Bought 2 used Table Saws... Which would you keep?

The TS300 is the shopmaster series I believe. Not a bad little saw. A T2 fence would be a nice upgrade.
I cant say about the Craftsman.

I’d keep the craftsman. You can get wheels and such from grizzly. Probably all you’d need to do to restore easy motion is to clean the worms and gears underneath. Probably gunked up with old grease and sawdust.

Don’t discount quiet. It is a good thing.

You may need a different receptacle for the 220 line. Machinery usually has the locking kind.

-- Made lots of sawdust and pounded some nails. Haven't finished anything, though.

I would clean both up and sell them to get something better.

-- making sawdust....

I am with Motthunter: Sell them and buy something better. I had 2 table saws, but sold them both to afford one good one. The Delta may not have the correct miter slots for many jigs and such. It should be 3/4” wide, not the 5/8” slots many “economy” table saws have. The Craftsman sounds like a workhorse, though. Finding a 220 plug to fit your outlet should not be a problem, but like Flink said, it should lock in the socket. Your Delta fence may not fit it anyway.

So… shop for table saws, sell these 2 and save your money for a good one that you can grow into instead of grow out of in the coming years.

God Bless,
Hawg

-- Saving barnwood from the scrapyards

Actually the Delta has 3/4” t-slots. the craftsman has 3/4” slots as well but not a t-slot. I thought about building an extension cord that has the matching receptacle for the 220v. The plug on the craftsman looks like a locking plug.

Should I still try to clean up the craftsman, to get to a working machine, to sell or just sell it as is? I was thinking of replacing the handle that is missing.

If I do sell both what should I be looking for, new or used? I want to still be able to learn without putting a big dent in the wallet. If used, what $ amount should I not exceed.

If I was in your position I’d look for a used contractor’s saw with a cast iron top (standard 27” deep) and trunnions, motor in the 1 to 1 1/2hp range. Wings could be stamped (those could be replaced with cast wings at a later date). An older Delta or Jet should do the trick in the $250 range, a Craftsman fitting the description should not be more than half of that, though depends on accessories that may come with the saw. I paid $100 for the Craftsman contractors saw with cast iron top that I currently use. I did have to upgrade the fence – that’s another $100, bringing you in the range of the Delta and Jet. Not the best – not the worst. It’s accurate – and that’s what counts.

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

I had a 10” Craftsman and hated it so much by the time I got a new saw I wouldn’t even give it away because I didn’t want someone to hate me for giving it to them. It was a pain to line up the fence, it never aligned square on its own and the belt never stayed tight. Had to constantly tighten it and the pulleys loosened and would come off too.

Just my opinion of a Craftsman, I have seen some that work great

-- www.greenheadsharpening.com

Your Craftsman saw sounds to me like it’s a cabinet saw. Personally, I would never give up anything that approached a remotely decent cabinet saw in favor of a contractor’s saw unless I absolutely had to have the portability. I have a Craftsman contractor’s saw, and have added a Beisemeyer 52” fence (eBay score) along with the appropriate table, and I have a very serviceable (if not the most accurate) outfit. This will work until I can afford the Powermatic that’s out there looking for me. I think with a little elbow grease, a good fence like you suggest, and the correct wiring, you have the start of a good Norm-type shop and a steal on a good saw (most Craftsman stuff like that was built by Rigid before they got into the Lowe’s/Home Depot mart, I believe.) My vote is that you sell the little Delta and use that money for a high quality fence and blade. Then ask the spousal unit for an Incra mitre guage for your birthday.

-- There's no tool like an old tool...

Besides the enclosed base what makes a cabinet saw a cabinet saw??

The saw is mounted onto an open steel frame. And whomever had it before welded plates to the bottom of each of the legs and attached casters. So now it sits kind of high too. Higher than the Delta which is on a mobile base.

I had bought a mobile base for the Delta before finding the Craftsman saw. If I remove the welded plates off the craftsman base, the mobile base would be able to fit it. The casters have those brake mechanisms on it but I don’t trust it to not move around, unless I find a way to make wheel chocks.

Its hard to say when the Craftsman saw was manufactured. I am still not 100% sure about the model number neither.

There’s a ton of good machine info on the Old Woodworking machines website, that’s where I got all of the info for my 60’s era Cratsman TS (which rocks the casbah, BTW)

Peruse through this http://www.owwm.com/mfgindex/registry.aspx

-- http://www.flickr.com/photos/74108677@N00/

Hawgnutz and Motthunter have it right, clean ‘em up and sell ‘em for something much better than both of them put together. I suffered with an older Craftsman contractor saw for years until I found a great deal on a Powermatic 66. I got it from a geezer quitting woodwork and looking for cash.

My advice is keep looking for a real saw and save up for it, you’ll be ever so glad you did. In the meantime, do what you can with whatever you have and be safe about it. Good luck.

always,
J.C.

-- When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world. -- John Muir

These are the pics of the 12in craftsman, the Delta is behind it… couldn’t get pics of it…

[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3141.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3142.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3147.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3149.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3150.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3153.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a132/pinakbert/12in_Floor_Saw/DSCN3156.jpg[/IMG]

Your links are not working. I think your 12” craftsman is the older model built in the late 70s and early 80s. I had one for a while and put a biesemeyer fence on it. Worked just fine for years. The arbor bearings will start to wear and then you wil have a bit of blade wobble. I agree with some of the others in that it would be better for you to try and buy a real cabinet saw. The Jet and Powermatic are fine saws and should allow you to concentrate on woodworking instead of fiddling around with the tool. John

-- Oldworld, Fair Oaks, Ca

I have the 113.299131 table saw. I have hooked it up with the 50 inch vega pro fence and I’m happy with it. Someday I’ll upgrade, but there is so many tools to buy I can make due with this saw.

I think you can still order some parts for this saw from sears. http://www.searspartsdirect.com/partsdirect/index.action?pop=flush

oops