I enjoy looking at home-made equipment but am rarely tempted to build it myself. Most designs are too involved (who has that kind of time?) or so hack I would not want to use the finished machine. But Cosmas Bauer’s most recent table saw build has me thinking (videos below). Not that I need another portable table saw, but this one is so nicely done it’s hard not to want one, even though it makes more economic sense to buy a manufactured machine.
The portable saw is built around an old Bosch circular saw that was purchased used. Bauer lives in Germany so the circ saw has features that lend themselves to a table saw but would be difficult to find here—a riving knife and a dust collection port on the blade housing. He claims to have constructed the saw in a weekend for less than 100 Euros (about $115 USD).
Bauer’s machine has a nice looking fence and a simple but clever on/off switch. I like that he lightened the saw by cutting out the base—and making it resemble the roll cages found on some newer portable models. One of the few things I’d do differently is make the base from plywood rather than MDF, because plywood is lighter and stronger.
Worth thinking about: If the Consumer Products Safety Commission were to enact the proposed rule requiring the use of SawStop-like technology, what’s to stop folks from building portable saws such as these or companies from selling oversize “router tables” that just so happen to accept circular saws?
For more machines by Cosmas Bauer see:Hacking a Chop Saw
Cosmas’ Home-Made Cyclone
