Mastercraft Table Saw with Laser, 15 A
3.6
5
18
18
Well Used
I bought an older version of this table about 6 years ago now....I must admit it was a special days before Christmas sale...I got the table and stand for under $100.00....My hubby was thrilled with it....we have put that thing through so much and its still holding on...one of the legs on the stand did start to bend but he was using rather hard wood to cut at the time (hemlock)...It is in need of being replaced and I'm always looking in the flyers to see if we are lucky enough to get another Christmas special once again....We would buy it again in a heart beat...
May 13, 2013
Great Saw but NO service
If it is working , you are OK but if a part break...
TOO bad ...CanadianTire does not sell ANY parts
You have to do the Run around and Hop Jump to try to find the part number AND to get it
My opinion , I'd rather Buy somewhere where they have spare parts parts in hand
May 6, 2013
All depends what you want out of it
Where to begin with this saw. Well Ill start by saying that if you pick this saw up on sale its a decent deal, definitely better than some of the other "cheap" tablesaws out there (ryobi, skills, other MC, and lower end craftsmans ) But it does have its drawbacks.
First of all the blade insert plates are not thick enough to be flush to the table as well as being so thin and flimsy that your workpieces can push it down both of these issues skewing the angle of your cuts a few degrees off from 90deg. This is a very annoying problem but easily fixed by either making your own zero clearence inserts or reinforcing the stock ones. with these modifications I was instantly way happier with the results of my cuts.
My next issue with this saw is the fence system. The fence is just a simple cam clamp which is fine enough but on the far side of the table even when the fence is tightened as tight as posssible (adjustable by a nut in back) it still has wiggle room causing innacurate cuts. I was however able to solve this problem very simply. You know that plastic shelf liner stuff they sell to keep things from sliding around, I took an inch square piece of that and glued it to the rear fence clip and presto no movement whatsoever now. cost $1.00.
The mitre gauge is totally useless don't even bother it has almost 1/8" of play in the slot no accuracy at all. The slots are not standard dimensions either but they are straight and parallel to the blade so at least you have the option of making your own mitre guage and sleds. they could be closer to the blade though.
Don't trust the blade angle gauge on the saw untill you calibrate and measure it yourself mine was out by 3 degrees.
As another reviewer mentioned I would suggest beefing up your fence with some mdf or hardwood to improve accuracy.
If your buying this saw as a hobby saw for one off projects it will most likely serve you fine right out of the box. If your looking at this saw as a contractor or tradesman look elsewhere this saw will never handle commercial use its body is made of cheap plastic and will inevitably break under those worksite conditions (Go for the dewalt you wont regret it)
If you buy this saw for fine woodworking/cabinetry you can make do but you will probably be very disappointed in the long run. If you don't mind making a ton of adjustments, checking angles and measurement for most cuts and making some modifications you can squeeze out quite a bit of accuracy from this saw but its time consuming and just plain annoying but it can get the job done if its all you can afford. I bought this saw to just have a table saw until I can afford a delta unisaw for my first woodshop.
One thing I have to say is I'm happy with the motor for how cheap a saw this is. I have been re-sawing 2x6 into 1x6 on this saw and its handled everything if thrown at it I am quite impressed after the other issues I've dealt with on this saw. It also handles sheet goods quite well when used with an infeed and outfeed roller stand. The extension arms work well enough for me. The stock blade is no freud or dewalt but its not the worst ive seen either but as in all saws replace it as soon as possible for something better.
All in all its not the best saw or the worst it just depends on how you want to use it and how much patience you have, If your like me and just cant afford a really good saw in the near future but need something for fine woodworking you can make it work but it takes time and patience. For a home DIYer this saw should suit you fine for most projects as you will not need the level of accuracy as fine woodworkers or cabinetmakers so this would be a great saw for you that wont break the budget.
May 6, 2013
Probably not the saw for you
I bought this saw after trying and being satisfied with another smaller Mastercraft table saw my father had purchased. I was attracted by this saw's wider rip capacity and more solid table.
What I was looking for was a saw that I could occasionally use to make shelves, bookcases, picture frames, and occasional mitring of framing lumbar.
For starters, the mitre gauge is flimsy and too far away from the blade to ever use it by itself. Similarly, the blade is so close to the front of the table that the already flimsy mitre guage hangs half way out when you are starting your cuts. You can work around this by creating your own mitring sleds but if you are the type of end user that plans on making your own sleds then you probably wouldn't consider a low end saw like this anyway.
I was pleased that many things could be adjusted on the table to fine tune it's accuracy but it takes a lot of tinkering to get things perfect (for all adjustments you just loosen a screw, reposition something, and carefully tighten the screw while making slight adjustments as you tighten).
The laser is useless so don't even consider using it.
The extension arms are pretty flimsy and I therefore wouldn't recommend attaching the rip fence to them. They're probably ok for supporting the non-rip fence side of the material you are cutting though.
All things considered, this saw is probably overkill for the casual user and has too many shortfalls for the more advanced user that is interested in a saw this size.
March 31, 2013
Great for the money
I bought this saw on sale about a month ago for $159. Consdiering that this is not a top-of-the-line saw it is well worth the money.
The fense is durable, the extensions are a nice bonus. The guard can be easliy remove and reattached easily.
It motor runs smoothly with very little vibration. The stand is very strong and secure.
Basically I am very happy with the saw.
March 22, 2013
Has worked well until recently
I purchased this saw about 2 years ago as my first table saw. It has worked very well up until recently. The gears used to raise and lower the blade are made of plastic and have pretty much seized. It is very time consuming and hard on the hand to lower and raise the blade as each turn of the crank seems to barely move the blade. I'm not sure if anyone else has this problem or it's just my saw. I'm diligent about cleaning out the sawdust after each use and take very good care of my tools. If this problem is just with me, then fine, but if it's a wide spread problem, then I'd like to bring it to Canadian Tire's attention.
August 27, 2012
a good saw
I bought mine on sale for about $150 back in Sept. 2010. Since then I've used it a lot and it's done well for me. I have a small garage shop so I need a smaller saw like this that is easy to move around. The fence, like on all saws in this class, is pretty flimsy. I attached 3/4" MDF on both sides and that greatly improved it. (photo) The saw is accurate enough for most tasks but if you need absolute precision you'll have to buy a much more expensive saw. I never use the laser. The biggest thing that I don't like about the saw is that there is not much table in front of the blade. Sometimes that makes it difficult to line up larger pieces of wood.
May 26, 2012
improvements made on new products
this went on sale about 6 weeks ago and i read these reviews before deciding to look at it in store. the reviews had 2 things in common amongst all of them, the fence was cheap and forced the user to measure front and back to line up the fence straight and the other was the mitre was sloppy in the trench which made it inacurate. i wasnt going to buy this but i decided to take a look at the instore display and at the time it was true. i compared it to the display of the dewalt table saw for $500 and discovered the fence and mitre to be in the same condition as this model. i decide to buy it anyway thinking that must be the norm with table saws and after i set it up discovered that the fence was alot sturdier than the display model and the mitre was not sloppy at all in the trench. i followed the instructions and check the blade adjustments and laser adjustments and they didn't need to be adjusted at all this unit was pre-setup at the factory even the laser was accurate. the laser is helpful with aligning the blade to the line on large materials being cut which is convenient. overall this is a really good tablesaw and they have improved on the unit since the previous reviews were written.
February 8, 2012
Pretty good for a cheap saw
I've had this saw for just over a year. I got it on sale for $169. You can't beat it for the price, as long as you're willing to put up with a few quirks, and have a little more patience with it than you'd need for a more expensive saw.
The blade is decent for general purpose use. Motor has lots of power. The stand is sturdy and stable. The plastic throat plate is a little flimsy. The miter gauge is junk. Don't expect a good rip fence like on an expensive saw -- you need to measure front and back every time you move it. And what's with the laser ON THE BLADE GUARD? I laughed when I saw it and then threw mine away.
Check out Jan Eakes' site to tweak it for better performance, and you'll find it quite useable. I made a panel to go between the saw and the stand with a dust port for my shopvac, and it works well. I've also made a miter sled to do away with the cheap miter gauge. With a nice Freud melamine blade, I've had very good results. Eventually, I'll make a zero-clearance throat plate for it, too.
Summary - for an inexpensive saw, it's quite useable if you're willing to tinker a little. Overall, I'm satisfied with my purchase.
July 29, 2011
Cheap saw, useless mitre guide, shaky fence
I bought this saw 3 years ago. It was my first table saw. It was better than the hand saw and skill saw I had.
I have put Diablo (red blade) on it, $100 at HD.
The blade that comes with it is not suitable for cutting knotty, 3/4 plywood.
Mitre guide broke in the first month. I used the saw mostly for ripping 2x4s so I did not mind.
You cannot rip 3.5" stock with it. The engine says 3HP on it but I think it is more like 1 1/2HP, maybe 2HP machine. If you try to cut 2x4 along 3.5" side, you'll get kickback. You have to be very careful not to get one.
The biggest beef I have is that the table is small and the whole saw tips over when cutting large pieces. The T-slots are poorly manufactured. The fence is barely usable. You have to constantly check front and back on every cut. Recently, I fixed their mitre guide by putting long plank of oak hardwood on it.
It looked ok until I put it in the T-slot. The T-slot does not fit the guide tight, it is shaky so it is very hard to use this thing.
The only thing "good" in this saw is the engine.
If you get a good blade for it, build an outfeed table for it, the machine is usable for light hobby type of work. Cut a stud or two. But this is not a saw I would recommend for cutting larger sheets of plywood.
Overall, I would NOT recommend you buy this saw, unless you want to rebuild it from ground up by building cabinet and table top for it.
I'm shopping for a new saw. BusyBee, grizzly, king, general all have good saws but they cost 5-10 more than this saw.
March 23, 2011
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- Mastercraft Table Saw with Laser, 15 A reviews (page 2)
