DELTA 36-L31X-BC50 X5 10-Inch Left Tilt 3-Horsepower Cabinet Saw with 50-Inch Biesemeyer Fence, 2 Cast Iron Extension Wings, Table Board, and Legs, 230-Volt 1-Phase
by Delta
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of DELTA 36-L31X-BC50 X5 10-Inch Left Tilt 3-Horsepower Cabinet Saw with 50-Inch Biesemeyer Fence, 2 Cast Iron Extension Wings, Table Board, and Legs, 230-Volt 1-Phase
Customer Review: Unasaw Quality
Summary: 3 Stars
I am impressed with this saw, but if a less than perfect is out there to be sold, I'm the guy who will buy it. I took great pains to express my desire for a saw with a flat cast iron top and wings. Both wings on my saw will need fine tuning and the right wing is cupped front to back. I called the store and they responded with "I wounder if there is a saw out there flat enough for you" and " I have never seen it before, did you check our store desplay?". I think a visible problem not requiring a machinest straight edge to detect is real enough. So I get a bad saw. Then I get insulted. Buy the way the saw top is resonable, but not perfectally flat per my precision straight edge. Yes I was low keyed about the problem. I wounder, if $1800.00 is not enough for a perfect saw out of the box, what is? Maby I should have bought a Jet and just anticipated these things, but no. I bought locally in SLC!Customer Review: Great saw but fence parts are unavaliable at website.
Summary: 3 Stars
The Delta Unisaw is not what it used to be but it is still one of the better choices on the market. The base is no longer cast iron. The "fit and finish" could be better but compared to most of the imports it is still the best choice.
Buying parts for the fence is a problem. The Biesemeyer website does not contain any parts. It seems that if one breaks a part, he or she will have to replace the whole fence.
Some might argue that the parts are available by special order at local dealers. My only comment is, "Why make it hard to get parts?"
Customer Review: Delta is running on Legacy Fumes
Summary: 2 Stars
I will outline the bad points first.
1: Both side extensions were cupped almost an 1/16th in the middle. It was possible to get them flat with the main table but do not ask how. This alone took about 4 hours.
2: Biesemeyer extension table cupped. Some proper bracing at my expense and this was fixed.
3: Front Biesemeyer mounting rail and Unisaw holes do not line up, some filing and massive clamping pressure during setup was needed to align the rail with the "template" and mounting holes.
4: Missing screws, bolts, lock washers, and fender washers. I picked up these at the hardware store so I could get it up and running. My expense.
5: Missing dust collection adapter. (Delta is shipping.. its been a week so far. I have made a temp with lumber.)
6: Missing X5 promotional items including rebate for a "free tool" and the other advertised promotional items that were supposed to be included in the box.
7: Biesemeyer rails were chipped and scratched with paint missing. Box was in perfect condition.
8: Biesemeyer extension table legs are not welded at 90 degree angles so when mounted it looks like you may be a drunk cabinet maker.
8: Severe vibration after saw was set up. Enough vibration to send a tape measure to the floor from the middle of the right cast iron extension. The Ridgid TS-3650 had significantly less vibration! (delta is sending a replacement motor)
The Good.
1: Even with the vibration the cuts were very accurate, and had plenty of power without any burning. It cuts wood.
2: Delta tech support was very nice. And replacement parts were no trouble to get. English was the first language of everyone and I had no problems there...
Overall I would say the quality control is out the window. Some people have no problems and others have them all. For the money this saw seems like a very expensive gamble. I am going to see the difference the new motor makes and if there is no improvement I will be getting the Powermatic Model 66 3 HP Table Saw. I may even get the Grizzly G5959Z 12" Table Saw with 5 HP Single-Phase 220V motor. As of now I am leaning toward the Grizzly because after the set up of the Unisaw I would imagine the Griz is a breeze.
I think that this is a new era in woodworking. Delta and their reputation has kept this company alive, not their products. It feels like the Unisaw praises are coming from the people who refuse to acknowledge other brands. Sort of similar to when computers came out and people were still insisting their typewriters would never be obsolete. Do yourself a favor and go look at one at a local retailer, and ask the assembly person how difficult it was to assemble. Does the one on display look like they were a bit inept to put the saw together? Well they weren't this saw was very difficult to get set up properly. Does the extension table have scratches on it from the fence? It is probably because of the mounting holes and the warped extension tables. Does the fence hang on the main table when making the transition from extension to main table? I imagine these problems are not from improper set up, but substandard manufacturing, and quality control. Don't believe the reviews from most of the magazine or online reviews until you count how many Delta x5 ads there are in the magazine and just how much money they make from Delta advertising.
If you get one set up properly I imagine you will not have any problems after that. Everything else seems to be solid. Just consider the points I made earlier when weighing your options for a new table saw.
Customer Review: Nightmare! I don't know what to do!
Summary: 1 Stars
I ordered a Delta Saw ( 5 hp version) on March 13, 2004. I received 3 boxes out of 4 on March 29. The freight company told me that they left the other box ( Biesmeyer) in Kansas. I called the freight company today and they told me they could not locate the package. They told me to get in touch with Amazon. Amazon doesn't respond to my e-mails. In the meantime my orders are getting cancelled. What a nightmare!I heard a lot of good things about this saw. I wish I could use it and write a nice review about it.
Customer Review: owner-cabinet shop
Summary: 1 Stars
thought I'd save $500 and buy a delta instead of powermatic......my mistake.....Delta is gunk.....good besmeyer fence....can't get saw to run for more than 5 minutes with-out gettin' hot and shutting down.