I have a Grizzly store about an hour north - and like some guys have to go to Cabelas -- I have to go to Grizzly once in awhile just to see what I "need"... mostly their stuff is "chinese" junk... but if you ratchet up the line it is pretty decent stuff.
I have a vertical band saw - a Wilton piece - which is not much of a saw - but is "okay" when I need it - and I have an abrasive chop saw (dirty filthy - noisy) and a real nasty chop saw - a Morse 14" Metal cutting saw. The Morse is what I break out if I have to cut some larger 2 X 4" stuff - or some big rounds etc (like when I built the work table)... but this thing throws off the nastiest little slivers you've ever dealt with - and it throws them all over the shop! So I use it as a court of last resort. This and the abrasive chop saw take more "clean up" than they do anything else! I'm a bit "anal" about a clean workspace... so they drive me crazy.
I've seen the Femi at trade shows... it seems to be a real nice saw! If space is limited - I don't think you can beat a higher end horizontal band saw... they're "clean" - they'll mitre - and they'll cut larger stocks than a circular saw. BUT... if you want dead on accuracy you can't beat the cold cut. It makes flawless cuts. I like it best because it's available to use with the flip of a switch...
The Morse 14" -- this thing is a BEAST... powerful - fast - loud - dirty. I didn't clamp a piece well enough during a cut and that piece of metal twisted and caught and the gouge it made in my 5/8" plywood wall was scary! Had it hit me instead of flying out the back of the saw - it would have torn me in two... It shot out of there like a 50 caliber bullet! I left the gouge as a reminder... LOL
|