Shopsmith Forums

Woodworkers Journal just reported that SawStop was celebrating it's 10 th year and has sold 50,000 units world wide. They claim this make them the number one tablesaw in the world. A claim I find hard to believe.

http://www.woodworkersjournal.com/Ezine ... 10309.aspx

50,000 units in 10 years is only 5000 a year. If this is just to the US, it is not the figure includes Canada and many other countries, that means 350 million potential customers aren't buying much in wood working.

I think we are a part of a dying bred.

Figure it out, let us say there is 20 saw manufactures and they all sold at least 5000 units a year. That would mean that in 10 years only 1 million units sold which works out to around a machine sold for every 720,000 people if we use 7.2 billion people in the world.

No wonder the big box stores dumped large stationary tools.

The article also says the replacement cartridge is $69 + saw blade. I thought the cost was higher.

How many people do you think purchase high end table saws every year?

High end table saws (even the one made today) are capital equipment with a life span in years to decades. 5,000 units per year seems pretty respectable to me.

This article provides the following market info:

Table saws are a must-have tool for millions of construction workers, cabinet makers and do-it-yourselfers. In the U.S., there are about 9.5 million of them in use, according to industry figures. Of about 500,000 sold each year, 85 percent are supplied by members of the Cleveland-based Power Tool Institute, including such well-known brands as Black & Decker, DeWalt, Makita, Skil, Bosch and Ryobi.

That sounds more reasonable.

terrydowning wrote:How many people do you think purchase high end table saws every year?

High end table saws (even the one made today) are capital equipment with a life span in years to decades. 5,000 units per year seems pretty respectable to me.

Their saw cost between $1600 and $3000. And this includes all sales including commercial cabinets shops and other production shops that use saws.

Shopsmith claims to have over a million units sold. At rate 50000/10 years for SawStop to reach a Million it will take 200 years.

BuckeyeDennis wrote:This article provides the following market info:

Table saws are a must-have tool for millions of construction workers, cabinet makers and do-it-yourselfers. In the U.S., there are about 9.5 million of them in use, according to industry figures. Of about 500,000 sold each year, 85 percent are supplied by members of the Cleveland-based Power Tool Institute, including such well-known brands as Black & Decker, DeWalt, Makita, Skil, Bosch and Ryobi.

That sounds more reasonable.

Now include the world which the Woodworker journal supposedly did and you see the numbers don't even come close to matching SawStops claims.

Whose claims are invalid? No body knows.

Do you suppose this mystery is somehow tied to the reasons for why Shopsmith no longer serializes their machines in a way that would indicate how many were sold.

I somehow don't doubt Sawstops claims.

Ed in Tampa wrote: . . .

The article also says the replacement cartridge is $69 + saw blade. I thought the cost was higher.

$69 fer de cartridge PLUS $xxx for a new blade!!!!!


Plus down time!

JPG40504 wrote:$69 fer de cartridge PLUS $xxx for a new blade!!!!!


Plus down time!

'Down time' is less than 2 minutes... once you get over the shock of NOT losing your fingers, and having WAY MORE costs than $69. Even with Canadian 'socialised medicine', that is cheap.

When I had more time, I went back and read the whole article that I linked to back in Post #3. I'm not sure just how objective it is, but it is certainly interesting and well written. If nothing else, it provided me with new insights into our regulatory processes.

To me, SawStop technology is a lot like airbags in a car. I like to think that I don't really need them myself. I buckle up religiously and drive defensively. But in a car, you can't completely protect yourself from the other idiot drivers. And regardless, I sure as heck want airbags in any car that my kids are driving.

My main impression from the article is that both of the SawStop factions are sacrificing public safety for profits. If available for license at a reasonable, yet still very lucrative 1-2% royalty, I suspect that the mainstream manufacturers would offer the technology to those who want it.

I usually am the devils advocate. Just last week saw a saw stop demonstration. It is base on conductivity, a salty hot dog, wet hands. I worked at a major electrical producing utility, depend on what you did and exposure to electricity, they tested/measured your bodys conductivity!!! Everyones is different. What about when the air is dry and your skin is too as in fall and winter, and a shop full of air born dust? When do you take personal responsibility for yourself? Depending on the Saw Stop, and if it fails??? Then what, you call Huebby and Abrams?
Not to many baby boomers or the X generation buying WW equipment, just whatch CL and it is full of the older Boomers selling it off, as they retire to the condo in the South, The Xers can barely make there mortgages, with 2 kids, a Harley and no time for anything. I just bought 4 SS, 2 with jointers, one with a band saw, belt sander and 6" jointer SS cone, a free standing 6"x 52" jointer, a Delta floor TS, and a 12" band saw, for a total of 1200.00, and have about 200.00 into them and 100 of that was for bearings and belts on the Greenie. Yes, at the moment I am jointer fat!!
I dont believe the sale # of Saw Stop. You can d0 anything with #s. In the late 60s, early 70s, I believe it was Yale, previously an all male university. Head lines read, " 33% of female coeds at Yale are pregnant out of wedlock" 3 paragraphs into the article they mentioned there were only 3 female coeds registered at Yale. That makes one pregnant!!! They did not lye, but sure exploited it.