180 The Ryobi BT-3000 Precision Benchtop Cutting System
Description
This article is from the Woodworking FAQ Collection 4, by multiple authors.
180 The Ryobi BT-3000 Precision Benchtop Cutting System
The Ryobi BT-3000 Precision Benchtop Cutting System is a lightweight
(75 lb) 10" benchtop table saw, usually sold with a stand. It has a
110v/13 amp universal motor (claimed as 2 hp, although according to
Roche's motor FAQ, 13 amps corresponds to ~1.44 hp) mounted within the
saw's case, connected to the arbor by a toothed belt. It is switched
by a magnetic switch with a plastic lock plate (can't turn on without
it); the ON switch is recessed, and the OFF switch is exposed. The
arbor rotates at 5500 rpm. Its rip fence is a T-square type, locking
both front and back. It has a sliding table for crosscuts, and an
"accessory table" to which a router can be mounted ($70 for kit).
These movable tables and the central table are all aluminum. Both the
sliding table and the accessory table are mounted on a pair of
extruded aluminum rails, which can be shifted to give support to one
side or another. The tables easily detach and reattach where you need
them. The blade is housed in such a way that there is a strong
positive air flow to a dust bag (optional), for which there is an
outlet in back (which can also be used with a shop vac or dust
collector).
The saw comes with a Freud 36-tooth thin-kerf flat-top carbide blade
intended as a combination blade, identical (according to Freud) to the
TK406 except for the number of teeth (the TK406 has 60, which is too
many for ripping) and some extra slots in the body of the blade (like
on Freud's deck blade -- they presumably allow for expansion under
heavy cutting loads). Freud prefers a 24-tooth for ripping and a
60-tooth for all else, but 36 is a fine compromise if you want a
single blade.
Blade height and angle are adjusted by the same wheel on the front of
the saw, with a lever to switch modes; it takes a couple of tries to
get the knack, but seems to work just fine -- the main trick is to
make sure the wheel doesn't move as you lock it. Maximum depth of cut
is 3 9/16"; most 10" saws only manage 3 1/8" or so. You can buy
accessory extension rails ($120) which extend its rip capacity to 72";
it is designed so that a 3/4" sheet of plywood (not supplied) works as
a table board. ((Ryobi owners: I've forgotten the measurements of the
table and the maximum rip width _without_ the extension; can you fill
me in?))
Ryobi currently only sells the 36-tooth combination blade, and does
not recommend using other manufacturers' blades (although I see no
reason not to use other thin kerf blades--perhaps the torque curve of
the motor is such that the precise characteristics of the blade
matter? I doubt it); they will probably come out with additional
blades soon. They will apparently also be coming out with a tenoning
jig soon. The throat plate is a rectangle of thick sheet metal, and
screws down; it is not adjustable in height. Ryobi sells an optional
dado throat plate. It is not clear how you would make a custom throat
plate, since wood or plastic in this thickness is probably not stiff
enough; perhaps Ryobi will come out with some high-tech plastic throat
plate blank which is stiff but not hard or brittle....
The saw is quite portable. It weighs only 75 pounds. With the
optional casters, you can move it like a wheelbarrow, or easily swivel
it 90 degrees (useful if you have a workshop where long stock will
only fit one way). The sliding table, fence, and accessory table can
be removed and replaced quickly, as can the fence rails. The blade
guard is a bit more finicky -- you have to remove the throat plate
(three screws) and unbolt the guard (two bolts). With these parts
off, the saw consists of a sturdy metal box on a sturdy stand, and can
thus easily be moved through tight openings or up stairs, and thrown
into the back of a truck.
The Ryobi has a variety of thoughtfully-designed features in almost
every department. Obviously Ryobi put a lot of effort into making the
best-featured saw they could, and they included a lot of useful
features. Also, it is claimed to be delivered fully aligned.
Several correspondents on the net have been very happy with it. One
is building a timber-frame house with one (this should be a good test
of robustness!). He burned out the motor, but Ryobi replaced it for
free. Fine Homebuilding had a brief review of it, and generally liked
it, especially its depth of cut (enough for a 4x4 in one pass). Fine
Woodworking had a comparative review of sliding table and sliding
carriage saws, where they slightly preferred it to the Makita
sliding-table saw, but did not compare it to conventional table saws.
(They liked the Mafell Erika sliding-carriage saw best, but it costs
several times more.)
According to Ryobi's advertising (in FWW), the intended market for
this saw is "tradesmen and serious woodworkers" (an odd couple).
Clearly it's not addressed to professional cabinetmakers. The ad
emphasizes that it's "easy to move around the shop or job site". The
illustrations show a job site with someone who looks like a carpenter.
The salesman told me the saw had been field-tested by contractors
before its release. All this seems to add up to the primary target
market being job site carpentry, for those carpenters who need more
versatility than the typical benchtop saw, which is really only good
for ripping. Still, around here, most such carpenters have a cheap
benchtop saw and a good miter saw (the Hitachi sliding miter saw is a
favorite): accurate cut-off and mitering seem frequent and critical in
their trade, while ripping is less so. Panel cutting is done with a
hand-held circular saw. Compared to the trio of cheap benchtop, good
miter, and handheld circular saw, the BT3000 probably rips better
(better fence), miters almost as well for short but not long stock
(not as good support), and cuts panels faster and more accurately (the
Ryobi with the table extension compared with a circular saw following
a pencil mark), or at least faster (comparing with a circular saw
following a clamp-down guide).
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