I bought the machine because my reliable, 10-year old Delta TS2000 has a nut that I cannot loosen to adjust the blade. I found the Skil in a nearby shopping club, and decided to go with it. I used it several times, even though I noticed that the miter track is somewhat unique, meaning no off the shelf accesories will work with it. The miter track has straight walls, not a "T" type.That would have worked fine with most accesories with fasteners that widen in the slot as zou tighten the screw; except, the track is too narrow, so those fasteners dont fit. The track is interrupted every 8 inches or so, forming a brief "t" which is useless for t-bolt type fastners. And there's the fact that the uninterrupted portion of the tracks is too narrow for the fasteners you get with the type of featherboard you can buy.
Another serious fault with the machine is the stand. It looks flimsy, and it is. I actually managed to work the machine onto my old delta base, and used it a few times that way. I had the Skil stand in a closet. And when you start the machine, it litterally leaps off the floor about 1/16" high, making it mandatory to clamp down any pieces that need accurate crosscutting.
One more issue. The miter tracks appear to be out of square with the sides and front of the table surface. I had established that the blade was square with the rip fence (flimsy-looking, though so far seeming to be accurate and steady), and I used it to rip some very accurate pieces. However, when I tried to crosscut, I discovered that the further the work moved along the blade, the further it got from the blade, on the right side of the blade. On the left side, it got closer with progress. I double checked, and since ripping was accurate, it could only mean that the slots are not at near perfect right angles with the front and back. And the miter gauge is really loose in the tracks. I tried to remedy this like I did with my Delta, by putting tape across the bottom and sides of the bar, but this ran into unsmoothed machined areas in the tracks, which removed the tape if you pushed hard enough to get the bar thru the cut.
One of the good things is that the machine has more power than my Delta (which I plan to re-commission). I could push pieces thru at a rate that would have threatened to make the delta stop cutting. Too bad. Also, you get some pretty good accesories, like the digital rip fence. But, the fence on my machine (which goes back tomorrow)has the wall on one side tilted, sort of like a pyramid, but less pronounceed, and with a flat top. The other side seemed to be truly upright. Good too is the outfeed support, maybe it's best feature. It also comes with support for side, which can be put on either side. If you put it on, you can move the bar that the rip fence rides on, so you increase ripping width capability. Maybe the machine you find will not have the egregious flaw of out-of-line miter tracks. Good luck Skil 3400-20 10-Inch Digital Table Saw With Stand - Woodworking - Table Saws'
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