Step 1: Speedread woodworking book to become instant woodwork guru.
The term small means different things to different people. But, in this case, it means I’m saying something with – as they say – my tongue in my cheek. Recently, I decided that the skill saw in my possession (as nice as it is) – was not up to the approaching cabinet project that I find on the honey-do list.
I looked at saws, and found that most were of the 1 inch tube fold-up frame variety. This seemed to be a little less “solid” than what I told myself would be the ideal firmness for a table saw. So, I went a little overboard in the opposite way of thinking – and purchased a contractor saw made by Delta Power Equipment company. Cost-wise, it was only a little more than the fold-up jobs, which was surprising.
Step 2: Morning of delivery – early coffee – watching frosted window.
The particular Delta model I purchased was quite heavy, so I let the truck deliver it to my temporary assembly site / work area.
Step 3: Clean a spot for the saw to land on.
So, I cleaned a spot on the floor, and waited for the magic hour. It was an early afternoon delivery, which I would find to be fortuitous.
Step 4: Jump for excitement after the delivery is made. Whew -hoo!
Every retirement-aged boy needs to do this when the new table saw arrives. It’s normal.
Step 5: Gulp when I notice weight printed on the side of the box.
I did say it was heavy. But, fortunately, it was packed very well, and all the pieces and parts were securely tucked inside of the box. I pulled some small parts out of the box, and then removed the topside styrofoam packing piece.
Step 6: Start the unpacking
Below the topside packing foam I found an assortment of things, including the large tubular frame in two sections, the deck top and motor housing, the T-Square, the side rails, handles, wheels, blade guard parts and pieces, and other things. The tubular steel of the base frame is all of two and a half inches wide, if not more.
Step 7: Read the assembly instructions
I found a “quick assembly” guide in the box. Those are always a treat to find, and my main go-to assembly procedure. I guess quick is a relative term. Between reading the guide, adjusting my video camera for the unboxing video, and being generally non-speedy about the whole affair, i managed to steal about five hours from old man time in order to have the finished result, shown in Step 8.
Probably, I could do the assembly in two or three hours the next time, but I’m not thinking that’ll ever be necessary. The spin-crank on the blade height and tilt controls works nice and smoothly:
Step 8: Finished saw is awesome!
I was impressed by the solid feel of the rubber wheels, and the saw moves around quite well on them. Of course there is a lock-down that stabilizes the table for actual usage. Everything lined up well, there were no bent pieces, and the supplied setup feeler gauges said my installation was up-to-snuff.
The table has a nice solid feel to it, and trying the shake it doesn’t faze it much. I think this was the best choice for me, but time will tell. Day two will have the first cuts, so stay tuned !
Figure 1
Woodworking Miscellany 