General International Table Saw

Hello, and welcome to another entry here at the Cuban Redneck website, I thank you all for subscribing, and you know what I always say? If you haven’t already, why are you waiting? Today I want to talk to you about the General International 10 inch Table Saw model TS 4001. As per the manufacturer, standard features for this unit include a 13.0 Amp high-torque motor with the power to cut pressure-treated lumber and hardwoods. Also, 2-7/8 in. depth of cut at 90° and 2-5/8 in. at 45°. Onboard storage provides easy access to the components and push stick when not in use. Included is a 2-year limited warranty. So what can go wrong? LOL… a lot of things did!

Although the General International TS 4001 had more one-star than five-star reviews on the Home Depot website, I asked myself how bad can it be and purchase it anyway! I did not purchase my General International table saw at Home Depot but rather at Walmart, where it was $50 cheaper. I also did something I hate doing, but I did it anyway, and that is ordering something online without first seeing it! Anyways, at $114 delivered, I was expecting to spend several hours trying to get the thing to make square cuts. I was not expecting the General International 10 inch, Table Saw model TS 4001 to be outright unsafe!

If you buy one of these small contractor saws, one of the first things you will probably do is replace the OEM saw blade! I opted for a middle of the road 50 tooth Harbor Freight unit, item number 62722. I had not noticed that the elevator mechanism was entirely out of whack because the saw came with the blade down, as expected for shipping. It was not until I replaced the saw blade and tested the elevator’s full range of motion that I realized the saw blade was hitting the insert plate. The funny thing is that it was not throughout the entire range but only at about the halfway mark. While testing the travel range, I also discovered that the elevator had a stepping motion and not smooth. I decided to investigate this issue further by taking the bottom cover off and taking a closer look. I found an excessive amount of play on the pivoting elevator shaft, a stripped bolt on the elevator width adjustment, and the blade guard mechanism. At this point, I had a choice to make. Do I put it back in the box and take it back, or do I fix the issue! Considering how this table saw will fit my woodworking workspace, I decided to make a quick test of the motor and its power by ripping several red oak scrap wood pieces. I was surprised that there was no RPM variation while under load. I ran another test by ripping a 2X10 treated wood scrap, with pretty much the same results. With those findings and after examining the elevator mechanism, I decided to keep the General International TS 4001 and make the appropriate modification required to suit my needs.

As mentioned earlier, most of the issues with this cheap table saw can be traced to the elevator mechanism’s pivoting shaft, poor engineering, and some of the softest steel I have seen. I figured that by just tightening the elevator screws, I could correct some of the issues. But I discover that the two bolts, one on each side, were stripped or cross-threaded from the factory, and it was a mission to get them off. After doing so and examining some of its issues, I designed a solution to the problem.

I decided to replace the two bolts serving as elevator pivoting shaft with a thicker shaft extending across both sides of the elevator. By doing this, I’d address several issues. For one, a thicker shaft with more surface area won’t stress the soft metals as much. Second, extending the shaft across the entire elevator mechanism will ensure better alignment and more accurate vertical travel.

After deciding on the design came the quest for materials. For a brief moment, I was considering getting a solid rod and treading it. But after further consideration, I decided on a threaded bolt; actually not even that. I ended up cutting the head of a long 6″ ¼ – 20 bolt that had been bouncing around my toolbox for some time. While this satisfies the “shaft” part, you don’t want treads rubbing against metal, especially soft metal. So, I decided to use a hardened steel metal collar, which I drilled and tap to ¼ – 20. This meant drilling the pivoting mechanism from 3/8 to ½, the outer diameter of the collar. With that part done, we need to figure out how to keep everything inline. After measuring the elevator’s wall thickness, I looked for washers to make up the difference between the width of the collar and the elevator parts. I found some 3/16 inch fender washers with an outer diameter of an inch and a quarter. Not only were they the ideal thickness, but the smaller holes mean that I can drill them to a higher tolerance. I ended up drilling four to ½ inch (the collar’s diameter) and four to ¼ (the shaft diameter). The assembly was a little tricky due to the lack of space, but with four nylon inserted nuts, you will need to sandwich the collar with the two ½ inch washers in the middle of the two ¼ inch washers.

As I said in the video, there were several other bolts I ended up replacing, and I am sure there will be more modification to the General International 10 inch Table Saw model TS 4001. Nevertheless, I have to say I am pleased with the modification and how smooth the elevator is now. I hope you found this video and blog revealing of things that the General International table saw review fail to say.

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