Considering a BT3100

[knimac]

Comparing Saws

Sorry, its now Tuesday and your note said you were going looking this past weekend. I'll leave comparisons to other saws to those here far more skilled and experienced than me. I will say however, don't base your decision on the setup of the Home Depot floor model. If I had not found this site before I bought my 3100, I would have stayed away from it based on how poorly it was set up at the store. Luckily I had found several posts here that gave me the advice I"m passing on. As I said previously, I doubt they will go on sale, but I figure it was the best $400 I could have spent - no regrets whatsoever. Good luck, and stick around whatever route you decide on.

[Raymonator]

Sorry, its now Tuesday and your note said you were going looking this past weekend. I'll leave comparisons to other saws to those here far more skilled and experienced than me. I will say however, don't base your decision on the setup of the Home Depot floor model. If I had not found this site before I bought my 3100, I would have stayed away from it based on how poorly it was set up at the store. Luckily I had found several posts here that gave me the advice I"m passing on. As I said previously, I doubt they will go on sale, but I figure it was the best $400 I could have spent - no regrets whatsoever. Good luck, and stick around whatever route you decide on.

No apologies necessary Mac, believe me. I appreciate your advice and I agree with you that the forum will be a great source of information once I get the new BT. Even if I can't keep up to the standards of most of the wood working hobbyists in here, it'll at least be nice to learn how to upkeep my BT as well as learn a few modifications and tricks on how to make it operate better. I guess I should stop being so frugal (cheap) and just run out and buy the darn thing at $400.00 but, like I said, I wouldn't use it right now anyway because it too cold, so hopefully my patience will pay off and I will get it a little cheaper somewhere, if not, then I'll dig deep and spend the bucks. I know that $400.00 isn't a serious chunk of change, but I am running on a certain budget and have other commitments right now. I'm also wondering, once the big day comes to buy the BT, if I should get the accessory kit, which I was told at HD is another $129.00. The reason I wouldn’t mind getting the kit is because I have a nephew who is willing to give me an older modeled Craftsman router (not a plunge type) that he has never used. I was hoping to be able to set the router up on the accessory table if I can get it to fit somehow properly. I haven't even seen the router yet, so I don't know what model it is. All I know is that my nephew has never used it, and that he lent it out once to one of his friends. It apparently comes with some router bits too. I'm not a cabinet maker by any means, but the fact that I've never used a router, I think would be fun to tinker with it and see what kind of trouble I can get into with it. I am realizing by reading this forum that I have soooooo much to learn about operating a table saw and many other tools. That said, I'd love to give it a try as I have an immense respect for wood and what you can do with it. The only things I've ever built that are worth mentioning is an interlocking stone deck to my house,(45' x 25')split level, and my 16' x 24' garage (which I built for my atv primarily) and built it from A to Z as well. I will no longer have the atv soon, so the garage will have a lot more room.....for tools mainly.
Anyway. I'm comfortable enough building rough, but I have never really worked on real nice things like tables and cabinets where finess and angles etc is required. To be honest, I'm not really sure if I have what it takes(smarts) to build those sorts of things. I'll start by building a respectable work bench in my garage, and stuff like that before I do anything. A work bench project should allow me to get familiar with the feel of the BT and perhaps even the router. Ok, I've rambled on long enough lol, sorry about that. If you have never met a guy who writes so much and says so little, you have now.
Later.

[Raymonator]

My interlocking deck and my garage.

[knimac]

A Router in the 3100

Note: If you buy the 3100, you get the accessory table (its the "filler" table with the hole for the router bit) but other needed router stuff is in the Accessory kit, which I think has a two miter slot table (about 8"wide?) dust bag, casters, hold down clamp for miter fence, additional throat plates, dust port for router fence I think, a plate to mount the router to, which attaches to the underside of the accessory table, and plastic insert rings that fill the hole around the router bit. (hope this makes sense). What you don't get is a clamping affair that mounts to the back of the accessory table which is required to keep the vibration down when using the router in the table. I don't use it so I'm not sure, but read this several times here. Apparently a member makes these clamps or others have said it is not difficult to make your own, but I get the impression that it is necessary if you plan to use the router under the 3100 table. Several posts have discussed making your own mounting plate for the router without buying the accesory kit. My suggestion would be try the router out in hand to get used to it and what it can do, and as you progress and decide it makes sense to have one table mounted, read and ask questions here. The folks here won't have any problem helping you spend your moneyon tools and the like, but what you will get is informed advice (not from me, I'm still a taker on their advice)