: Hello all,

: My friend has the Ridgid stationary table saw with belt drive and
: it had trouble ripping strips out of mahogany and pine. Granted
: the blade wasn't the newest but it was a fairly good blade. The
: motor constantly got hot and shut down. The Home Depot on island
: appears to be getting rid of most of their large tools and
: focusing on the portable stuff. They're down to the Ryobi and
: the Ridgid direct-drive portable contractor saws. I may be able
: to also get a Dewalt contractor saw at another hardware store
: for way more than list. I prefer to go to HD because their
: prices are much better.

: I have no problem with a direct-drive saw- I would actually prefer
: the smaller portable saws except I'm wondering will it handle
: ripping lots of strips from mahogany? Most of the table saw cuts
: will be ripping, so I am just a bit worried about getting a
: contractor saw home and finding it won't do the job. I would
: actually prefer the portability due to the nature of my shop as
: mentioned in other posts. Everything has to roll out on the
: porch for use.

: Anyone out there got experience doing lots of ripping with a
: portable contractor style table saw?

Hi Malcolm,

I've had a direct drive saw many years ago and I too am not a big fan of them, the Bosch though is a good one, Rigid isn't bad.

I use an old Craftsman (Sears) contractor's saw on a Bosch mobile stand, the old Craftsman saws are usually easy to find used (craigslist) at a very reasonable price. I've used this saw for near commercial duty for at least 20 years. I did recently have to change the motor, but it's something that's fairly easy to do on a belt drive saw, something that's not easy to do on a direct drive saw. I too only use Freud blades, they hold an edge better than any I've found, you pay for them, but they are worth paying for. The Unisaw that Jeff uses is indeed excellent "if" you have the shop space to leave it in one place, I don't.

Oh yeah I also changed the fence on the Craftsman, the old fence worked but never kept true, I've got a Vega fence now and like that alot too.

Don't discount older used saws, they may not be as shiny and pretty as a new one in a box, but they also might last a lifetime (yours).

Bill H.