Customer Reviews

Powermatic 1791271K Model 64 Artisan 10-Inch Left Tilt 1-1/2 Horsepower Contractor Saw with 50-Inch Accu-Fence, Router Lift, 2 Cast Iron Extension Wings, Table Board, and Legs, 115/230-Volt 1 Phase

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

 

 

When I started looking for a table saw, I was like most people...confused. With all the different choices on the market coupled with the fear of not buying enough table saw or buying too much table saw, I had a challenging problem to work out.

After speaking with reviewing many woodworking sources (shop owners, magazines, friends), I finally purchased this Powermatic Table Saw. Powermatic (now owned by Jet Power Tools) is one of the best table saw manufactures hands down. They take time developing and engineering their machinery to perform ideal for any situation and last you for the long haul.

This might be an expensive toy, but if you are going to spend the money on the right tool, spend it on this one. The saw overall is first-rate. The blade height adjustment and angle stops are exact and reliable. The fence system is dependable. It is steady and accurate. This fence system comes with a 50" extension table to help support large sheets of plywood and other large cuts. The router lift is reliable, precise and easy to use. Finally, if you have "little ones" running around, your wife will be happy to know it comes with a lock on the power switch.

Suggestions: Take your time putting it together. It is a fantastic saw and you will appreciate it more when you make it as precise as possible. The factory does a great job with all measurements and pre-assembly work. YOUR ARE NOT GOING TO BE DISAPPOINTED WITH THIS SAW. IT MIGHT BE OVERKILL INITIALLY, BUT THIS SAW WILL GROW WITH YOU.

I purchased this saw assuming that being a Powermatic it would be good quality and well made.The table is ground so poorly the out of flatness is measurable with tape measure.The rails that the fence rides on are bowed 3/16 and 1/8 inch new ones are supposedly on the way.Lots of the hardware was missing.Large burrs and poor machining on all theoretically flat surfaces.
Calls to the tech line have resulted in inconsistent specs on how flat the
table should be with specs varying from .015 "(no chance its that flat) to
.036"that is slightly more than1/32"and yes it is at least that warped.Grizzly and Woodtech can hold tighter tolerances according to the magazines.I strongly recomend against this product.Wish I had saved 4 or 5 hundred bucks and purchased someone elses table saw kit.
The router lift is awesomely well made and works perfecly Jessem and their tech line I rate very highly

The saw shipped in a timely manner and though I had a one problem with it, Amazon took care of it promptly and made it quite stress free.

The saw itself is well built, has a good manual, and runs very well. Produces very clean cuts and requires very little recalibration once it is set up. I like the fence much more than the Delta/Biesmeyer setup personally. I ran this saw on 110 for a while and wished it was a bit stronger. I then wired to 220 and have been thrilled with it's performance.

The Router Lift works well and has a nice precise mechanism. The router fence isn't great but for most of what I've done (which arguably is not typical), the fence for the table saw works fine for the router lift.

Dust collection for the router lift is limited to above the table only. You really need an enclosure below with a dust port to properly collect dust.

I don't have a workbench yet and use the extension table for an assembly table often. It's not really made for that but I wish it was tougher so it could handle heavy clamping and such.

The one thing I hadn't considered when I bought this saw was dust collection. If you don't have a good dust collector, you might have better with a cabinet saw (if you can afford it). My shop vac had little effect on the dust generated from this table saw.

I have now been fighting and despising this saw for years. See my last review '04. I have received two fence rail sets from the manufacturer, they have all been as bent as the ones furnished with the machine. I have been told by Powermatic's tech line that I would not notice the lack of flatness of the table, I do notice it. I have replaced the belt with a link belt and tuned the saw so it was vibration free and cutting accurately to .006". by the next morning things had shifted and I had to reset the fence. A Forrest blade only served to highlight the inacuracies of the saw. I plan on either reinforcing the trunnion,reinforcing the stand, reengineering the mobile base as well as the fence, and surface grinding the table, or selling the unit. I would strongly suggest purchasing a different saw from this one. The precision afforded by this saw can be duplicated by a mid priced portable. The router lift is very nice and works well.

This saw is a perfect fit for most shop enthusiasts. If you are planning on building a lot of furniture out of hard woods and cutting thick stock, I would probably upgrade to a saw with a bigger motor. For my purpose the saw has been excellent. I received it within three weeks of ordering the saw. It was a little intimidating seeing all the boxes that it came in. However, after about five hours with my dad, we had the saw put together and fine tuned. I was amazed at how precise the saw started. We made a few adjustments to get things square, which was surprisingly easy. It was very helpful having a second person help put the saw together. I would probably purchase a mobile base with the saw as it is in excess of 400 pounds and will not move very easily.

I've had my Powermatic 64 for three years of trouble free service. My saw arrived in fine shape, no damaged fences, no warped wings, fine shape. I can understand disappointment when there are bloated expectations; this is not a fine furniture maker's cabinet saw. Those cost hundreds or thousands more, weigh more and are typically immobile.

That being said, I have made furniture with this saw and it has performed admirably.

Great saw! A wood workers dream.

My only complaint is that they shiped each on the seven pieces individualy. Im still waiting on the table board to make it complete. I orgionaly ordered the entire kit on April 2nd and today being April 21st. I might have it all done. If at all possible ignore the major freight lines and have it shiped UPS or FedEx im sure it would be fast and more reliable. Good Luck!