Customer Reviews

JET JWTS-10CW2-PFX / 708305GK 10-Inch Table Saw with Two Cast Iron Wings & 52-Inch Homeshop Xacta Fence

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Assembly took me about 10 patient hrs; there are a lot of parts. Instructions were adequate but generic and required a bit of reading-between-the-lines. Attachment of cast-iron wings is best done before setting saw upright. Close attention must be paid to sequence discrepancies between generic fence instructions and those for Exacta fence. If you plan to get a mobile base [and you probably should]attach it early on. Operational instructions are virtually non-existent; if this is your first experience with a table saw you will need another source for same. The saw appears very well made and substantial . Once assembled the saw works very smoothly - attention to tolerances is apparent. Cuts are true. The fence adjusts easily, was easily calibrated and so far is dead on. The miter guage is adequate but I will probably upgrade it in the not too distant future. It needs its own 20 amp circuit or preferably wire for 220. With the $50 rebate, no taxes and shipping of only $4.95 it is a lot of saw for the money. It arrived within a week. If assembly was less involved and more care put into the instructions I would give it 4.5 stars in the contractor saw class.

My last table saw (a Craftsman contractor's model) was about 35 years old when I sold it to a friend. The person in the distant past who put it together did not record how long it took, but I bet it was pretty close to the 4-5 hours I spent on this Jet. I seem to be an exception to the rule, since I found the instructions clear, and the procedure simple enough. Drilling out the two holes for the fence was a little surprising, but, think about it, what kind of person buys an unassembled table saw? Someone not intimidated by drilling a couple of holes, that's who.

Forgetting the half-day putting it together, the last year (almost) has been great. Compared to the Old Dog, the fence is a dream, the blade adjusters are smooth and easy, and the saw has plenty of power (more on this later). The only thing I wish I had done was calculate the total size of a saw with a 52" fence before I bought it. I would seriously consider the 30" fence if I had it to do over again. This thing, even pushed to the side on its mobile base, totally dominates my shop.

As for the power thing, I rewired the saw for 230 volts, a project which took about 30 minutes, including replacing the power cord with one long enough to reach my 230VAC outlet. It bogs down less often and chews happily through maple. I've cut some ebony with it, too, with no problems. I heartily recommend this modification. The upgrade procedure is described in the manual, but not too clearly. If you aren't comfortable around electricity it's probably worth it to have an electrician do this.

I have only a few minor quibbles. The dust collector port on the bottom doesn't do much good with the honking big hole in the back of the saw. Dust collects in the gap between the fence and the saw table and needs to be swept out periodically. The marker line on the little plastic cut width indicator could be easier to read. I like to on-off switch on my old Craftsman better since I could switch off the saw with my hip -- something that sometimes happened by accident -- and remove the switch to make it hard for my children to play with the saw.

For what it's worth, I ordered this saw from Tool Crib of the North, and their service was great. I have a couple of special requirements for delivery, and they worked with their shipper to get the right truck with the right gear to deliver the saw directly into my garage. Having heard horror stories (from my neighbor, for one) about trucks showing up expecting a loading dock and leaving heavy tools at the curb (!), i was pleasantly surprised.

I now have two Delta tools -- a jointer and a planer -- and two from Jet -- a table saw and a band saw. I can detect no quality differences between the two manufacturers. Actually, I hate, loathe and despise my Delta jointer, so I make it 2-1, Jet.

For my home shop, this saw with the 30" fence would be just about perfect.

I was a little aprehensive in purchasing this saw after seeing some of the negative reviews listed on Amozon.com, but I also subscribe to two woodworking magazines and their review of the Jet saws indicated otherwise. I found the saw to be a great value for what you get. The saw took a friend and myself 3 hours to assemble and align. The saw shipped almost dead perfect on its 0 and 45 degree stops. The 52" Xacta fence was a little difficult to install but with diligence it leveled perfectly to the cast iron top. The fence is infinitely adjustable and allows for adjustments due to wear. My only complaint is the finish of the parts. Some of the surfaces had burrs or rough edges that were not sanded down or cut square. I had to file some edges to get pieces to align properly. With the cast iron extensions and Biesemeyer type fence, it is a more stable machine and better value than the Delta.

First, this is a great saw. It's well built, and cuts like a charm. The X-acta fence especially is fantastic, and the two cast iron wings plus extension table create a large flat cutting surface. But, there are some quirks.

First off, the instructions are not the best. Some details are omitted, and it's not always clear what to do or how to do it. For example, one instruction says to line up the arbor and motor pulleys with an "accurate" straight edge. Easy to say, but when the pulleys are easily 18" apart and have only a small surface area to work with, it's almost impossible to line them up accurately. Read the instructions carefully, look at the pictures (which are not always helpful), study the schematic, and lastly use some common sense. All told, it took me about 5 hours to assemble, but I took it slow.

Secondly, there are a few design quirks. None of these are fatal flaws, and they are more annoying than anything. For example, with the X-acta fence, you need to drill out the threaded holes on the front of the saw table that are used to secure a standard Jet fence. Why not just provide two sets of holes? (I have a feeling that this "special edition" was a blend of some existing components and they didn't bother -- perhaps for cost reasons -- to modify the design of one or more components. In other words, it was simpler to modify the assembly instructions.)

Bottom line is this is a great saw for the money, and if you are at least semi-mechanically inclined, you'll easily get past the quirks.

Delivery was very prompt.

I got this saw sinse I like the Biesemeyer type fences and it is a great package for the price. The Dewalt may have some better features, but this package will be enough (with a good blade- try the Forrest ww2)for nearly everyone. Setup is pretty straightforward as long as you trust the holes and not the manual for fence rail installation. I have used this saw for lots of rips of pine plank paneling and have no complaints. The saw runs pretty quietly and cuts well. The fence is very nice and rock solid. The cast iron wings and extension table are worth a couple hundred bucks, so great bang for the buck. At times I have thought that the Dewalt is nicer, but by the time it is set up with the 52" fence, cast wings, and extension table you should just buy a true cabinet saw... Except for the fact that [the shipper] played hockey with my fence and lost some parts, I am very pleased with this saw. Jet replaced the parts BUT I wasn't thrilled with waiting 2 weeks to finish setting up the saw. If you are on a budget and want a nice saw for the money, you won't go wrong here. Spend the extra dollars on a good blade, a dust collector, and some nice wood, and enjoy.

ALTHOUGH I FIND THE SAW TO BE AN EXCELLENT VALUE, THE 52" HOMESHOP EXACTA FENCE LEAVES MUCH TO BE DESIRED. PACKAGING IS MARGINAL AT BEST, AND THE GUIDE RAIL ARRIVED SCRATCHED. THE MELAMINE TABLE ARRIVED DAMAGED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE INSTRUCTIONS FOR MOUNTING THE FENCE ARE WRONG, AND IF FOLLOWED EXACTLY THE FENCE CANNOT BE LEVELED. A CALL TO JET TECH SERVICE REVEALED THAT THEIR PEOPLE ARE POORLY TRAINED AND A RECOMMENDATION THAT WAS CLEARLY WRONG WAS GIVEN TO ME. I WAS LEFT TO MY OWN DEVICES TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM. THE PRESSURE SENSITIVE NYLON PADS ON THE FRICTION POINTS OF THE FENCE DO NOT ADHERE WELL. THEY ARE A POOR WAY TO DO THE JOB ON A SAW COSTING THIS MUCH. THEY CAUSE THE FENCE TO CREEP AND LOSE ALL ACCURACY. I PROBABLY WILL NOT BUY ANOTHER JET TOOL UNTIL I AM CONVINCED THAT JET IS SERIOUS ABOUT ENGINEERING A QUALITY PRODUCT.

I love this saw. I looked at the Delta and Grizzly models, but the features provided for the price caused me to sway more towards this model. It's solidly built and a pleasure to work with. The only complaint I have is with the assembly instructions provided. They can be very difficult to follow during some of the set-up steps and there were many instances where the part being referenced during assembly was incorrect. Seems to me Jet needs to hire some better educated technical writers. I was also missing several of the nuts and bolts needed to install the fence, but one call to Jet had them to me via 2nd day air w/o any questions. It would have been nice to include alignment steps in the box as well, but this was not a major setback. Once aligned it can split a hair without any problems. If you're considering Delta, but are on a limited budget, this is your best bet.

The saw arrived in decent shape although the fence rail was dented on one end and scratched in several places. Jet offered to send me a new one but I banged it out and asked for some matching Jet paint. The fence had a bad weld and needed to be replaced since it would not lock down. Jet sent me another fence but it was the Commercial Xacta model and would not fit my saw. They promptly sent me the right one.

The instructions were not particularly good and when I called, the Jet tech told me to ignore certain portions which I had already decided was the way to go. It did not take too long to set up and adjust/tune, roughly a day but I was not rushing. The necessary parts and hardware were enclosed although I had to purchase several additional bolts and nuts for attaching the fence rails. The extension table split when I was screwing on the extension legs and so they sent me another one of those as well.

As expected, the saw takes up a lot of space but it runs great: powerful, smooth and quiet. Although the blade that came with it was okay for general cutting, you will need a better blade for fine work.

I was very pleasantly surprised at how responsive Jet customer service was regarding the saw and questions I had on two other Jet products I bought which were "good to go" upon arrival. It is hard to get too upset with Jet since they go out of their way to make you happy but it would be better for Jet and their customers if the equipment did not need to be made right after receipt. Get it right the first time! Regardless, I will definitely buy Jet products again.

I would give it 5 stars now that it is fixed but would have only given 3 stars (for the problems encountered) but the great Jet customer service pulled it up to 4 stars.

I've had my Jet Homeshop for several months now, and after reading some of the scathing reviews, I felt compelled to write my own. This is a very nice saw. Delivery uneventful, and all parts were included, intact and unscathed. No claims to FedX. Assembly was a little tricky, but not a problem if you've got an afternoon. The instructions are confusing, but with a little common sense and laying the nuts&bolts out on your bench, the saw goes together nicely. The ONLY problem I had was when I had to drill two holes thru one of the extension table leg's mounting bracket to secure the fence rail properly.
The fence is the easiest I have ever used. It cannot bind on the rail and it's never slipped, even ripping a full sheet of 3/4 ply. It's very easy to adjust, though I might recommend some lok-tite on the adjusting screws one you've got it perfect. The power switch requires a little effort to turn on, which is as it should be, and powering off is just a quick fist to the big red button. The arbor or motor has a braking action too, so you don't have to wait too long for the blade to stop spinning if you need to hold the wood there. Good action for raising and lowering the blade. It doesn't take too many turns to drop it completely out of the way which is good if you're like me and have to use the saw as an assembly table too. The bevel adjustment to the blade is precise and locks too. The table insert that the saw ships with leaves about 1/4" on either side of the blade, so get some inserts that you can custom fit. Jet makes some specifically for this saw and, in my opinion, ought to ship it with a half dozen or so. But this is a very nice saw. Highly satisfied.

After reading all of the reviews on this saw I was really reluctant to buy it. But then I figured, you always hear more about bad experiences, how many GOOD experiences are there? Well I had a good experience.
I had to purchase the saw from Tool crib due to my shipping needs. I needed a liftgate truck ($25 aint bad for shipping 350 lbs.!) I ordered the saw on Friday morning, Tuesday I got a call from FedEx saying they would like to deliver it "TODAY"! Yes folks, that is 3 working days (barely). The truck got there just when they said he would. Much bigger truck than I imagined. It came in 5 boxes on a pallet. Most of the boxes were all but destroyed so I expected problems from the start. After we got it in the garage I noted on the bill of laiding that the boxes were beat up.
I unpacked the boxes, the extension table had some big nicks in the top (bummer). Everything else was fine! I called Tool crib and they are sending me out a new table and I get to keep the old nicked one!
When I started to assemble this sucker I was expecting all kinds of trouble. I dont know what all the other reviewers were talking about. Directions were adequate, (photos were very poor tho). I got everything put together and lined up with minimal problems.
**TIP** Have a rubber mallet ready for when you align your cast iron ext. tables. Very helpful, tighten them almost all the way and give em a couple whacks. You can barely see the seam! NICE
The instructions called for you drill out two treaded holes in the front of the saw. I didnt and everything went together fine. I dont see any problems yet (knock on wood).
All in all it is a very nice saw, beefier stand and body than the Delta. It is a heavy sucker so get a moble base (harborfreight $25 bux/same as the Delta) I would buy this saw again, the customer service alone made it worth any problems I encountered.
Happy sawing!