The Power Tool Price Watch Thread

[fixedpigs]

after reading a bunch of amazon reviews on the two pc kits i was thinking about...i think i'm going to hold out for the dewalt dw618pk...people seem to like that kit much more...

i may pair up the jig with the 690 that you suggested though nitewalker...
what was your reasoning for recommending a dedicated router for the jig...?
was it just to ease set-up by not having to readjust the bit each time...?

thanks...

[NiteWalker]

Amazon currently has a power tool sale going on and there's a couple of standouts that deserve posting.

First, for those who want a dedicated router table router, the Hitachi M12V2 (the M12V's successor) is on sale for $159.99 shipped. That's a great price for a heavy duty router that would be perfect for a router table router. Even though it looks like a sneaker/predator type thing.


Next up is one of the best jigsaws on the market. I'm talking about the Bosch 1590EVSK jigsaw. Right now it's $150.10. It seems like a lot, but really it's a great price for that jigsaw as it normally goes for $169+. Don't let the barrel grip deter you, barrel grip jigsaws offer better cutting control. This jigsaw consistently receives high marks in reviews. Might as well grab some blades while you're at it.


Enjoy.

@fixedpigs: (you posted while I was finishing this up) Having a dedicated dovetail jig router will save you a lot of time because you can leave it set up with your most used dovetail setting (through dovetails in 3/4" stock for instance). That way when you want to make a quick set of drawers or whatever else the setting is right there and you don't need to readjust and make a bunch of test cuts. A dedicated router for your dovetail jig is by no means a necessity, just plenty convenient.
 

[fatfingers]

Now that NiteWalker has all of us newbies hooked, here is some required newbie reading.   

[NiteWalker]

This isn't a power tool per say, but it is necessary for operating most of them. Also, it's not a great sale but it is below retail. I;m talking about hearing protection. Right now at amazon they're $22-15% so the total cost is $18.70. Grab something else needed for your shop/projects to get the total over $25 and you're golden.

Now about these particular ear muffs; I've had a pair for about 3 months now. I actually enjoy putting them on and wearing them. The reasons being that first of all, they protect your hearing from any longterm use. And they do a great job at keeping out noise. Power tools quiet down to a hum when I wear these. The second reason I like them so much is because they're super comfortable. They don't squish your head like another pair I bought at wal-mart in the sporting goods section (they were supposedly made for shooting; they are more adept to using as a spare vise). And even though they look big and bulky they are actually very light. I can't recommend them enough.

So now all you folks who just bought a router now have another must-have shop accessory.

In fact, anyone who uses power tools owes it to their ears to grab a set of these.
 

[Rusty]

Peltor makes some top-notch hearing protection.  I used to own a lawn care business and I bought Peltor headsets with built in FM radios.  You could literally wear them 8 hours at a time without and discomfort.

You'll be much happier buying these (or any Peltor sets) rather than saving a few bucks and buying some uncomfortable junk.

Highly recommended!   

[DrewKaree]

Peltor makes some top-notch hearing protection.  I used to own a lawn care business and I bought Peltor headsets with built in FM radios.  You could literally wear them 8 hours at a time without and discomfort.

Use 'em every day m'self   The Work Tunes model is rated at 25 dB, but if you head to the local JoAnn Fabrics or something similar and pick up some closed-cell foam for a buck or three, you can trim it to the same shape as the foam already inside the earmuffs and darn near block out ALL outside noise!  I ended up using ONLY closed-cell foam and removing the generic foam pads that came with 'em, and it's like I've gone deaf.  Thankfully the music reminds me I actually CAN hear!

Check around - the WorkTunes model sells for $40-80 so be sure to look around!

[NiteWalker]

I think they make an MP3 version too. That's more to my liking because I don't listen to the radio much. They're too pricey for me though...

[ChadTower]

I should do that... but I actually prefer being able to hear the tool and the wood at this point.  I need that extra feedback to recognize when the blade is about to bind or the grain is getting thicker in a spot.

[ScottS]

I actually like these banded foam ear-plugs made by Howard Leight. I've used HL earplugs forever. These plugs work well (almost too well; drinking and chewing are annoyingly loud when I have them in) and I find them very comfortable.

I like these for three reasons: 1) they provide good hearing protection, 2) they're cheap enough that I can have a pair hanging next to every tool that needs them, and 3) the place where I take metal working classes hands out plugs that are compatible with these bands for free! Not that I really need many replacement plugs, since each band comes with two sets, but it's nice anyway.

When I had a single pair of ear muffs, I'd use them for everything and leave them lying all over the place. I usually spent as much time trying to track them down as I did using the tool that needed hearing projection. Now, I have a pair with the circular saw, the dry-cut saw, the miter saw, the sawzall, both routers, the grinder, the biscuit joiner, etc.

[fixedpigs]

i got my jet clamps a couple of days ago...they aren't anything less than amazing...

too bad they were limited at four for the sale price...

although i could probably have four delivered to my bike shop...

(edit)

they aren't on sale anymore...oh well...at least i got four of them...

[NiteWalker]

I should do that... but I actually prefer being able to hear the tool and the wood at this point.  I need that extra feedback to recognize when the blade is about to bind or the grain is getting thicker in a spot.

You'll still be able to hear the wood and the tool with them on, but it just won't be dangerous to your hearing. Routers are screamers...

Scott; I have 2 pairs. One always stays put by the table saw, the other stays put on the workbench where I do all the other tooling. You don't have a designated work area?

@fixedpigs: I'm afraid to try those clamps...
They're expensive and addictive I hear...

[DrewKaree]

I think they make an MP3 version too. That's more to my liking because I don't listen to the radio much. They're too pricey for me though...

The mp3 version is lame and somewhat dangerous, IMO.  It has a simple jack, and you use a patch cord from the headset plug on your mp3 player and plug that into the earmuffs.  I initially bought a set of those, and took them back the very next day after having the plug ripped out several times that first day.  Get an FM transmitter and use the WorkTunes if you wanna use your mp3 player.

[NiteWalker]

I was worried about the same thing. An FM transmitter sounds like an ideal solution. Will it work well? Will any of the power tools interfere with the signal?

Thanks for the heads up Drew.

[DrewKaree]

I was worried about the same thing. An FM transmitter sounds like an ideal solution. Will it work well? Will any of the power tools interfere with the signal?

Thanks for the heads up Drew.

It works just fine for me.  There's 2 stations that aren't real powerful that fall in the range of my transmitter, but my transmitter blocks 'em out.  Depends on your area - Chad's area evidently has a few channels in the range of transmitters and others have said they don't work well.  Belkin makes a selectable transmitter too, so you can select ANY FM channel.

No interference with the signal whatsoever from tools though, and since the FM transmitter is wireless, I can keep it in my pocket.  Mine is powerful enough that I can keep it in a pants pocket, but the programmable one isn't (I've got both models), and I've gotta keep it in a shirt pocket.

Oh, and I go with rechargeable batteries in 'em.  During my working season, the batteries last for about 7-10 hours, depending on the rating of the battery

[Rusty]

For anybody that got in on the Lowe's deals and was worried about using the moving coupon and still receiving their rebates, I got my Lowe's gift card in the mail today.

I used a 10% coupon and it worked no problem.

[NiteWalker]

It also worked for me a while ago when I bought my tablesaw. I bought the delta 36-980. $600 at lowe's -10%-$50 lowe's gift card -$100 delta rebate.

The delta rebate was only supposed to be $50...

A great saw for $433 after tax.

[ChadTower]

Chad's area evidently has a few channels in the range of transmitters and others have said they don't work well. 

Most FM transmitter devices have spotty effectiveness here.  The Boston area is very heavy on the radio band.  Great if you love radio, not so great if you love FM transmitting devices like this one.

[Rusty]

A couple of nice deal on compound sliding miter saws this morning.

Hitachi C12LSH 15 Amp 12-Inch Dual Bevel Sliding Compound Miter saw with Laser Guide and Digital Bevel Display

Use code HITACH20 to save 20%

Price: $402.44 (after shipping)



Makita LS1013F 10-Inch Dual Slide Compound Miter saw with Light

Price: $356.86 (after shipping)




A pretty nice deal on the Hitachi one, too bad about no free shipping, though. 

Amazon has a bunch of other sliders on sale, too.  So if you're looking for a specific one, now might be a good time.

[Chris G]

I was so bored while the site has been down this morning that I joined Woodnet and poked around.  Someone posted this Amazon deal   on the Bosch 1590EVSK jigsaw that I thought I'd share.  At $127, this is a great deal for just the tool, but this kit also comes with a couple clamps as well. 

Amazon is also running a 20% off instant rebate for certain tools (not this one).

[NiteWalker]

Also, because the 20% off promo is featured on that item's page you can call customer service and they'll likely give you the extra 20% off. The promo is only supposed to be on pages of items that qualify.

Still, even without an extra 20% off that's a great deal.

[ChadTower]

I was so bored while the site has been down this morning that I joined Woodnet and poked around. 

I went to woodnet last week for a couple hours and read a bunch of stuff... I was like, uh, this is nice but why would they recommend this?  Most of these guys don't speak French.

Then I went to woodnet.net.

[NiteWalker]

 

I make that mistake still sometimes too...

[Chris G]

Ditto  ( ).  Fortunately I Googled it, so I went to the right one.  I thought you had a lot of posts, Chad, but I saw some dude on there with over 36k.  There must be a lot to say about wood.

[ChadTower]

Oh man, I've seen some forums with people in the 6 figures.  I'm small potatoes.

[Chris G]

brrrrringggg.....

[Saint]:  Hello?
[Chris G]:  Hey, Chris G here.
[Saint]: Chris G?
[Chris G]:  ...
[Chris G]:  Nevermind.  Take a look a look at this post.  I think you may want to change Chad's title to "Spud".
[Saint]:  ...
[Saint]:  I think you may be spending way too much time on this forum.

[fixedpigs]

I was so bored while the site has been down this morning that I joined Woodnet and poked around.  Someone posted this Amazon deal   on the Bosch 1590EVSK jigsaw that I thought I'd share.  At $127, this is a great deal for just the tool, but this kit also comes with a couple clamps as well. 

is that the same jigsaw as this one...?

i was wanting the barrel grip one...but that deal might be too good to pass up...

[NiteWalker]

It appears to be, just a cheaper version with clamps and free blades. I won't ever understand amazon's methodology but I love em.

Just like women...

[fatfingers]

20% off one item at Rockler.  Enter code V7800 at checkout.  Expires 5/6/2007.

[fixedpigs]

20% off one item at Rockler.  Enter code V7800 at checkout.  Expires 5/6/2007.

Sorry, this offer cannot be applied to power tools, Leigh dovetail jigs, gift cards and sale priced items.

 

[Chris G]

is that the same jigsaw as this one...?

i was wanting the barrel grip one...but that deal might be too good to pass up...

It appears to be, just a cheaper version with clamps and free blades. I won't ever understand amazon's methodology but I love em.

I believe it's the same one.

Nitewalker - by "cheaper" you're strictly talking price, not that it's a lesser model, right?

[NiteWalker]

Right , just price.

[fatfingers]

20% off one item at Rockler.  Enter code V7800 at checkout.  Expires 5/6/2007.

Sorry, this offer cannot be applied to power tools, Leigh dovetail jigs, gift cards and sale priced items.

 

Doh!

[knave]

So all this talk of clamps I decided I needed some. (again not a power tool but usefull none the less)

I picked up this set of Colombian clamps.

They came out to $18.14 for the set:
4 C clamps
4 spring clamps
2 18-inch bar clamps
2 24-inch bar clamps

All in all pretty good for a starter set.  They might not be the biggest and best but for less than $20 I'm super happy..

***EDIT***I forgot to mention that they come with free shipping too! 

[NiteWalker]

That's a good price for that set. They were on sale for around that a while ago.

[clockwork]

I used my Columbian set for the first time this weekend. Very nice set. Back up to around $22 now, though.

How about this table top drill press for $40? Seems like a good deal.

Cummins Industrial Tools 5 Speed - Bench Top Drill Press

[ScottS]

I'd pass on that drill press.

I bought a small drill press similar to that one. Sold it a month later, when I discovered that I couldn't fit a regular length drill bit and a 4x4 into it at the same time. I bought a 10- or 12-inch Craftsman bench-top drill press to replace it for about $100-120. It's about 36" high overall, so plenty of room to fit just about anything you'd like underneath the quill.

Are you going to need to cut plastic or plexiglass? If so, you might need a drill press with a lower speed. The 700rpm minimum speed on the Cummins is actually pretty high. And keep in mind that there's probably only 6- or 8-inches between the post and the drill bit, which limits how far toward the center of a panel you can put holes.

[clockwork]

I've been looking at the 10-in Craftsman. It was on sale for $99 a few weeks ago. Now I'm kicking myself for not grabbing it. It only jumped to $119 but $20 is more controls I could buy!

I was hoping this little one would be reasonable. Guess I'll break down and get the Craftsman.

[ChadTower]

Nice.  I just printed out a 10% off coupon... I may head over there tonight to pick up the Porter router kit.  The Fatwallet discussion linked above has it at just over $200 out the door (15% off + 10% coupon), then with a $50 Porter rebate and $50 Lowe's gift card rebate, putting the end price a bit above $100.

The Lowe's gift card came in the mail yesterday (submitted 4/7).  Still waiting to hear about the Porter Cable rebate (submitted 4/17) but that one says 8-10 weeks.

[ChadTower]

Craftsman 83 pc. Insert Bit Set $15

[bratwurst]

What are your thoughts on this circular saw?

Dewalt factory reconditioned circular saw, $79