[knotscott]

IMO Grizzly represents the best bang for the buck in the marketplace. The vast majority of bigger Grizzly machines are very competitive with other Asian imports like Jet, Rikon, General International, Steel City, some PM, some Delta, some Laguna, Craftex, King Industrial, and others....their table saws are especially well regarded. In some cases, the tools even come from the same factory as other more expensive brands. If you're willing to be your own middleman, and forego the dealer support from PM and Jet, the savings come by way of by cutting out the dealer profit. As with any tool, it's best to research and compare the specific tool in question, but many, many of the Grizzly machines are more than suitable for fine woodworking.

The Griz G0690 or G1023RL are clearly a step up in class from the PM64B hybrid IMO....more mass, more power, more rugged design and construction. If you've got 220v, without question I'd take the step up to more saw. If you don't have 220v, I'd opt for a Saw Stop contractor saw or 1.75hp PCS over the PM64B that doesn't have the safety technology.

 

[knotscott]

Jet Deluxe Xacta 3hp and PM2000 3hp 30 inch table models are almost the same saw. The table on the PM is a little larger, 22x30 1/2 vs 20x29 on the Jet, the motor is a little weaker 13 amps vs. 14.5. The PM2000 is $700 more then the Jet. The 5HP 50 inch models are similar with the motor reversed, the Jet is 18 amps and the PM is 21. The PM is $1100 more then the Jet. When you add in that I could get a good discount on the Jet and I couldn't get any discount on the PM, I just didn't see the extra cost in the PM and got the Jet 5 HP model, which is actually a true 3 hp saw. Hell, I think the Jet is over priced but I really liked some of it's features over the Grizzly.

If you check under the hood, you'll see that the Jet and PM are not the same saw....the Jet is much more similar to the G0690 than the PM2000.

G0690:

 

[knotscott]

My experience is with Laguna, and from what I heard they offer a good bit of quality for less than the cost of a Powermatic. I had a small jet band saw and was not happy with how several parts seemed flimsy feeling. Most of it was cosmetic stuff, end caps popping off in my hands and such. I spent $1,200 for my Laguna 14 | 12 and with a 1 3/4 hp motor its well worth it.

It varies by model...these saws came from the same factory, have the same design, and use the same parts: