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We may receive commission when you use our affiliate links. However, this does not impact our recommendations.
Tool: Jobsite Saw Pro
Manufacturer: SawStop
Price: $1400
SawStop released the first version of their portable table saw about five years ago. Packaging their flesh-sensing blade brake technology in a smaller, more affordable format made it more attainable for a larger portion of woodworkers and folks on jobsites. This upgraded version of their jobsite saw (the Jobsite Saw Pro) is a pretty nice piece of kit. Right out of the gate, the unboxing and assembly was one of the easiest portable table saw assemblies I’ve been a part of. Just six bolts (two for the wheels and four for the handles) and it was fully assembled. (That does mean it arrives in a giant box.)
The motor is rated at 1.5 HP continuous load and up to 4 HP max. I’m not exactly sure what that spec means, but I do know it’s plenty strong. I was cutting 8/4 ash, 4/4 maple, plywood, MDF and it performed admirably. With the 8/4 ash, I could tell the motor was working harder, but nothing a little adjusting of the feed rate wouldn’t fix.
The fence locks down solidly and was dialed in perfectly out of the box. The table expands to the right for 25 1/2″ rip capacity (and also unveils onboard storage). The table also has a full 8″ in front of the blade (versus 6″ on Sawstop’s regular jobsite saw). One thing that’s immediately noticeable is the blade height adjustment and bevel adjustment. The blade goes from completely retracted to full height with just one crank of the handle. The bevel of the blade is adjusted by squeezing the crank handle (which isn’t very intuitive if you’re used to other table saws, but makes a ton of sense especially with a portable saw and limited space). There’s a separate fine bevel adjustment to really dial in the angle.
Dust collection was surprisingly good with a shop vacuum, especially using the blade guard and below the blade ports in tandem. The blade guard is easy to remove and reinstall (so there’s no reason it shouldn’t be on the saw as much as possible), and the included riving knife stores onboard to swap for non-through cuts. The saw can also run an 8″ dado stack (though you’ll need a separate throat plate and brake cartridge). The saw handled cutting dadoes in plywood just fine, but I could tell I was taxing the motor trying to do a full 1/2″ deep, 13/16″ wide cut in hardwood. Again, adjusting the feed rate helped.
The mobile stand is solid and quickly folds down to wheel the saw around. At about 100 lbs., the saw and stand is well-balanced and can maneuver through a standard doorway. For the space challenged or portable woodworker, it’s one hell of a saw on its own. With the blade brake technology, it’s a no-brainer (if it’s in your budget).
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