hotshot

The thing that intrigued me by the CW40 was the discovery that Rexon actually manufactured all these type of saws, but that same saw with slight variations was being sold by Porter Cable, Proxxon, Craftsman, Rexon itself as well as many others. I owned a CW40, had to return it and traded for virtually the same saw branded by Porter Cable. I owned three of these saws over the years, each branded differently. One of these was branded "Tradesman" as was almost identical to the CW40. I still have the pcb370 at my childhood home in Oklahoma. If you need a part, that same part should be available through PorterCable. Main difference between cw40/tradesman and pcb370ss/craftsman was that the pc/craftsman version had a tilt gauge on the table, which is actually in the way. But, the bottom blade clamp on these saws wasn't easily accessible.

hmmmm, created dupe post, why oh why can we not delete a post . . . now there is a suggestion

I would add, on the EX, a zero clearance insert. Now I'm using empty gift cards.

On EX/King style stands, that bar on the Stand is in the way of my legs. I would also like to see them ditch the dust collection mechanism, and re-design something better. All the manufacturers should shift to Pegas clamps standard. Ex needs a coating on the table that don't come off so easily. On the Hegner, would like to see a "good" top feed option with a quick Clamp type solution for the bottom,

Interestingly, if you are in the UK, Axminister is the main reseller of the Taiwan made EX type saw, and it ships with the Pegas clamps by default. https://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-trade-series-ex-21-scroll-saw-101772

Scott, I'm glad you are taking a deep breathe. My heart sunk a bit when I saw that you had ordered an EX. As curious as I am to see if General can finally ship a saw from the new Chinese factory that actually functions properly, I was very very very scared for you. The EX right now is very risky, and I've only heard horror stories on the Chinese produced models. General started shipping saws before they got the serious problems worked out on with their production, and burned some resellers. You would be safer buying any of the other EX styled brands as they are all made in the proven factory that once sold solid Excalibur's. Please count your lucky stars, and go with a Tawain made model.

I agree with Kevin on the Craigslist approach. At any given time, there will be no "deals" on craigslist, but the trick is to check every day, and be patient. You might also check eBay and facebook market. On craigslist and ebay, check the cities on every side of you, as the bigger the town/city, the better your chances. I have to admit, it's easier to be patient when you already have one great saw. My first great saw I bought new.

I would remove a "New" excalibur outright as I've not heard anything good about any excalibur saw coming out of the new manufacturing facility in China. There was some issues with parts availability after the Delta spin off, but I've not heard anything negative about them for a while, so I don't know. I own a King 16", and it is basically identical to the old Taiwan Excalibur, and it is pretty good. The Pegas Scrollsaw is coming to the U.S. market soon, with their clamps pre-installed, so that is a tempting option. Should be identical to King except for the clamps and a nice color scheme. I don't particularly like the new Jet clamps, but that is easy enough to switch to Pegas, you get an extra inch depth on the table, and the dust mechanism may be better if you like that. I would probably remove it anyway. The Jet company is large so should provide a good support mechanism. I don't care about the reverse teeth not engaging on the bottom as I could use FDUR which would work fine. The Pegas blades I use wouldn't be affected. Seyco should be on your short list as well as that company is very scroll saw focused, and have a long history of supporting what they sell. That said, you won't have any local support unless you live in Texas. I'm not a big fan of how table angle is adjusted on the Seyco and prefer the pinion of the original Excalibur type saws, but that is just me. I don't think dewalts/deltas are any worse now than they have been in recent years. If you are a production cutter, you can probably wear one out before the warranty is up. I'm not a production cutter, so so that would not be a concern for me. These saws are a pleasure to use. All that said, if you are looking for a bargain, Dewalt will be your best bet via craigslist, just test drive it before you buy it. If your lucky you might find a Taiwan made Excalibur, or any of these other saws on your list.

How thick of puzzles are you cutting? If you are doing traditional thin puzzles, you want a narrow kerf, so you will want to be using the Flying Dutchman puzzle blades. These are not reverse teeth, but they don't seems to splinter badly. You could always try Flying Dutchman FDUR blades which have reverse teeth mixed in all up and down the blade.

I ran out of room, and though I love my tools, had to destash the Hawk BM26 and Dw788. I tried to love the Hawk, it just wasn't happening for me, and definitely not suitable to my primary type of work. The Ex and King are my primary and I have the Hegner for making puzzle boxes and such. I could have saved you a ton on a Hawk BM26 I really have mixed feelings about Bushton the company, and there are more than a few things about the BM model that drove me nuts. Working with Bushton was a mixed experience for sure. There were design decisions that made me shake my head, and after I spent some time on the saw to get used to the mechanics, it still was not a great user experience for me. For me personally, there was no magic. For others, it seems this saw is nothing but awesome, but different strokes for different folks. Each saw has it's fans and it's critics, so I'm hoping your experience with it is great. Which laser did you get?

I pretty sure he meant adjustable front to back angle. However, the Hegner is the one saw that does have an adjustable stroke length. Hegner ships configured for the longer stroke, but for cutting thin materials, the stroke can be shortened. Not sure many people have gone to the effort to do that though. -------Randy

I'm glad you like the system on your EX, but most folks don't like the flimsy membrane that tends to make noise and catch small pieces, and most remove it soon after purchase. I removed mine day one, right after removing the hold down. Amongst the Ex Clones, Jet is the only one that I know of that redesigned that component, but I don't have any time on the Jet, so I don't know if it is better or not. -----Randy

The King stands are the same removable stands as the Original Excalibur. I have the stand currently removed from my King so that it is ready to transport this Sat. where I will be doing my shift at my local craft store. Maybe I'll do a video to demonstrate the setup. If you have to break the stand all the way down, that would be a much bigger pain. On another note, for those that don't follow the SSWC forums, The King Scrollsaw in the U.S. looks to be switching to the Excelsior branding (also under King), same as Canada. So, I guess this discussion switches to Pegas vs Excelsior.

The problem is that the Pegas 21" is going to be considerably heavier than the King 16". Ironically, after you upgrade the clamps to Pegas on a King, the price will be about the same for the King 16" as the Pegas 21"

Pegas saws will be here soon: http://scrollsawer.com/2018/12/05/product-review-pegas-scroll-saw/ That should shake things up a bit! -----------Randy

Blade travel/aggression are interesting because in practice, as soon as your work piece touches the blade, the blade maintains contact with the wood (no longer travels), so what you actually have is very quick varying pressure. I do pretty fine detail on my coin cutting and detailed woodwork, so I don't think a tuned EX will cut any less detail than my Hegner. The game changes on the EX if travel get's way out of kilter because that introduces a "hammering/vibration" which I can't deal with, and I have to stop and fix it. If I leave that back knob alone, it stays tuned. My particular EX has less vibration at my normal speed (3/4) than my Hegner, so that helps with accuracy. There is one place where blade travel is incredibly bad, and that is with the use of spirals and moving the piece sideways. I would probably always use my Hegner with spirals. Once the EX is tuned, travel will be very little, but it can not be tuned to zero.

For me personally, I wouldn't buy a saw with that long of arm unless you think you might actually need it. 100 hrs isn't a lot, but still, it is used, and no warranty. Might be a decent buy, but I don't think it is a steal.

King is from same Taiwan factory, but Excalibur had to move their production to a factory in China.

A little note on Excalibur Tensioning. . . . the longer arm on the 21 has more flex (leverage) than the 16", so the 16" has apples more tension by default. On the 16, I actually have to give the Jeweler blades a little slack or they will break every time I flip the tension lever. If I don't press down on the arm, the default tension on the 21 is perfect for Jewelers blades. ------Randy

Easy solution, sort of: If you need a little more tension than what the level provides, apply a little down pressure on the top arm as you tighten in the blade. Been doing it so long, I do it unconsciously now.

Очень впечатляюще. (Very Impressive)

The tube holes mark this as an EX 21". Still has the blade guard on, so probably not used by a avid scroller, though who knows. Looks like it could be a good deal for someone in that area. ---Randy

Pros 1. Design is very very simple so there is very little to go wrong. Because of the simplicity, repairs are usually possible by owner. 2. Even though a tool is required to change the blades, those with weak hands can still get the blades as tight as needed. 3. There is almost zero blade travel. Blade travel is incredibly bad if you are using spirals and going left or right. Kerf could be a wide as the travel. 4. The saw is never obsolete. The design hasn't changed significantly in 20 years (they changed the blower hose and added a table insert. New parts still fit 20 year old saws.) 5. Advanced Machinery is good although they are the only support choice (In the U.S.). 6. If you have to use a Wrench to change blades, the Tuff Wrench is great and easy on the hands 7. QuickClamp for the top clamp is Awesome! Wish it would work on my Excalibur. 8. Buy a Hegner and you get to join the cult of Hegner. Don't believe it is a cult? Keep an eye on the comments here :-) 9. Since they last forever, they stay around, and you can usually find these on Craigs list for a fraction of retail. 10. 7 year warranty on the mechanical parts of the saw. 11. Quick Tensioner upfront, quick and easy to use. Cons 1. Both of my Hegners have more vibration than my EX. Running on a concrete floor minimizes this tremendously. Another friend also has both saws and he says his Hegner and Ex have similar vibration. 2. Cost: yes it is well made, but is it not made of gold. The saw, and the parts are way way too expensive, period. 3. Uses three different blade clamps for different blade sizes. Middle size clamps work for most operations, but in my usage, they will not hold the smallest blades, requiring an additional purchase from Advanced 4. This is not a top feeding saw. You can cheat and remove one of the clamps, but the top arm does not raise enough for top feeding as we normally understand it. 5. Clamps can pop out and go flying when a blade breaks. 6. Blade changes require a tool. That said, going between holes in fretwork does not require a tool because the top QuickClamp is toolless. 7. If the Hegner does break, as rarely they do, you will have no local support options. 8. Table is much smaller than any of the high end competitors. 9. Warranty on any electronic related part is only one year. The motor alone cost more than the Dewalt 788.. ** View Fretwork bottom feed process, then stick around for blade change process: ***Read Warrantee Carefully: http://www.advmachinery.com/t-warranties.aspx

I checked the Manual to the stand, as the version I got from Seyco was terrible. The one they have posted now is much better.

For the first time in forever, General has updated their website. It has literally been years and prior to this update, it looked like the site had been abandoned. I guess General Lives . . . for now. They better get quality up on their Chinese production lines or it will be short lived. ------Randy