I got this for $175 at a pawn shop. It will be my first glass saw. I think I'll name the saw "Rusty". I'm hoping I didn't get screwed on the deal. Even if I did talk them down $75 on the price.
The tray slides smoothly, if a bit slow, and the motor seems to run without vibration. I'll have to order a nice glass blade, once I know this thing can be brought up to full working order.
Here's what I know is wrong with it before getting it home:
The water feed into the blade guard is not OEM. I'd rather have the water feeding on both sides of the blade.
The blade guard is loose. As in, the hinge bolt is broken off. The blade rubs against the guard. This will be the first thing to fix.
The belt guard is loose.
The belt is old and needs to be replaced, but not just yet.
There is no front handle in front of the blade shaft. (see next item)
The motor will not angle upward on the pivot shaft. I'm guessing that's how the handle got broken off.
The slide tray 45-degree lift is bent.
Concrete EVERYWHERE. Was the previous owner cutting raw portland cement? This crap is set like stone!
Water pump is made by Ryobi. I have no idea if it works.
The water tray drain plug is locked in place.
The water tray has cracks, patches, and cracked patches.
Two out of four motor mount nuts are missing. I don't know if the motor is held on by the strength of the remaining two nuts or by built up concrete.
I know that some of you have shops where 100% reliability is required. I'm just a wannabe artist. So, did I get a decent deal? Or did I get screwed?
Brad Walker wrote:Well, a brand new Harbor Freight tile saw the same size is around $220 on sale. So I guess it depends on what it costs you to fix it up.
My concern was the tray action. I read some things about the HF tray being a bit jerky.
I'm hoping my initial costs for fixing this up will be limited to nuts and bolts.
Brad Walker wrote:... they make it easy to return things.
I bought a concrete mixer from them. I had to assemble it myself. It was so bad, it had trouble running when it was empty.
The return was easy. Then stock clerk came up to collect it while I was getting my money back. "Aww, he left it assembled?" he asked. I had to laugh at the thought of me disassembling a P.O.S. cement mixer so I could return it.