Powermatic10-Inch Table Saw, 52-Inch Rip, 1-3/4 HP, 115/230V 1Ph (Model PM1000)

I upgraded from a Porter Cable contractor's saw to the PM1000 for increased power, extra table width, dust collection and the sturdy fence. I trust Powermatic as a quality tool manufacturer. This is my 4th Powermatic machine. I did a ton of research on cabinet saws and knew I did not want to convert to 220 volts, so I stuck with an option that works with a typical home wiring configuration.The PM1000 came in several boxes. One large box on bolted to a wood pallet which contained the main saw body and central portion of the table top. This was fairly heavy. I gave my delivery men a nice tip for bringing this piece down to my basement for me. The main box also contained the blade guard, riving knives, anti-kickback device, push stick and miscellaneous nuts and bolts. The second box contained the two long pieces of angle iron and steel tube for the fence guide. It was long and a little on the heavy side, but easily carried by one person. The two cast iron table wings which attach to both sides of the main table came in separate boxes as well. Each of which probably weighed about 25-35 lbs. The wood extension table, which attaches to the right side of the right table wing, came in another box which was not very difficult to carry. The wood extension table legs came in another box. The fence came in the last box.Note: There is no saw blade included, but this is probably not a concern for most people buying this saw.All told, there were seven boxes, which made bringing the PM1000 into my basement a much easier task than I imagined.Assembling the PM1000 was easily completed by myself in about 3 hours. leveling the tables and aligning the rails and fence takes the most amount of time as you want to make sure it is perfectly setup on day one.I turned the saw on for the first time and ripped some 1" thick walnut and it cut through it like butter. The belts did not need to be adjusted, which, based on my research is commonplace. I also cross-cut the same walnut and it performed perfectly. The fence is really heavy duty and clamps down very tightly. The amount of clamping force can also be adjusted to your liking. I have to make some circuitry changes in my house to run the saw and the dust collector at the same time, so I cannot comment on how well the dust collection functions at this point.

The first time I ordered this saw from Amazon it was missing the box with rails for the fence. While most of the parts for the saw are plastic-wrapped with the saw, the fence rails come in a separate box and it just was not delivered. I followed up with Amazon (the distributor) and after speaking to a "real" person I was told that they cannot just ship the one missing box -- I had to return the entire saw and order it again. So, I had to pack it back up and I even managed to get it bolted back onto the little pallet that it is shipped on, but I could not really secure it like I received it with the steel bands and box stables. Another crew came and picked it up without issues. It took a few days for them to credit my card. After the card was credited, I ordered the saw again. I received the new saw with the rails this time, but the box with the rails was a bit beat up. The fence guide tube had a ding in it and one of the tube ends (plastic) was crushed (both mostly cosmetic). I was able to assemble the saw, put a blade in it, connect it to my dust collector with an adapter, and try my first cuts. The cuts were very clean and the saw was fairly quiet. I really like the saw, but was not very happy with the delivery via Amazon.

The PM1000 is a work of art to a guy like me. I'm coming from a Delta combo saw, which was a good saw, but compromised in many ways to keep the price down. There are few compromises in the PM1000 other than sheer power, which I think they did to appeal to those without 220V handy in their shop. I have the power, but can't justify the increase in price for the 2000. This saw set up pretty easy and it whirs like butter when I turn it on. The fence is super solid and even the miter gauge is beefy. I set it up myself, but be warned. It's very heavy, even with the wings off. I'm a big guy and I was extremely careful not to damage the saw or myself. It took about an hour to assemble, including the extended table. Not having a mobile base, it was shorter than my previous saw, which meant trimming the legs on the outfeed table. If you've been sitting on the fence (no pun intended, get off there, it's dangerous), I found it a worthwhile jump into the low-end pro cabinet saw world.

The saw works great but arrived with chipped paint and warped wings. The wings were both warped by about a dime’s thickness. I managed to correct it a little with a shim, but I guess I have to live with it. Also, the extension legs, according to the instructions, screw into the pressboard table. This makes the legs very poorly secured and subject to being easily stripped - poor engineering. I wish I would have purchased this without the extension table and made my own. Dont trust the factory calibrations! They were aweful, forcing me to recalibrate every single adjustment. The pallet was much too thin for the weight of the saw. One leg of the saw broke through the pallet during shipping. PM should do a better job of packaging the saw.Update: Fixed flaw in transition between particle board extension sag and cast iron top.