavy duty portables usually start at 70 pounds and up.
In the workshop, dimensions give you an idea just how much space a table saw can take – and they can take up a lot of space. Expect 60 inches or more along the longest side for a contractor or cabinet table saw, then add a generous allowance for the operator and any extension wings as well.
