Toolcritic: Contractor Table Saws

Contractor Table Saws - These are quieter, bulked-up portable models with legs. You won't have to rewire your garage or shop to use one because they have moderately sized motors that still generally use 110VAC. The motor drives the blade using a belt rather than being directly connected like the portable models.

Interestingly enough, we contractors seem to use portable saws more often than contractor saws. We tend to see contractor saws in garages and small shops.

Over the last decade, a new class of contractor saw has emerged called a hybrid saw. It has some of the features of a cabinet saw, but will operates on 110VAC so that it can be used in most home shops. The closed cabinet makes dust collection better, it has a little more power, and may offer an improved drive system to reduce vibration.

These saws were introduced to appeal to the small shop owner who is serious enough to want an improvement over the standard contractor saw, but does not want to spend the additional money and rewire his garage for 220VAC to use a cabinet saw.

The average letter grade ranking of the 69 products in Contractor Table Saws is B. The average letter grade ranking of the 245 models in the category Table Saws is B. Click the individual Contractor Table Saws product links for additional reviews and data on the seperate models.

Toolcritic's Picks

Jet 708301K (Details)

This is a very clean saw for the price. The reviews, including those from the professionals, are consistently positive. We have an older model Jet contractor saw and it has been a great performer. Their current crop looks like the best choice in this category. You might also take a look at Delta's line or the General 50-185. They are solid bets as well. Click here for more information on why we like the Jet 708301K for the Contractor Table Saws analysis.

DeWalt DW746 (Details)

Most of the contractor saws are actually designed to be heavy duty, low maintenance tools for use on job sites. However, because of their price, they are found more often in garages. The hybrid saw was created to fill that gap between the contractor saw and the cabinet saw for the small shop user. The DeWalt is a great model and would work well for someone ready for a little heavier tool, but not ready to spend the money (and rewire the garage for 220) for a cabinet saw. For more details on why we prefer the DeWalt DW746 for the Contractor Table Saws analysis, click here.

Products

Buzz

Contractors Saw with 1 Cast Iron Wing and Table Board (10" Blade, includes 50" UniFence)