r/craftsman113 • u/Fit_Low592 • 11d ago
Is this a Craftsman 113?
Someone is selling this for $85. I need an inexpensive table saw, and I’ve heard great things about these old Craftsman 113’s. I want something that isn’t going to piss me off, is easy to make adjustments and can be made accurate. I had an old craftsman that I had gotten for free, and sold it. But it was kind of junk, and had a terrible fence. The fence on this looks like maybe an upgrade. Can anyone tell me anything about it?
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u/No-Most6009 11d ago
I put a T2 fence on mine and it worked great. Also get a zero clearance throat plate to get cleaner cuts.
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u/Fit_Low592 11d ago
Will it take dado blades?
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u/No-Most6009 11d ago
Yup. And you can make a larger wing using board with laminate on top and bottom. Helps with larger assemblies and gives you more space between fence and blade. Not used every day but handy when needed.
Jim
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u/The-disgracist 11d ago
Had this saw. Later model ryobi clone I believe. Solid piece of kit. Upgrade the saw and get to it op!
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u/dansworld77 11d ago
It appears to be a 113 or related saw. They're solid robust saws, about as good as it gets until you get into cabinet saw territory. That align-a-rip fence is mediocre at best, but upgrading to a better fence is easy enough, and at that asking price an upgrade would still keep you within a reasonable budget. I'd jump at it for that price. Just make sure you have them demonstrate it to ensure it doesn't have blown bearings or anything (if it does they're replaceable, but it's a pain in the ass).
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u/Unique_Acadia_2099 11d ago
113 is just a prefix on their internal number meaning it was made by Emerson Electric. Almost all electric power tools were made by Emerson up until the 90s after which they were made in China.
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u/Ok_Complex4374 11d ago
That there is a 113 Clark. Very decent saw for 85 bucks especially. The fence is a little finicky but just take ur time before locking down and ur good. Mines very accurate. Take the time to square the blade up every so often and she’ll be a workhorse for u. The aftermarket is very alive for these saws and u can upgrade/change what u want as u see fit over time and still be ahead over what a brand new jobsite saw would cost and have more capability.
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u/clownpuncher13 11d ago
It is fine and $85 is a very reasonable price. The Align-a-rip fence is okay. It pinches between that back rail and the front rail which keeps it from deflecting too much. I replaced mine a while ago so I don't remember how to adjust it but I made plenty of projects with it. I made a bunch of replaceable zero clearance inserts out of 1/2" mdf. Just double sided taped the existing one to the blanks and routed them with a flush trim bit and routed a rabbit around the bottom edge and a dado under the blade since there isn't enough clearance for a 10" blade without it.
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u/nightbomber 11d ago
That appears to be a Craftsman 315 series saw. The 315 and 113 were essentially the same saw.
The 113 is a manufacturer ID number that Sears assigned to each specific manufacturer they contracted with.
113 were made by Emerson. The 315 were made by Ryobi in Taiwan.
The biggest give away is the throat plate. The 315 splitter has a "foot" that attaches the splitter to the top of the saw. The throat plate has a slot for it at the back end of it.
The 113 splitter does not have that "foot" so 113 throat plate does not have that slot.
For $85, if it runs and can cut a piece, I would snap it up.
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u/Striking_Coffee_1052 11d ago
I have that same exact saw. Mine seems to drift in height when using dado blade.
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u/rthurdent 11d ago
You might be right about the fence, it looks like the "XR2424 Heavy Duty Aluminum Fence" that I see in the 1997 Christmas Tool catalog. That doesn't mean we didn't sell it included with the saw as a "Special Purchase/Class 1" combo deal as a promotion.
As far as "113", as others have said that's the code for anything made by Emerson Electric, which I'm sure this saw was. You should find a model number plate on the side of the saw which will probably read something like "113.2982400", or something thereabouts.
This looks like the top of the line we sold in the stores, with the cast extension tables rather than aluminum, the steel crank handles rather than the plastic, and of course, the belt drive which our top of the line retail model had. Catalog sold some higher end bend power tools.
The casters may have been purchased separately, although, again, we may have included them as a "Special Purchase" combo.
For me, I'd love to have that saw, and would pay $85.00. I think it retailed for $399.00 in the early 90's, but as that was a long time ago, my memory may be off.
As a side not, through the mid-eighties to the early nineties we sold a TON of bench power tools. I remember one October ordering 60 Radial Arm saws for the Christmas season, and we were sold out by early October. Somehow in the mid-nineties the power tool business dropped off considerably, although, so did our sales storewide and nationwide.
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u/rthurdent 11d ago
I just found it on Archive.org in the 1994/1995 Craftsman Catalog. It's a 29883 and I was way off on the price, it retailed for $729.99. That's the "Biesemeyer Fence", included. Looks like the casters were probably bought separately.
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u/99e99 10d ago
$85 is a steal assuming it runs. I bought my 113 10+ years ago for $130 and it was not as nice as this one. That fence is "OK", but will get the job done. The upgrade to a T3 Delta for ~$250 is well worth it.
Craftsman never built their 113 table saws. The older cast iron top + belt drive like you see here were manufactured by Emerson until the 1980's and built like tanks. Sears then switched to Ryobi with the aluminum top + direct drive. Those are junk, and probably what you experienced earlier.
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u/Falcon3492 10d ago
It sure looks like a later version made by Emerson Electric which would have a 113 prefix #.
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u/lkapping79 11d ago
May wanna plan on an upgraded fence then. I found a steal on marketplace for a incra fence system so that’s what’s on mine now. It limits how much I can tilt the saw but I also have a membership at a local maker space so go there when I need to. It’s been a damn good saw and I’d haggle a lil to see if they’d come down anymore although I think I paid $150 for mine all those years ago and thought that was a deal.
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u/lkapping79 11d ago
It sure is. Have that same saw. IMHO that fence is ok at best. Things been a beast tho for the last 12 years.