panel saw
Rating: 5 out of 5
Weight: 6.5 out of 10
Created: Dec 25, 2008
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I have found this saw to be very accurate, and easy to use. I have owned it for about a year, and use it far more than I though I would. It makes it very easy to cut a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood. It is however not very portable. I ussually measure up what I need to cut at the job site, and take the work to my shop.
Panel work made easy...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Weight: 3.6 out of 10
Created: Dec 25, 2008
Thanks for your feedback
I give this saw five stars now considering all factors and leaving some emotion out. I bought the saw because of space constraints in my shop trying to handle and cut large panels on my table saw without any help. That, and at the time I was getting ready to start on my kitchen cabinets.
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br /I set the saw up and added my additional options of wheels, stand, extensions and Quick-stop guage. Probably due to something during shipping, my saw would not cut a straight line. It was off by nearly 3/32" over a 48" cut (I cannot believe Safety Speed Cut would crate it up and ship it when it was off by that much). After making the first few test cuts, I thought I was going to have to cut pieces oversized and then trim to square on the table saw, but after reading the manual and making some adjustments this was not the case.
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br /So here is why I still gave it five stars.
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br /The instruction manual was very thorough and clearly explained how to check for square if your cuts were off. They walk you through every possible option and even explain how to make up a large tri-square to dial the saw back into square. After making up the large tri-square (at some additional expense) the saw was very easy to adjust and before long I had the saw cutting square straight pieces for my cabinets.
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br /This saw makes handling large plywood sheets easy, and with less effort and fatigue compared with a table saw, you can have 10 sheets cut down to size in no time at all. The optional Quick-stop guage makes repetitive cuts quick and accurate - great for cabinet sides, backs etc.
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br /So, other than a slight initial alignment problem, the saw has been one of the best additions to my shop. I am considering adding the dust collection option in the future and my only observation there is that it is a fairly high dollar option ($347) for something so necessary. In my opinion, this should be standard on all of the saws instead of an accessory.
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br /Another plus in choosing this saw over a 3HP cabinet saw is that you can use standard 110V power versus adding a 220V circuit for your cabinet saw.
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br /If you work with large sheets often, I highly recommend this saw especially if you have a smaller shop. If you have room to spare, you might consider the H-4 saw which is what I originally wanted but could not get into my shop.