A Beginner’s Guide to Benchtop Table Saws

There are 4 kinds of tables saws to choose from though most amateurs will only want to use the less expensive table saws. There comes a time in every amateur handyman’s life when he or she realizes that a table saw would make a job much more easy and fun. The kinds of table saws available are cabinet saws, contractors saws, hybrid saws and portable table saws.

Many portable table saws have extra bases available for an additional fee. The “benchtop” or “portable” table saw is often the best table saw for the amateur woodworker who does not have a large work area and will only use the benchtop table saw for small projects. A benchtop table saw can often be moved from one spot to another and is often placed on a bench of some sort.

Many benchtop table saws can use standard sized saw blades like other table saws, but there are still some downsides to benchtop table saws that you should know about. Portable table saws usually weigh anywhere from 30 to eighty pounds, so you can’t really carry them around as you would a hammer. You can quickly move portable them in and out of vehicles as needed.

In recent years manufacturers have started making more durable portable table saws for the professional market. Because portable table saws are less heavy than normal saws they aren’t often as stable as contractor table saws. Portable table saws usually have some limits on how large a piece of wood they can cut. A lot of benchtop table saws often lack sophisticated measurement tools that higher end saws have.

When you’re trying to buy the best benchtop table saw for your needs there are many things to consider. You will want to consider what kinds of blades you think you’ll use, whether you’ll need to adjust the blade angle and whether you’ll need to disassemble the unit and modify the fence and rail system. If price is a consideration then you might want to get your tools on the web. When comparing specifications you will want to compare weight, rip capacity, and portability. You may how easy it is to change blades and remove accessories.

If you are just starting out then a benchtop saw is a good choice because they are the most affordable of all the table saws and they can be stored fairly easily. There are many pluses to beginning with a portable table saw. Portable table saws can accomplish common ripping and cutting but may be harder to use for more trickier cutting. Benchtop table saws may not have the ability to use dado blades and advanced fence and rail systems.