Contractor Saws

Contractor saws are a good blend of size and capacity

Contactor saws come with open, fixed legs. Since the motor hangs off the back, the whole unit is bulkier than a portable saw, but in most cases the table is larger, making it easier to cut plywood and sheet stock. Contractor saws are heavy and not very portable, usually requiring two people to move around. Available accessories make the top-rated SawStop Contractor Saw CNS175-SFA30 (*Est. $1,600) an exception. It's available with a four-legged mobile base (*Est. $165) for moving it around the workshop. Alternatively, one can purchase the CNS-JSC jobsite cart (*Est. $200), which bestows significantly increased mobility.

Aside from single-product reviews praising the SawStop, contractor saws haven't gotten much attention in reviews since 2005. Contractor saws are no longer the most popular budget type, since portable benchtop saws are cheaper and easier for one person to move around. Reviewers are enthusiastic, however, about the 1.75-horsepower SawStop Contractor Saw (*Est. $1,600), the only one to incorporate a sensor that stops the blade instantly to prevent cutting the user's flesh.

Each time the SawStop contractor saw is turned on, it verifies that all its safety features are working. An in-depth review at Fine Woodworking gives the SawStop top marks for fit and finish, smooth running and tool-free blade guard changes, noting that "all saws should have such well-designed guards." Woodworker's Journal also awards top ranking to the SawStop contractor saw, and Time magazine named the SawStop technology one of the best inventions of 2006.

Fine Homebuilding and Popular Woodworking also praise the SawStop Contractor model, for its superior safety and excellent dust collection, power and accuracy, while Popular Woodworking says it competes well with hybrid saws. It's also unusually quiet at 81 decibels. Popular Woodworking criticizes the need to unscrew the throat plate to adjust the riving knife and brake system.

For less than a third of the SawStop's price, the 1.75-horsepower Craftsman Professional 21833 contractor saw (*Est. $500) earns mostly praise from a few dozen owners reviewing it at Sears.com. Although Sears specifications don't verify whether Craftsman saws come with riving knives, owners say that this model does and that the whole blade guard assembly is easy to use. A single-product review at LumberJocks.com says the guard system is very much like that of the top-rated portable saw, the Bosch 4100-09 (*Est. $600). A review at ToolboxHero.com notes that the Craftsman 21833 is almost like a heavy hybrid saw; it weighs 265 pounds and, like the SawStop, has a cast-iron table. The Craftsman saw's primary drawback is that it can be tricky to assemble, according to reviews.

Even the budget-priced 3-horsepower Craftsman 21807 contractor saw (*Est. $300) comes equipped with a riving knife and quick-release blade guard. It's more like the typical contractor saw, weighing only 73 pounds. The light weight makes for more vibration, and the cast aluminum table is not as apt to stay flat, compared with the cast iron or granite used on heavier-duty contractor saws. The Craftsman 21807 table saw earns mostly positive reviews at Sears.com. A review at ToolboxHero.com notes that it's aimed at homeowners; the miter gauge slot isn't industry-standard, so aftermarket accessories liked by many woodworkers won't fit on this saw. For woodworking, the Craftsman 21833 is a better choice.