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Construction power tools have been known to be rugged, reliable, and robust, but they also came to be known as costly, heavy, and a tad intimidating.
As home improvement is steadily growing in popularity as a way to cut costs on construction fees and such, numerous manufacturers are heeding customer demand to supply personal compact power tools. Cutting costs doesn’t necessarily mean compromising quality.
The Bosch GTS1031 10-Inch Portable Jobsite Table Saw brings in the reliability, as well as the toughness of an industrial machine in a compact, portable, and durable cost-effective package. The saw provides a well-balanced machine that can be carried around the site one-handed; it comes in an all-steel and light base. It is equipped with Bosch’s modular blade guard, as well as a SquareLock rip fence.
Features
- Item Weight: 64.8 pounds
- Product Dimensions: 27.4 x 25 x 15.8 inches
- Blade: 24-tooth carbide saw blade
- The diameter of the blade is 10 inches
- Power Source: corded-electric
- The length of the cord is 6 feet
- No load RPM: 5,000
Advantages
The Bosch GTS1031 10-Inch Portable Jobsite Table Saw is a relatively lightweight construction tool, all the while providing smooth effortless cuts to anywhere within the construction site.
It comes equipped with Bosch’s Smart Guard System modular blade guard to allow for superior control over the material during the whole duration of the cut. The Smart Guard System can be attached easily, and vice versa.
The table saw features a 20-Inch moveable tabletop, which has an 18-Inch rip capacity for a versatile cutting tool. It’s equipped with a 4.0 HP long-life motor that rates in 5,000 RPM with no load, as well as a 5/8-Inch arbor size.
The machine also comes in with a tool-free dust chute clear-out on the back, which allows you to easily maintain it.
The saw also features the SquareLock rip fence, which was engineered for maximum trueness. The fence allows the material to be cut to rest upon a platform that glides along the rail at a finger’s touch for ease of use.
The trademark rip fence also locks into place for a stable and consistent precise cut.
The rip fence also allows for minimal wastage of the material with its auxiliary fence slots and a T-slot miter gauge to aid for a more accurate cut. The riving knife enables various positions such as fully erect, splitting and non-thru cutting.
The table saw was engineered with portability in mind. It’s meant to be carried around one-handed with a balanced weight distribution along with its ergonomic soft-grip handle.
Its optimized center of gravity enables the 64.8-pound table saw to be tugged around the site with relative ease. The machine features an all-steel and lightweight base to accommodate the power output of the machinery, all the while bringing the whole weight to a minimum.
While carrying a table saw around the site is beneficial, but it also has to withstand job site abuse. The machine is encased with a strong steel frame, which can take the battering one should expect on a job site.
The table saw holds up well impacts, and vibrations while handling on a construction site.
The lightweight base is equipped with rubberized feet to avoid slippage on almost any surface; including the dusty floors of the construction site. The frame provides more than just protection and stability.
It also offers an on-tool stowing under the table to store the SquareLock rip fence, Smart Guard System, as well as the included miter gauge, pushes stick, and blade-change wrenches.
Disadvantages
The Bosch GTS1031 10-Inch Portable Jobsite Table Saw isn’t without flaws. While maintaining a compact and lightweight body, Bosch opted to shave weight by putting in plastic parts; namely, the push stick clip and retaining nut for the saws wrenches. One should keep in mind that plastic parts are susceptible to breakage.
Given its compact design, it only allows for limited storage space in on-tool stowing under the table, which isn’t enough for an extra blade. In addition, the dust chute may serve its purpose, albeit not at 100%.
The dust chute will collect dust resulting from the cut but only about two-thirds of the total dust.
The table saw would need to be calibrated once in a while to assure accuracy, as the angle adjustment mechanism allows a bit of play; resulting in the need for an extra square for absolute accuracy.
Lastly, the minimal design also compromises noise dampening. The 5,000 RPM motor is quite loud to start so ear protection is advised.
Verdict
The Bosch GTS1031 10-Inch Portable Jobsite Table Saw is compact, and lightweight, staying true to its portable design. Despite having a smaller footprint, it still gets the job done with relative accuracy, as well as ease of use.
Its retail price at around 400 bucks, which is the average cost of portable table saws, makes it a long-term cost-effective machine for the typical home construction. Bosch provides this product with its Tool Protection Plan; 1-year warranty, a 30-day money-back guarantee, as well as a 1-year service protection plan.
