|
Bridgewood Shaves $150 off the Price of a Premium Table Saw
We've commented a number of times on the bargains available on contractor table saws in today's market. The performance of these machines continues to improve, and a number of manufacturers now offer quality units with a premium rip fence for about $750, so it's a great time to be shopping for a table saw. But hold on! The market just got a little more competitive. Bridgewood has just introduced a left-tilt 1-1/2-hp contractor table saw with a Biesemeyer-style rip fence for less than $600! We've tested it, and it's a great buy. The TSC-10CL performed nicely in our shop, especially considering its price. The handles, which are cast metal instead of plastic, moved smoothly. The motor performed well in a variety of cutting applications. The switch is conveniently mounted on the left side of the fence rail, and forward enough to be easily accessible. The fence system moves smoothly and is accurate, plus it has aluminum faces on both sides that have a T-slot for attaching stops or fixtures. (While the T-slots in the fence are very handy, they seem milled for a metric bolt, so be aware of that necessity.) And Bridgewood even includes a 4" dust port for the underside of the saw. I did run into a few things worth mentioning that aren't a real surprise considering the low price. The saw included only one solid cast wing (which was dished .01" at the center); there's no wing or support table to the right of the blade. The drive belt supplied had a serious kink in it, though the machine's vibration was still within acceptable levels. The saw was shipped without a blade, which I consider a wise decision on price-driven saw models as the blade included is usually disposable. The overall fit and finish of the saw wasn't pristine, but was within the acceptable range. The fence system met my expectations very well, though I did have to add some masking tape behind the faces to adjust them to square with the tabletop. The scale on the fence is easily readable with the built-in magnifying lens, and is graduated in 1/16" increments. It was necessary to shim the fence's infeed bar with washers during assembly to raise the fence to an appropriate level, but this adjustment is covered in the assembly instructions and caused little problem. Overall, I rate the TSC-10CL as a great saw for the price. If you require a few more niceties, you'll have to look to the $750 models, but this saw isn't missing much. And if a left-tilt saw is important to you, this is the only one below the $740 level.
Back to the main tool review page Home |
||||||||
