Bought a sexy new Grizzly Cabinet Table Saw. What do you guys think about getting a wheel-base?

[Dolmetscher007]

After months and months of posting here and reading, I finally pulled the trigger on a brand new Grizzly G0690 3HP Table Saw . It has arrived, and I will be putting it together tonight. It weighs in at a dainty 530 lbs. and is sitting like a monolith in my garage right now, still in a cardboard box. When I bought it, I specifically did not want to buy the separate $80 base with wheels. Looking back, I am not absolutely sure what my thought process was there, other than I just did not want to spend $80 MORE! I'm not a rich man, ya see. :-) I also thought that having the saw up on wheels might make the saw less "stout" and planted. My buddy has a table saw that is significantly lighter, but it has wheels, and even when you lock the wheels, if you lean into it while making a cut, it "gives" a little; like the wheels allow the saw to rock a little. I want my table saw to be like a stone pillar that I could hit with my car and not move. 

Anyway... now that it is here, and I realize that it really is 530lbs, I am wondering if I made a mistake. What do you guys think?

[byegge]

I just got the go691,i think. It's the long rail version. And the mobile base is pretty solid once the saw is in it and the wheels are down. You can move it a little bit, but you have to try. Normal operation it's just fine. 

[fredbelanger]

Depends on your shop setup, but based on your info, doesnt seem like moving it often is in the plans.

I have a cabinet saw setup in one location and never move it.

If I happen to move it or the outfeed table just a hair or 3 because of whatever reason, i know because my miter slot doesnt line up quite the same. The inability to move it easily works for me. What works for you though can be different.

Let us know what you decide.

 

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[QHC]

After months and months of posting here and reading, I finally pulled the trigger on a brand new Grizzly G0690 3HP Table Saw . It has arrived, and I will be putting it together tonight. It weighs in at a dainty 530 lbs. and is sitting like a monolith in my garage right now, still in a cardboard box. When I bought it, I specifically did not want to buy the separate $80 base with wheels. Looking back, I am not absolutely sure what my thought process was there, other than I just did not want to spend $80 MORE! I'm not a rich man, ya see. :-) I also thought that having the saw up on wheels might make the saw less "stout" and planted. My buddy has a table saw that is significantly lighter, but it has wheels, and even when you lock the wheels, if you lean into it while making a cut, it "gives" a little; like the wheels allow the saw to rock a little. I want my table saw to be like a stone pillar that I could hit with my car and not move. 

Anyway... now that it is here, and I realize that it really is 530lbs, I am wondering if I made a mistake. What do you guys think?

 

On my Grizzly planer the wheels don't even touch the ground when you press the foot lever to set it down. You might want to check if the mobile base for the saw the same.

Q

 

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[drzaius]

Most mobile bases don't raise the saw more than a 1/4" or less. If you need maximum mobility, then check out the SawStop ICS mobile base. All 4 casters swivel, has a hydraulic lift mechanism, & it moves soooo easily. Pricey though.

[Miles11we]

I personally think that not just for safety sake but for results too, every machine that doesnt absolutely need to be mobile should be bolted down with good solid anchors.

If i had to have something mobile, there are mobile bases that will completely set the machine all the way down instead of having it still sitting on two wheels.

https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/110/4697/Lift-Lock-and-Roll-Lathe-Mobility-System?term=lathe

-Something like that but for a saw..

[Eric.]

If you ain't gonna move it, what's the point?

I have the same saw...it's bolted to my outfeed table which has a double bank of drawers under it...and I gotta disagree with Miles about needing to bolt it to the floor...you couldn't yank that bastard out of my shop with a Mack truck.  Ain't goin' nowhere.

A drill press or bandsaw or something similarly tippy?  Maybe then.  I make wider platforms for those tools to sit upon and bolt them to the platforms to reduce tippiness (and also add levelers in some cases (bandsaw) so that they can mate perfectly to an adjoining outfeed surface).  Bolting to the floor seems a bit excessive.  Not crazy about drilling holes in my garage slab either.

[Dolmetscher007]

As always, you guys are awesome! I'm going to forego the base.  I can save that $80 for a drill press, which is my next purchase. 

Thanks everybody!!!

 

 

[byegge]

30 minutes ago, Dolmetscher007 said:

As always, you guys are awesome! I'm going to forego the base.  I can save that $80 for a drill press, which is my next purchase. 

Thanks everybody!!!

 

 

Mine too looking at some of the grizzly offerings for that as well. They shipped me a gift certificate because my saw went on sale 3 days after I bought it 

[gee-dub]

Like others, my tablesaw is not mobile.  I say plant it and leave it.

[RichardA]

2 hours ago, gee-dub said:

Like others, my tablesaw is not mobile.  I say plant it and leave it.

Plant it, just don't water it.

[Jfitz]

my tablesaw is "mobile" in the sense that it has a mobile base.  But - I don't need to move it at all, so it just stays where it is.   If you're not in a situation where you need the mobility in your shop, then skipping it is a good choice.  Put the $$ towards a good blade.

[Coop]

Congrats OP on your new saw. Some of these user names sure are getting lengthy. May change mine to Gettingupinthemiddleofthenightmademe______

[rbm328]

first, congrats on the new saw.  i have a G0715 hybrid on a mobile base.  i bought the TS used and it came with it.

you haven't said what your work shop is like.  mine is one half of my garage so mobility is a necessity.  have my band saw

on a mobile base too.  the TS base is a shop fox but several years old and wheels are delaminating and the stability screws are junk.

[bleedinblue]

I have the Shop Fox mobile base on my 715.  I've moved the saw once in a year, backwards about three inches.  It's the most useless mobile base in my shop.

[Dolmetscher007]

11 hours ago, rbm328 said:

first, congrats on the new saw.  i have a G0715 hybrid on a mobile base.  i bought the TS used and it came with it.

you haven't said what your work shop is like.  mine is one half of my garage so mobility is a necessity.  have my band saw

on a mobile base too.  the TS base is a shop fox but several years old and wheels are delaminating and the stability screws are junk.

 

My shop is a 20' x 25' garage. The left side of the garage has a typical garage door for a car, and the right side has a standard sized front door. I've placed the table saw directly in front of the garage door about 6 ft. in. It's facing away from the garage door. My reasoning is, with 6 ft. of room, I can get behind the saw easily for almost any cut, but if I ever have to shove a full on 4 ft. x 8 ft. sheet of plywood over the saw, I can open the garage door and have infinite space. And I still have 14 ft on the outfeed side of the saw for an outfeed table and whatever else. As of right now, that is all I have planned. 

I know that I want to have every tool in a cabinet. Even if I do a "peg board" style tool wall, or a french cleat tool wall, it will have doors. I cannot see myself dropping the cash on a dedicated dust collection system. So I will be using my shop vac for all dust collection. I f****** hate dust, and do not want everything in the shop to have that typical layer of dust on it. Plus I am allergic to chaos. So, I like the clean look of closed cabinets. Even if it's chaos inside... I like to be able to shut the door on it. Ha ha!!

[Eric.]

13 minutes ago, Dolmetscher007 said:

So I will be using my shop vac for all dust collection. I f****** hate dust, and do not want everything in the shop to have that typical layer of dust on it

Well I hate to tell ya, but if you don't want a layer of dust on everything, you're gonna be extremely disappointed using your shop vac for DC.  A shop vac is simply not adequate to use for DC on any tool with a 4" port...it doesn't have enough CFM to pull the waste.  The DC is so poorly designed on your table saw (I know because I own it)...same with bandsaws, especially...that your shop vac is going to be all but completely useless for DC on those tools.  And the shop vac won't be able to keep up with the amount of chips that a jointer and planer produce.  Once you jump into larger hobby tools with four inch ports, you pretty much HAVE to get a legit DC if you don't want a giant mess on your hands.  Sorry.

The good news is, one of the few Harbor Freight gems is their 2HP DC.  If you keep it mobile and hook it up tool-to-tool, it can be sufficient for collecting most of the mess.  And they are CHEAP.  Plus you can always find a coupon to knock even more off.  It would be silly not to buy it, given the insignificant cost.  It will still be inefficient for pulling the fine dust, so your health will still be at risk without wearing a respirator...and you'll still have a layer of dust on everything...but the bulk of the mess will be collected.  If you want a truly clean shop, you'll have to look into 5HP or larger cyclones and air filtration systems...and yeah, you'll probably have to sell your car to afford it if you're on a budget.  I've been using a ducted 2HP system for many years.  Respirator as often as I can stomach, and a backpack blower between projects picks up the slack.  Woodshops are dusty.  Welcome to woodworking.

[Dolmetscher007]

5 minutes ago, Eric. said:

Woodshops are dusty.  Welcome to woodworking.

 

Definitely. Have you ever seen Matthias Wandel or some of the other guys on YouTube who have videos on using a cheap box fan with 2-3 furnace filters as air cleaners? I know that I will be sweeping the floor, and vacuuming off horizontal surfaces from time to time, but do these jury-rigged air filters really do a good job at reducing airborne dust? Like, is I make all the cuts I'm going to make for a project all at once, then switch on a couple of those homemade air filters and go inside for 30 min. or so... can I come back out to the shop and not have to wear a respirator? I'm less worried about hardwoods and solid boards. But the idea of breathing in MDF and plywood glue particles gives me the willies. 

[Eric.]

8 minutes ago, Dolmetscher007 said:

Definitely. Have you ever seen Matthias Wandel or some of the other guys on YouTube who have videos on using a cheap box fan with 2-3 furnace filters as air cleaners? I know that I will be sweeping the floor, and vacuuming off horizontal surfaces from time to time, but do these jury-rigged air filters really do a good job at reducing airborne dust? Like, is I make all the cuts I'm going to make for a project all at once, then switch on a couple of those homemade air filters and go inside for 30 min. or so... can I come back out to the shop and not have to wear a respirator?

No.  Unless you have a legit, properly designed 5HP system, you will not be safe without a respirator.  Even then, technically you should still be wearing it.

An air filter - whether it's a commercially available unit or a shop-made one - is a supplement to proper DC...not an alternative.

Edit:  30 minutes after the dust settles...you can probably get away with it.  And all of this depends on how worried you are about fine dust in your lungs.  I'm much more casual about it than some other people...and that may or may not come back to bite me one day.  But ultimately, if you want 100% protection, the respirator should be worn at all times unless you're truly set up with proper DC and filtration.  Which is very expensive to achieve.

The dust might be settled after 30 minutes, but it's still present.  Simply opening the door to the shop and walking out into it will kick dust back into the air and into your nose holes.  Which is why collection is the primary goal, and filtration is secondary.

[wtnhighlander]

Unless you are taking that 30 minute break to have a smoke. If that's the case, there isn't much point it worrying about the dust.

[bleedinblue]

It's truly best practice to wear a respirator at all times inside the shop.  I'm pretty bad about it unless I'm sanding (though my ROS is one of my most efficient dust controlled tools...) 

Matthias has some interesting ideas and what not, but I'm positive he does that for YouTube content...not truly efficient dust collection.  

If you want to really geek out, pick up a Dylos air quality meter and you'll see just how bad the air is, and more importantly what methods work to clean it.

[Dolmetscher007]

Ha! Nah... I don't smoke anymore. But... it does bring up an interesting point. What about spontaneous combustion?

When I resanded my hardwood floors recently, the machine I used came with instructions about disposing of the saw dust, and how the air in the room may burst into flame!!! Saw dust can apparently just burst into flame. Yay!

I want to do some welding in my wood shop. Is that just a major major no-no, or is that just being paranoid?

[Eric.]

1 minute ago, Dolmetscher007 said:

Ha! Nah... I don't smoke anymore. But... it does bring up an interesting point. What about spontaneous combustion?

If you can find some real-life scenarios where this has actually happened in a residential hobby-shop environment, as opposed to theoretical physics and "what-ifs," I'd love to read about them.  They don't exist.  Woodworking wives' tale.  It may have happened at some time somewhere...but it sure as hell ain't common enough for me to worry about it.  And I have PVC duct.

[bleedinblue]

Spontaneous combustion in a wood shop only happens if you wad up an oily rag.  

[Dolmetscher007]

1 minute ago, Eric. said:

 And I have PVC duct.

 

Is PVC duct not good? Flammable or something like that?