thinking about buyin box building equipment

[wilzyx 5,000+ posts]

well, i am going to be getting a large sum of money soon and have always wanted to build my own boxes. i went to the harbor freight site and i can get a 10" table saw with stand, router w/ accesories, orbital sander, clamps, and t squares for about 180. it is a relatively cheap table saw made by central machinery but i figured it would be good to start off with. am i wasting my money on cheap crap or would this suit me well for a beginning box builder?

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[James Bang 5,000+ posts]

That equip should be well for beginners, BUT if you do plan on building more n more enclosures in the future, I suggest you invest on better equip/tools. For now, maybe you can live w/ just a sander, jig/router, clamps, and have HD or Lowes do your cuts.

 

[djman37 5,000+ posts]

see how wide the fence is on that table saw. Mine goes 21" and it's still not enough.

 

[j3bus2k3 5,000+ posts]

If you really think your going to be buliding a lot, invest in a table saw...if not, just rent one from Home Depot. Its like $30 for the day so plan to cut a few boxes on teh same day and get your monies worth. But you can easily get those tools under $180 especially at harbour freight.

 

[Pyro_By_Nature 5,000+ posts]

I wouldn't waste my money on cheaper table saws like that.You'd be better off with a circular saw and a straight edge.

 

[James Bang 5,000+ posts]

I wouldn't waste my money on cheaper table saws like that.You'd be better off with a circular saw and a straight edge.

x2 also w/ a circular saw, you can cut great lenghts unlike a table saw w/ a short fence.

 

[wilzyx 5,000+ posts]

wtf is going on with their site, can you not buy things online anymore?

 

[Vincent9515 10+ year member]

Harbor freight is awesome for cheaper stuff. I'd just be hesitant to buy anything expensive.

Circular saw probably is the best thing to start off with, like said. You're going to need it regardless.

Unless you have a full-fledge table setup, you have to cut pieces into atleast halves to balance it on a table saw without having it bind. Half a sheet is seriously pushing it, too.

My dad bought a full set of DeWalt tools 5-6 years ago and they're all working just like new. The drills can be found on Ebay factory refurbished for $40. I bought another and it looked brand new.

I have a Craftsman table saw and the motor bearings have seized, handles have broken off, and it's horribly inaccurate. The bar that's supposed to determine the size of the cut sways back and forth nearly an inch. I've gotten to the point where I manually measure every cut.

 

[spudracer326 10+ year member]

grizzly table saws ftw...

 

[soul05 10+ year member]

i never built a box before in my life, i just remembered loving woodshop back in middle school...but that was like 10 years ago. right now im in the process of building 2 boxes for myself and my friend who is selling me the sub. To tell u the truth...i didnt know ANYTHING about car audio until last week. Now i spend a lot of time on these forums trying to learn more each day.

I have some tools laying around like a hand held sander, a drill, and a circular saw..of of which im using for my box. i bought a router a few days ago, i got some router bits, a counter sink bit, and a few clamps. I know that these boxes im building, wont be my last.

I wish i had a table saw though, would make my life a lot easier.

 

[Bolognablake 10+ year member]

Harbor Frieght has a great return policy. I've returned 3 or 4 breaker bars that I snapped, and a couple of sockets, no questions asked. Oddly enough, all of the cheap power tools I've bought from them still work.