Home >> Saws >> Table Saws
Home >> Saws
Home >> Construction Tools
JET 708777K JWSS-10SPF Supersaw 10-Inch Left Tilt 1-3/4 Horsepower Intermediate Saw with 30-Inch Xacta Fence, Sliding Table, and 2 Cast Iron Extension Wings, 115/230-Volt 1 Phase | List Price: $1,699.99
 |
|
Brand: Jet
Binding: Tools & Hardware
Features: - Fully enclosed hinged door cabinet
- Movable power switch lets you change switch placement to suit your needs
- All cast-iron table , sliding table, and extension wing
- Sliding table with large miter gauge with cam-lock clamp down and comfortable hand grips
- Micro adjustable fence with magnified cursor for precise ripping
It wasn't my idea of quality [Posted on 2004-06-08]
I have read many of the other reviews, but I don't share their satisfaction. I bought the saw about a year ago, I use it weekly. The fence has not been as stable, straight, or consistant as I would have hoped. The table only has one slot, so my tenoning jig doesn't work properly. I agree the sliding table is very heavy, it is also difficult to align and mine is not very flat. The sliding table is not worth the extra money. I would put a few hundred extra into a cabinet saw and pass on this one in the future.
Hybrid Saw Comparison [Posted on 2004-08-03]
This review will compare the Jet (Supersaw) & Dewalt (746) Hybrid table saws. I spent a lot of time researching this saw, as many people do, and am writing this because I never felt there was enough info out there. As an intro, I was upgrading this saw from the Dewalt portable table saw (744) which I used for a few years including through the construction of a rather large addition on our house. It was a good tool and I was always impressed by the performance of such a small saw. I cut lots of wood with that saw, including many full sheets of plywood and some hardwood. However, I wanted something more accurate and decided to upgrade.
I settled on wanting a hybrid saw pretty quick. I personally think the market will move in this direction. It was compact which is perfect for my small shop (garage) as well as 110v (even though I have 220v available). I also considered the contractor style, but it seemed they were actually larger when stored as the motor hangs off the back. Therefore it was just a choice between the Jet and Dewalt. I scoured the net reading everything I could find. I also searched the newsstand and purchased everything that compared the two saws. Most net articles were not very objective effectively saying "I bought this one and don't regret it - it's the best." And the printed reviews were just advertising. I spent way too much money on Fine Woodworking and American Woodworker magazines to have such superficial reviews. I didn't know how lacking they were at the time, but the reviews are just pretty pictures. Save your money and don't buy these as neither magazine gives a thorough or objective review. I suppose they are pressured into neutral reviews by the makers (advertisers), but that doesn't help us much and it sure makes for a waste of our money!
After much research, I finally settled on the Dewalt saw. I bought it at the local WoodCraft store and I'm glad I did (thanks guys) because I ultimately decided to return the Dewalt for the Jet. Both are pretty good saws, but have their advantages and disadvantages. Overall, I prefer the Jet for the reasons explained below.
Assembly: Both saws were packed well enough to ship and protect, but the Jet was packed better. The Jet manual was better than the Dewalt. It was better quality (paper, binding, etc) as well as clarity. When you assemble the saws, you see a HUGE difference in design style. The Jet is so simple to put together and can easily be done in an evening (few hours) even if you are pretty picky as I am. The Dewalt is a complex design and takes much (3 times) longer. It comes with tons of nuts and bolts, requires disassembly to install the sliding table, etc. It is clear here that Jet put much more thought into this aspect of the engineering. Dewalt really missed the boat on this one and needs to rework their design.
Fit & Finish: Again a HUGE difference with Jet being the clear winner. First impression is better and then as you dig deeper the Jet looks even better. When you look at the specifications, it appears they are about the same weight but that is misleading. I think the main table and trunion assembly on the Jet is quite a bit heavier than the Dewalt. Of course, once you add the 100lbs of nuts and bolts the Dewalt is more comparable. The surface finish (grind) is better (finer) on the Jet than the Dewalt. The Jet looks great, the Dewalt looks fair. The Jet table is also flatter than the Dewalt being about 0.007 inches out in one corner vs. the Dewalt being out 0.008 inches in many places (potato chipped). Both sliding table castings were of lesser quality than the main table. Both were slightly pitted and rusted, although the Jet was still finished better. The Jet table was flat within 0.005in and the Dewalt was flat within 0.017in. The better fit and finish is throughout the entire machine and my numbers here don't convey well enough how much better the Jet is than the Dewalt in this area.
Sliding Table: Again the Jet is a better design. The rollers appear better with 4 rows of balls per slide vs the Dewalt's two rows. Both tables flex if you push on the left edge, but the Dewalt flexes much more. It's not stiff at all. Jet made a mistake here by not incorporating another miter gauge slot in the table though. I think the issue is not just more machining operations, but more complex setup as there is a need to align the rollers to this slot.
Fence: I didn't have an opportunity to play with the Dewalt as much as I have played with the Jet. However, this is one area where the Dewalt clearly shines. I personally thought their rack and pinion design on the 744 was very clever and would have worked well scaled up. The new Dewalt fence clamp assembly (head) rides on two long parallel contact pads that run the width of the head parallel to the round front rail. These are located at about 10 & 2 o'clock from vertical (12) and are made of hard plastic. This allows the fence to ride on the round rail while keeping parallel to the blade. When you lock it in place, a cam clamps in two locations from the bottom (6 o'clock). It is stiff, stable and repeatable with a moment arm as wide as the clamp assembly. Their fence is pretty simple being a steel tube with an extruded aluminum face and I think Dewalt could have done better with it. The Jet fence is a different design entirely, and follows more traditional designs. The front rail on the Jet is great being both a structural piece as well as a guide. The clamp is a 3-point contact (T-style) with two sets of pads (softer plastic) on one side and a center mounted cast clamp in the center. There are a few problems with this design. First the stiffness of the fence is more directly proportional to the clamp pressure than the Dewalt (ie not dual cam). Second, the resulting moment arm is only half the width of the clamp head vs the Dewalt full width. The resulting fence stiffness is comparable between the two with Dewalt being slightly better (I didn't measure) as the Dewalt fence is not as stiff as the Jet extruded aluminum I think. Third is how the Jet clamp pulls down on the fence thereby providing a downward pressure on the rear floating slide. At first this seems like a great idea but in reality it is a big problem. The Jet fence locates repeatably within 0.001-0.002 inches front to back which is good. However if you flex the back side, it sticks out of position and won't center itself due to the friction (sticktion) between the rear plastic floating slide and rail. It sticks out of position between +0.010 and -0.005 inches depending on the direction you flex the fence. I tried many lubricants (oil, silicone, wax) but they didn't help much and in some cases made it worse. A relatively simple fix would be for Jet to replace the locating clamp with one that clamped with horizontal pressure instead of upward pressure. This would eliminate the rear stiction problem as there would be no downward pressure at the back of the fence. It would also stiffen the fence as more pressure would go to keeping it straight. Another small fix may be to flatten the plastic pads with a sanding block so that more surface area contacts the extruded rail. I called the service department to see if this was being pursued, but not many people have called in yet.
Miter Gauge: Dewalt wins here too as their miter gauge is great, being a copy of the Osborne I think. The Jet gauge is just junk in comparison. There are tons of parts, unlike the rest of the saw, and many of them are loose so if you remove it things will get lost. In addition, it isn't repeatable as they rely on the threads on the handles to locate the assembly rather than a shoulder or other locating boss. It can vary (rotate) in position as much as 0.028 inches across the width of the sliding table. This is less than 1 degree, but still significant. As if that isn't enough, even if you do take the time to find all the parts, install it and square it to the table, all the knobs get in the way of each other.
Mobile Base & Stability: The Jet is a more stable saw in most respects. Dewalt needs to rework their saw as it isn't stable. You really do need the stabilizing legs on the side of the saw to keep it from tipping over! Their mobile base is well built, but the sliding table makes it tippy. You have to locate the swivel caster to the side as they show on their web page because if located toward the front or back the saw tips over (or tries) when you push the swivel caster down.
Operation: Both are smooth and quiet but Jet wins here.
Dust Collection: I like the idea of Jet's enclosed cabinet, but it is unrealistic to expect everyone to have dust collection. The metal bottom (or the lower part of it) should be removable so dust falls to the floor as an option.
Guard: Jet's looks quite a bit better, but honestly I haven't used either. Dewalt's is exactly the same as on their portable 744 saw.
Summary: I wanted to like the Dewalt better but didn't. Both saws are disappointing in that they could have gotten is right. Jet is closer though I think, although it is always a matter of opinion.
Great Saw - So So Finish [Posted on 2004-09-23]
Received Jet's 30" Super Saw with Sliding Table and have used it for about three months. If you have any reservations of getting the Slider - GET IT! Money well spent and great for panel cuting and it is as smooth as can be! Dust collection works great and motor ripped through oak with no noticeable loss of power. The only reason this saw doesn't get a 5 from me is I was rather disappointed in the paint job. Had a chip or two when I got it (no big deal), but seems everything I bump into it, there is a new one! Geez, they should include a bottle of touch up paint with it!
Thanks to those who went before. . . [Posted on 2004-10-15]
My thanks to all of the earlier JET Supersaw owners who commented about dust collection, breaking belts and sloppy fences. JET must have listened and fine tuned their Supersaw. The 30" Supersaw that was delivered to me recently has a dust chute that exits from the bottom of the cabinet, a fence that locks in place reliably, and, hopefully, a blade lifting belt that will be less prone to breaking. Fit and finish is much nicer than the equivalent Dewalt.
I assembled the saw with a cast iron router table between the saw table and the right extention table. I mounted my Incra Jig Ultra with holes I tapped in the right extention table and use it both for the router and for performing precision rips.
I have added a small shop-built sled using the handle from the miter guage to lock it to the sliding table, and a piece of UHMW in the miter slot. I attached a left and right rule to either side of the kerf for measuring accurately. It works well when cutting small stuff to size.
Overall, the Supersaw meets all of my expectations.
Greg
Not bad but has problems [Posted on 2005-03-29]
I bought this saw about 4 months ago to replace an older contractor saw I had been using for 10 years.
Over all it's a pretty good saw except,
Dust collection or I should say WHAT dust collection. The built in system is a joke. It consists of small slots cut into the bottom of the cabinet, a pan screwed to the bottom of the cabinet and a 4" collector port pulling through those slots to the pan. The slots are too small and to few to be efficient. As a result the cabinet fills up with saw dust and you have to open the cabinet door and force it through the slots. It's really bad when you make a lot of dado cuts.
I cut two holes in the bottom of the cabinet to facilitate dust extraction. It's better but not great. I checked with Jet on the warranty issues with cutting those hales and it was no problem.
The sliding table is no more than a toy. After installing and aligning it I found that when you slide the table all the way back the rear of it sags and with you push it all the way forward the front of it sags. When it sags at the ends of travel the other end rises up. It's too small to be of any real use except for small work.
The miter gauge never remains in alignment. When I rip stock you of course I need to remove the miter gauge assemble. Every time I removed and replaced the miter gauge assembly I had to realign it to the saw blade.
I sold the sliding table on eBay, bought a new cast iron left wing from Jet and the Osborne miter gauge and have been much happier.
Like I said over al it's a good saw but I would recommend you buy the Supersaw with out the sliding table.
Click here for more details and discount information...
|
){kind=link}