Customer Reviews

DELTA TS200LS Shopmaster 10-Inch Portable Bench Saw with Legs

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I picked up the Delta TS200LS about 3 months ago from my local Lowe's. I like the Delta name and needed a table saw; I didn't have much money to spend. Solely because of that, I chose the Delta TS200LS. The miter gauge slot and blade insert are not standard and you will not be able to find generic upgrades for them. Once I decided to buy a new miter gauge, due to the aluminum cheapy included, I finally found out that this was not standard. After getting the chance to use a better Delta, I noticed that my previous wavy lines in my cuts weren't due to me using the equipment incorrectly; it was the equipment! I could never get a perfectly straight line, even on rip cuts with the fence. This may be a good saw for work site needs but if this is going to be set up in your home and you plan on using it more often than rarely, do yourself a favor and spend some extra money. With Lowe's gracious 90 day return policy, I just picked up a TS300 for $300 and THIS is a table saw! Perfect cuts each time and it doesn't feel like my table wants to vibrate away now.

Ok. Lets get something straight - this is an inexpensive little saw. If you want to do more than little projects, invest the money for a better saw. Having said that, yes the miter slots are smaller, and not as accurate as those on other Delta's. This saw has the same size miter slots as the TS200 series & TS220LS. The idea is, it's not meant for big jobs so a smaller miter gauge and slot are fine. Don't pan a saw, or cry "Sour Grapes" because you can't weigh yourself with a thermometer - it wasn't designed for that. The TS-300 (formerly 36-600) & other contractor / pro series saws have more heavy-duty miter gauges & slots at a more heavy duty price. In addition the fence is a little rickety. However, if you take the time to work with the adjustments and you can get it to do pretty well. I always measure to be safe (measure twice, cut once). Everyone knows the value of a table saw lies in its fence and miter gauge. Here you get what you pay for. The directions were very good and saw assembled in a little more than an hour. Make sure you take the time to check the set up. Out of the box my blade was not aligned with the table correctly, I found out the hard way- my error. I had to make an adjustment that I should have checked for and performed when I set up the saw. The blade splitter is a real pain (most are junk). Again you will need to take the time to properly adjust it [which I actually did]. However you still can't throw it back and have it stay out of the way for making adjustments or measurements. The anti-kickback clips have a tendency to catch on the material and throw off the feed and alignment. I took mine off, but for safety reasons I don't recommend that anyone else do this. The stand is fine, the weight & stability are very good. The saw is easily portable. The on/off switch is in a good / safe place. There's plenty of power for small projects. The blade that comes with it is fair for the homeowner. However, I recommend a thin kerf Freud blade - it will help a lot. I used my TS200LS to make a fish tank stand and build a Murphy bed cutting 3/4" birch plywood and 2x4's. The TS200 performed admirably. Now my wife wants me to build an entertainment center (time for a bigger better saw). Overall, this is a good little saw for the money and small projects. If that describes your needs than this is the saw for you, no doubts. For bigger jobs perhaps not. My father always said buy quality and you'll only cry once. Amazing how the older I get the smarter he gets. }:-) I hope this review helps.

I have to agree with some of the previous reviews. This is a good, portable table saw. I wanted an inexpensive and portable table saw to get my workshop started. The low price, light weight and included stand fitted my needs exactly.

I have used this saw to build some bookcases and to rip some nailers for a crown molding project, as well as some other smaller jobs. So far this little Delta has powered through everything with only the problems that would come from any other lightweight, portable saw. I did pick up a thin kerf Freud Diablo after-market blade. This saw and blade combo makes VERY SMOOTH cuts while the included blade is great for chewing through stock when a little wave doesn't matter.

This is not a cabinet saw with an ultra-accurate fence. Don't rely on the included rule. Get out your T-square and set the fence. Once the fence is set, I've found that it stays in place.

Yes,the mitre slots are smaller than standard and that is a pain in the backside but with a little creativity and some time at the bench grinder my after-market Bench Dog feather boards fit like a dream.

The table is small but the portability of the saw was important to me. I stopped at Sears and picked up two Craftsman roller stands and the small table is no longer an issue. The beauty is that all three pieces don't take up much space in my garage.

The saw is lightweight and has a tendency to wander on a smooth surface. A piece of plywood with some 2x4's attached in a square shape solves this problem. Set the stand legs inside the square and your body weight stops the wandering. Make sure that the plywood is long enough so you can stand on it while guiding your work piece through the saw. The plywood leans against a wall behind the rollers and saw and doesn't take up much space in my garage.

So there are is my opinion of this inexpensive, portable saw. My only complaint with the saw is the non-standard mitre slots (this is the reason that it didn't get 5 stars). The other complaints are inherent with all portable table saws.

If you need to make ultra-accurate cuts or power through a ton of hardwood every day, this is not the saw for you. If you do the occasional project and have minimal storage area, this is a great saw with a nice price tag.

The TS200LS falls far short of what you expect when you buy a tool with Delta's name on it.

It is an inexpensive saw, so the old axiom 'you get what you pay for' probably applies. But there are some things about this product which are just inexcusable, and prospective buyers should know about before buying one.

As mentioned by other reviewers, the miter T-slots in the table are non-standard. And, as another reviewer mentioned, you can modify after-market featherboards to fit the non-standard slots with a grinder, file, and about 15 minutes.

What I was surprised at was the response I got from Delta's tech support on this issue. They stated: "The slot is this specific size to prevent the use of the tenioning (sic) jig and other accessories generally used on larger saws. This helps extend the life of the motor that could be damaged by some of the accessories."

Huh? It would seem they could print a warning in the manual to that effect, and let the buyer beware. I mean, realistically, a slot-mounted featherboard is a SAFETY DEVICE that isn't going to put any drag on the motor. Clamp-mounted featherboards can be used, but they are nowhere near as safe. When I pointed this out to Delta Tech Support, they said: "If the fence design was different where the end would hook over a rail and the front wouldn't rise up, it would work. Unfortunately this is an inexpensive saw and the fence isn't made to put upward pressure on it. You can raise up on the fence after it is clamped".

Huh? If attaching featherboards to the fence is a problem, why does the manual have a picture showing the use of a featherboard clamped to a sacrificial fence which is screwed to the saw's fence?

It appears as though some of the stuff in the manual was intended for one of their other models.

For example, in the section on using Dado sets, they never mention the fact that the TS200LS is a short-arbor saw (arbor less than 1 3/8" in length), which puts some limitation on the dado sets that can be used. Nor does the manual tell what accessories (dado sets, table inserts, featherboards, etc.) are available for the TS200LS.

The manual shows a stacked Dado set (2 blades and 5 cutters), the use if which is not possible with the TS200LS (the manual says it can only handle a 1/2" wide dado).

The only short-arbor dado set I could find on Delta's website is their Model 36-514 6 1/2" Short Arbor Dado, which is an adjustable dado set.

The manual says "The Accessory Dado Head Set Table Insert ... must be used in place of the standard table insert". Unfortunately, the table insert shown in the manual is for a different model (the picture shows an insert with round ends ... the insert in the TS200LS has square ends), and I can't find an insert on their website that looks like it will fit the TS200LS.

For the price ($89.99 at a local hardware store) it is a passable saw ... it just doesn't live up to Delta's reputation.

I bought this delta saw about a year ago for an simple remodle job. I was just getting into woodworking and didnt have much money, so the delta looked pretty nice. after getting hime and putting it together if found that the stand was totaly unsatasfactory...so built my own out of heafty 4x4's and 3/4" plywood, this made a huge difference. Even after this it is STILL just a hundred dollar table saw, u get waht u pay for somewhat underpowered and very noisy but it got the job done. I would recomend it for anybody who desparatly needs a table saw but only has a hundred bucks...u get a decent saw. if u can, go bigger because this wont cut it if your doing anything serious. i would definatley considrer getting a new blade, preferably a thin kerf because of the power.

Just finished putting together my new Delta TS200LS Shopmaster 10" Portable Bench Saw. Putting it together was a pretty simple task and the instructions were clear enough. Time to put the saw together was just under an hour, total time with doing the recommended adjustments on the splitter and 90 degree and 45 degree stops was about an hour and a half. The saw did not seem to need a whole lot of adjustments out of the box, it was however a little off parralel. I gave it a good test spin by cutting up some old 2x4 pt and 2x6 pt then fed it some nasty old 4x4 pt that I had laying around. It certainly has the power to handle that type of material and the cuts were true and clean. This saw should be able to handle any small woodworking project you should have around the house with ease. Don't get me wrong I can't see throwing a full sheet of 1" plywood on it and hope it will cut it in half straight, this saw is just not for that after all its a portable saw with only a 26" table. All in all you can't beat the price and worthiness of this saw (shop around, I have seen this saw for as low as $99.00). My first project with my new saw is building a place to store it. I look forward to working with this saw on some other projects that the wife has lined up also.

The very first time I used my table saw a clamped the fence down and the fences clamping mechanism broke. It is made of an alloy that is very weak and is not repairable with a welder.

I too received the saw unaddjusted.. Ive been trying to get it straight but have failed so far. I also bought the 10inch miter saw also which was also unadjusted...Im not a professional woodworker so this kind of stuff is trying..I bought the Delta brand because I was under the impression it was a good old name.. Ive been trying to get the table saw into adjustment but it still is not parallel.. Not happy but will continue to try and get it right. I dont use it much so I dont play with it alot right now, but I plan on doing some more work in the future and hope its fixable..

The instruction manual says "The blade was adjusted parallel to the miter gauge slots at the factory." Mine wasn't. One side of the blade was 1/8 inch closer to the slot than the other (not just incaccurate, but apt to cause the blade to bind and cause a dangerous accident.) I discovered why it wasn't adjusted when I proceeded to follow the instructions for adjusting it myself: the range of adjustment wasn't sufficient to correct for the misalignment. Perhaps a factory worker discovered this and decided to ship it unadjusted anyway. Needing the saw immediately, I removed the motor assembly and remounted it with 5/16" washers serving as shims, and was then able to adjust it adequately. I wasn't expecting a precision tool at this low price, but this one wasn't even usable when I received it.

This is a great saw for the money. I started woodworking about 2 1/2 years ago. I didn't want to spend alot of money on a hobby I wasn't sure I would like. Since buying the saw I have filled our house with mission and shaker style furniure. The only problems I have with this saw are the fence (doesn't stay parallel to the blade when locking down), the arbor length (will only accept up to 1/2 inch stacked dado), the on/off switch (had to replace it with a better rocker switch in order to turn the saw off), and the size of the table top. All in all, it's a great little saw for someone who is just getting into woodworking and doesn't want to spend a lot of money.