Just to add to what Tom has said here, you can certainly cut very accurate angles on a table saw but not usually with the standard miter gauge sold with the saw or even an after-market or third party gauge unless it is a fairly expensive one, in the range of a couple of hundred bucks or more. The saw table must have an accurate miter slot so the gauge doesn't wobble in it and the blade must be accurately adjusted to be truly parallel to the miter slot.
These are all fairly easily achieved provided the table saw is of reasonable quality. A miter sled built for particular angles will improve that even more and with good equipment the table saw can cut more accurately than most miter saws. For common uses it is probably worth while building dedicated sleds, say 45 degrees, 30 degrees, 22.5 degrees, 15 degrees, if you are into turning you may even wish to go for smaller angles so as to make up rings of mostly straight grain. Now I haven't actually done any of that, so far my miter saw generally suits my needs but some day when I don't need it any more I'll probably find time to make some sleds. As for ripping with a radial arm saw, certainly it can be done and even though I am something of a cowboy but that is just too much excitement for me. Dale leavens. ----- Original Message ----- From: Tom Hodges To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 9:13 PM Subject: RE: [SPAM]RE: [BlindHandyMan] Radial Arm Saw verses Sliding Compound Mitor Saw The reason there is less accuracy with a radial arm saw is the saw blade motor is suspended on a beam, which is turn is mounted to a vertical shaft which cranks up and down. The motor also slides back and forth on the beam. All these various support items for the saw itself contributes to less accuracy. If you compare this to a table saw, for instance, the motor just goes up and down and tilts. Much less movement than with a radial arm saw. Also, the miter saw should be more accurate for miters, I would think, than a table saw (unless you have a very expensive table saw). Tom _____ From: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Ralph Supernaw Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 8:59 PM To: blindhandyman@yahoogroups.com Subject: [SPAM]RE: [BlindHandyMan] Radial Arm Saw verses Sliding Compound Mitor Saw Would you please elaborate on what makes a radial arm saw less accurate than a sliding miter saw? One major reason I am considering these two saws is that I have an aweful time cutting accurate miters with my table saw. Ralph _____ From: blindhandyman@ <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> yahoogroups.com [mailto:blindhandyman@ <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Dale Leavens Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 7:13 PM To: blindhandyman@ <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> yahoogroups.com Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] Radial Arm Saw verses Sliding Compound Mitor Saw A sliding compound miter saw is a lot more accurate. If you already have a table saw which is also more accurate than a radial arm saw for ripping and a lot safer then about the only thing you will use a radial arm saw for is cross cutting. Now that some miter saws also have depth control for plowing out dados should you want this, you are pretty well down to crosscut capacity. For a fraction of the difference between cost of a high end miter saw and a decent radial arm saw you can buy the very best miter gauge for your table saw and there goes most of the remaining capacity advantage of a radial arm saw. Personally I believe radial arm saws to be relatively dangerous as well but this is a debate many would not agree with, sort of a subjective assessment. Hope this view is helpful. ----- Original Message ----- From: Ralph Supernaw To: blindhandyman@ <mailto:blindhandyman%40yahoogroups.com> yahoogroups.com Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 6:46 PM Subject: [BlindHandyMan] Radial Arm Saw verses Sliding Compound Mitor Saw Hi, I am contemplating my next saw purchase. I have a 10 inch table saw. It seems to me a radial arm saw would be superior to a sliding compound miter saw because of its greater capacity and flexibility. The sliding compound miter saw would likely be less expensive. What other pros and cons would you add? Ralph [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
