BT3100 out of production?

[Lightbender]

Looking for a BT3100, Home Depot says they are out of production. True? Any other source? Is there a replacement model as good or better?

Lightbender

[Russianwolf]

yes and no.

Yes the Ryobi BT3100 is no more. BUT, you can buy a Sears Craftsman version http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...4&blockType=G4

same saw, different colors.

[dbhost]

Not exactly true. From what I understand the BT3100 is still sold in Australia and New Zealand... Shipping might be a bit burdensome though...

Your best bet in the U.S. is to either find a good condition used BT3100, or swing by Sears and grab a model #21829 when they are on sale. (Regular priced they are a bit spendy). The 21829 has some nice feature upgrades as well. The router insert has a miter slot, there is a very nice folding stand, the top is smooth instead of ribbed and the colors are a bit nicer (IMHO)... Functionally, and in all the aspects where it counts, it's the same saw...

[cwsmith]

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but I haven't seen anything like the BT3100-1 on either the Austrailian or the European web sites. It is, at least for the moment, available from Sears, in it's previously described mobile version.

I sure wish it was still available though, as I sure love my BT3100. A couple of improvements I could wish for, but beyond that this has proven to be an ideal table saw for my needs.

Personally, I'd love to know more about it's design origins, who were these designers and how did they come up with this... so many things I see as quite unique and well thought out. It is unfortunate, IMHO, that this saw was dropped from the Ryobi line-up.

CWS

[dkerfoot]

The 21829 also has longer rails and the SMT has a 2nd back position for the fence. The saw comes with the router kit.

[cwsmith]

The 21829 also has longer rails and the SMT has a 2nd back position for the fence. The saw comes with the router kit.

That 2bd back position on the SMT fence, is one of the improvements I would suggest IF TTI should ever introduce a replacement for the beloved BT series.

I have a BTS21 portable for carpentry use at the other house. It's certainly not a "BT3100", but it offers a fair amount of quality and I especially like it's folding portability and the SMT with it's "2nd" fence position, as it provides amost 17" of cross-cut feed support in front of the blade.

Nice, IMO!

CWS

[LCHIEN]

couple of quick comments the Aussie version was available about a year ago but at $800 price at exchange rates and shipping costs plus the need for 240V its not a good option for most.

The option to mount the miter fence in that second position is available to any owner of a BT3100/3000 who are willing to drill a hole in their SMT. The hole should match the existing pivot holes in diameter and be inside the front edge of the SMT enough so that the lock knob and bolt be all the way back in the slot. You only need one hole, I'd make it on the right since most of the time I have the pivot on the right side.

[dkerfoot]

The 2nd fence position on the SMT of the 28129 has two advantages over the diy version on a BT3xxx: It has a 2nd scale for angles from the back position (not really used when you need high accuracy of course) and also a 2nd adjustable 90 degree flip-up stopper, which get used all the time.