Free RA-200 in Seattle

[Whaler]

After reading the recall on this saw I won't use it again. The $75.00 they offer to strip the saw down and return the motor isn't worth the time or effort. It has performed flawlessly since I bought it new in 1989, I'll miss it.

If you have a use for it drop me an e-mail. It is free with the understanding that it may not be safe to operate, otherwise it goes to the dump. Pick up only in the North Seattle area.

[os1kne]

After reading the recall on this saw I won't use it again. The $75.00 they offer to strip the saw down and return the motor isn't worth the time or effort. It has performed flawlessly since I bought it new in 1989, I'll miss it.

My dad has had one for about the same length of time and feels the same way. He has always loved that little RAS and was practically heartbroken when I gave him the recall info. He bought a floor model for $100, 15+ years ago, and has regarded as the best $100 he's ever spent. Within a couple of days, he called me to tell me that he was on his way to HD to get a NEW Ryobi RAS - when I informed him that Ryobi doesn't make one anymore, he asked the question - "Well who else makes a 8 1/2 inch RAS? I'll go with another brand." When I told him that there aren't many RAS's on the market, and the ones that are still available are 10+ inches and $500+ he was even more disappointed - "I really don't need a BIGGER saw, a 10inch saw can't do much that I can't do with my 8 1/2." When I explained that the RAS has lost favor and SCMS's have gained popularity and most buyers/manufacturers have been heading in that direction, I got the response "you can't make a rip cut with a miter saw, you can't dado with a miter saw". (I doubt that he's made many rip cuts with his.) I suggested a table saw (he's always disliked them), and got the response "I can't stick a table saw against the wall like my RAS, you need to be able to walk around a table saw". He's frustrated, if Ryobi said that it would cost him $200 to retrofit/reinforce the saw so that he wouldn't have to worry about it falling apart and chopping him up, he'd probably pay it.

Shortly after he got his RAS, he welded a base for it - I'm sure that he was hoping that he could just yank his old saw out and drop a new one in (not unlike some people on this forum have done when their BT3 motor has died.) He's build 2 30'x40' garages, a deck, and a ton of little stuff using that RA200 (he still thinks that it's the best $ he's ever spent). I think that he'll be watching the papers for an old DeWalt or Craftsman RAS. It looked like Ryobi's reputation was improving, this will definitely hurt their reputation for a while (issuing a statment that says that you built a line of tools that fall apart and chop off fingers doesn't inspire confidence.)