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Nice older table saws going for next to nothing

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Jack Vines

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Greetings, FWWers,

I've been buying, rehabbing and trading up on woodworking equipment for forty years. In recent times, I've given up the effort, because the older Craftsman, Walker Turner, Delta, Atlas table saws which formed the backbone of the hobby have become essentially worthless.

In the past year, I've been given two TSs and passed up on two more for next to nothing. It seems few younger men are doing any woodworking or remodeling.

Then, the few younger guys to whom I've spoken who are into woodworking have been brainwashed by the SawStop concept. They seem to think if one even walks by an older saw, it is liable to roar to life and lop off fingers. The idea of actually using a vintage TS to cut wood fills them with fear and dread.

The ironic thing is the jointer is reportedly the machine in a woodworking shop most likely to cause injury. Despite this, good older jointers still will sell.

What has been your vintage machinery experience of late?

jack vines
 
Well jack I am using the first and only table saw that I have ever owned. It is an older Craftsman saw, made by Emerson I believe. I bought the saw in I think it was 1955, that makes it 56 years old, and it is still doing what ever I ask of it. I did have to replace the arbor casting three years ago, due to my careless method of trying to remove it for a thorough cleaning, and lubricating,(I cracked the casting) when it became hard to raise and lower. To my surprise I called sears parts place and they had the part in stock and it was on my doorstep three days later, Not too bad for a saw that old. I did replace the fence and added Pals to it to get everything in line like it should be. I know it isn't a three HP cabinet saw, but it has and is serving my needs. I can appreciate the new technology out there, but I am too old to invest in big new toys, I do however still get a few new smaller tools every now and then, just to satisfy that new tool smell and feel when I need a fix. So My take on your question is newer is not always better, The older iron is still around for those that can appreciate it.
 
I too have a 55/56 Craftsman that I use for dados. Put a newer 11/2 horse on it and works great. Then still got the Grizzly for rips with out changing blades back and forth.
 
I believe in todays economic times, younger men dont have as much leisurely time to play around in the garage pursueing a hobby like woodworking. Old machines, new machines, its still an expensive and time consuming hobby, and extra free hours or extra bucks arent as easy to find these days when you have a mortgage to pay and a family to feed.
 
I live in a retirement area. Old tablesaws are seen frequently at garage sales and auctions. Usually they are not well cared for and sell cheaply. It is always the guy who goes first and the widow cleans out at low prices.
 
Frank Fusco said:
I live in a retirement area. Old tablesaws are seen frequently at garage sales and auctions. Usually they are not well cared for and sell cheaply. It is always the guy who goes first and the widow cleans out at low prices.
Click to expand...

I was going to post just this. I don't know where Jack Vines lives, but in my metro area of just under 2 million people, old Craftsman table saws go for $50-100 a pop. Their tops are rusty, many have missing wings, none have guards, most have fences, most do not have miter gauges. IMHO, the older contractor saws are going for what they're worth - the motor.

Lots of guys have a love affair with "Old American Iron" like a 60's or 70's contractor saw. But compared to a modern contractor... really, they're not that good at all. The last two generations manufactured by, I think, Rikon, have actually introduced innovations into the contractor saw range. These saws were badged for Ridgid, CMan, and I believe Grizzly and General International had them as entry level saws.
 
I've been looking at a Ridgid compact tablesaw at the local HD. I'm waiting for one of my kids to ask what I want for Father's day. In the meantime, I've been looking at older saws. This may sound a bit odd, but then it's me talkin', but I notice that the grooves for the mitre thingy appear in some photos to have lugs on them that prevent using some featherboards and other mitre thingies. I associate this with cheaper table saws, although I don't see this arrangement on any router tables or bandsaws. Why do they do this, and is it a sign of a cheaper saw?
 
Roger Tulk “I notice that the grooves for the miter thingy appear in some photos to have lugs on them that prevent using some feather-boards and other miter thingies. I associate this with cheaper table saws”

Roger are you talking about cast iron tables with the upside down T shaped bottoms of the miter slots? Or are you looking at aluminum topped table-saws with the with the lugs cast into the top edges of the shallow miter slots that help hold the miter-gauge in the slot?
 
Frank Fusco said:
I live in a retirement area. Old tablesaws are seen frequently at garage sales and auctions. Usually they are not well cared for and sell cheaply. It is always the guy who goes first and the widow cleans out at low prices.
Click to expand...

Ive enlisted my son to dispose of all my tools when I go.
He doesnt have to hold out for top dollar, but Ive seen women dumping tools for 1/3 of their market value just wanting to clean out the basement.
 
I saw an art deco Craftsman TS a few weeks ago with a $50 tag on it. It needed a little love but nice condition. I just don't have room for it right now.

I'm kicking myself over passing on a Walker Turner 6" Homeowner model jointer. It was going for $60 - again I have no room for it.

When I get room I will go to a multi-saw setup - ripping and dado machines . . .

Cheers

Jim
 
allen levine said:
Ive enlisted my son to dispose of all my tools when I go.
He doesnt have to hold out for top dollar, but Ive seen women dumping tools for 1/3 of their market value just wanting to clean out the basement.
Click to expand...

I hear criticizm of people who buy cheaply from widows. This includes tools, guns, fishing gear, etc. There are claims they are taking advantage of the widow. Really, I know, in most cases, the widows just consider all this stuff as junk to clear out. In most cases (around me) they don't care about the money, just getting rid of all the 'stuff' is their priority. If they accept $100.00 for a $1,000.00 rifle everyone is happy. I see nothing wrong with that.
 
I met one of those ladies at the local coffee shop. She had arranged to meet me there, and had a nice Stanley #4 plane in good nick for $15. I offered to pay more for it, but she wouldn't have any of it, so I bought a couple of other tools from her that I didn't really need. I've bought a few things from people who are just getting rid of it.
 
My first saw was a used 80's Craftsman. It was cheaply made and lived a hard life. I gave it some TLC and used if for a few years before i started running up against its limitations as my own skills developed. Then i got a new General International contractor saw - basically a decades old design, but very well made. I had it tuned to tight tolerances and never had any frustrations or difficulties with it. Along came a 1959 Powermatic cabinet saw, which, after a full rebuild, kicked the contractor saw out the door. I've also rebuilt a few other old contractor style saws.

There's good value in a lot of old contractor saws. There is also a lot of old junk out there. Older doesn't mean better - there has always been cheap stuff on the market. With hybrid saws and job site saws, i think a lot of the "value" of the contractor saw configuration just isn't there any more. Storage space, dust collection, and exposed running belts are some of the things that newer designs improve. But they all cut wood and do it well when properly adjusted.

You can do fine work with an old, ugly, rusty saw. You can make flimsey junk with a new Saw Stop cabinet saw.

And, now that shop class isn't exactly required any more, "man caves" are more about tv's and sofas than they are about tools and sawdust.
 
for those of you that insist on mentioning over and over again, that owning a sawstop isnt going to make one a better craftsman, well, I personally didnt purchase one because I thought it would improve my skills.
I just purchased it for one reason, increase my odds for safety.
And thats the big reason people purchase this saw, if not the only reason.
So when someone enters the woodworking world, I dont question why someone would purchase a 2000 dollar cabinet saw over a 200 old saw, even if that old saw is worth 5 times that amount, its a simple matter of just wanting the best out there for their own safety, especially a tool that probably historically causes the most devastating injuries.
and just like paul said, plenty of sawstops turn out flimsy products, there are plenty of craftsmen with 30 years experience that turn out junk also. Its not the machine.
 
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