# Grizzly g1023rl or 0690



## Ryan S (Feb 11, 2013)

Hello I am looking for input on which grizzly table saw to buy. I have several grizzly gift certificates I plan to use so the two for sure things are that it will be new and that it will be a grizzly. I have read many reviews and have also contacted grizzly. Both the 1023rl and 0690 have lots of positive reviews. I feel both will have plenty of power. Quality of the fence and ease of adjustment are both important to me. Would anyone be kind enough to offer their opinions? Thanks in advance for the help.


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## knotscott (Nov 8, 2007)

Hard to wrong with either....it's pretty much a coin toss. 

AFAIK, the G1023RL is a more updated design with a vertical elevation screw, dovetail ways, serpentine belt, dust shroud, is made in Taiwan, and the well proven Shop Fox Classic fence, but only has 26" rip in stock configuration. (You can easily slide the fence to the right for 36" rip though). The G0690 has a traditional triple v-belt drive, a different but similar fence with 30" rip (could go to 40"), is made in China, and an Asian made Leeson motor.


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## toolguy1000 (Oct 4, 2012)

+1 on KS's comments. having had an older unisaw, i'm partial to the 690 because it's three drive belts mimic what i had in a unisaw i once owned. they are both good values which, with proper care, will serve you for a long time.


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## mikeintexas (Oct 25, 2011)

I've never used the 1023RL but it definitely looks like a nice machine. I've owned the G0690 for about a year now and am very happy with it. It is a beast and even w/the included 40T blade goes thru 1.5" oak planks like butter. Being that this was the first TS I've owned, possibly this is my inexperience showing, but I thought the fence was a major PITA to set up.

Luckily, the blade was square to the miter slots from the factory. No issue there. But getting the fence parallel/even/square to blade took me many hours. Also, IMO the fence drags too much. It's not dragging on the table, it's just very "tight" on the front rail. Other TS's that I've used, you can easily "swish" the fence left and right with one hand. With mine it takes a firm push/tug to get it to move. If I loosen it up it goes out of square with the blade. That said, it makes perfectly square cuts and doesn't move, which I guess is the point. I honestly haven't put a whole lot of hours on the TS in the year I've owned it, and the majority of what I cut is plywood...not exactly "hard work" for it...so maybe it will loosen up with time. Or maybe it's supposed to be that way? Again, it's the only TS I've owned so I don't have too many other reference points.

Aside from my minor gripes about the fence I have only positive things to say about the 0690. Build quality is great, the finish on the cabinet is hardy and well done, control wheels spin smoothly and evenly, motor spins up in about half a second and has never bogged at all w/anything I've cut. It's a pleasure to use.

A different, but possibly meaningful note: The 0690 weighs only 30 pounds more than the 1023, yet costs $50 more to ship. That one puzzles me. Related to shipping: Grizzly packs their machines very well. Both my TS and BS were bolted to skids and the cardboard box surrounding them was practically bulletproof. The metal tables come slathered in nasty protective grease. It works really well, but sucks to remove. Buy a big can of WD40 and bag of rags and some disposable latex gloves and get ready to get greasy.

Hope this helps somewhat.  I don't think you can go wrong with either the 1023 or the 0690. There are very minor difference b/t the two; the 0690 has a few more inches of ripping capacity, the 1023's tables are 1/4" thicker...it's a toss up. I DO like the dust shroud under the 1023's blade. With the 0690 all the dust just falls into the bottom of the cabinet but not before covering all the mechanicals under the table.

Good luck with your decision. At least you win either way! :thumbup:


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## Ryan S (Feb 11, 2013)

Thanks everyone for the replies. Given that the 1023rl is about $75 cheaper delivered I am leaning towards it especially if the shop fox fence is "better" than the fence on the 0690. Any comments on the shop fox fence would be appreciated. Thanks!


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## mikeintexas (Oct 25, 2011)

I don't know how much different the 0690 fence is than the "standard Shop Fox fence." Hopefully others can chime in. I wouldn't say the 0690 fence is "bad" per se, it's just not what I expected on a $1.3K TS. I expected a "smooth as glass glide." But it's more like dragging a 20 pound weight. Again, the fence is rock solid, so it's neither here nor there. The 0690 is a solid machine and I'd buy it again. Though I DO really like that dust shroud on the 1023 and the $50 cheaper doesn't hurt either. For that $50 you can almost buy an nice Onsrud dado set off EBay (highly recommended, BTW).


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## WillemJM (Aug 18, 2011)

Ryan S said:


> Thanks everyone for the replies. Given that the 1023rl is about $75 cheaper delivered I am leaning towards it especially if the shop fox fence is "better" than the fence on the 0690. Any comments on the shop fox fence would be appreciated. Thanks!


Can't go wrong, I have the older 1023 ten years now, adjusted the belts once that is all. Kicker is I still use the original combination blade that came with it, never sharpened, still cuts glue-up quality and no tear out on ply. It has seen a lot of use. Never had a kick-back either. The fence is great and accurate and I have never needed more than the standard miter guage that came with it. If you set up correctly the tape measure on your fence is accurate. When I set it for instance on 3 1/32" I cut that dimension exactly.


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## Scomel Basses (Sep 13, 2012)

I'm struggling with this same decision. I believe I'm going with the 1023 because it's made in Taiwan, the single belt drive, the dust collection shroud, and the fact that the dust port is on the back as opposed to the right side which works better for how my shop is laid out. It seems the 690 and a ton of other saws are based on the proven design of the original unisaw. That would suggest that the 690 is a great saw which it is but it also seems that a lot of companies, including Delta, have updated their top of the line saws to a one belt system. So my thoughts are that the 1023 is a more modern design and an improvement on the old unisaw design. They are both great saws, one probably not better than the other.


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## knotscott (Nov 8, 2007)

mikeintexas said:


> ... Also, IMO the fence drags too much. It's not dragging on the table, it's just very "tight" on the front rail. Other TS's that I've used, you can easily "swish" the fence left and right with one hand. With mine it takes a firm push/tug to get it to move. If I loosen it up it goes out of square with the blade. That said, it makes perfectly square cuts and doesn't move, which I guess is the point. ...


You should be able to loosen that up a bit so that it slides, and still keep it square....it doesn't need to stay square when it slides. It just needs to be square when you clamp it down. The same symptoms exist with any steel Biese type t-square design. I use the cam clamp to sort of control the tension to get it closer to square just before I clamp it fully in place. 

A little wax on the top might help too, but don't wax the front and back edges that get clamped to.


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## mikeintexas (Oct 25, 2011)

Believe me, I've tried. If I loosen the rear clamping pads enough so that the fence slides freely, it either won't clamp square, or is then so loose on the rail that it won't "clamp down" and stay put. After putting probably 4-5 hours total into it, I've finally gotten it to a point where it's not too difficult to move, and clamps square. I almost welded the adjustment screws in place at that point. Maybe down the road I'll buy a better fence for it, but for now I'm good. I will however, try waxing the tops of the front/rear rails. It can't hurt.


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## feltonm (May 10, 2013)

I'm jumping into this discussion a little late but I just placed my order for the G0690 today! I expect to get it sometime late next week (I'm only 3 hours from their Springfield showroom/distro center). One question I have, does anyone put this type of saw on a mobile base? I'm a bit space constrained and I thought having it be (somewhat) mobile would be a plus. But, do you lose stability by putting it on a mobile base? I recently put my Rikon 10-350 bandsaw on a mobile base. I don't move it around much, but, if it wasn't on that base, it would NEVER move!

Any thoughts would be appreciated.


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## Scomel Basses (Sep 13, 2012)

Absolutely put it on a mobile base. Most bases wil allow you to lock the wheels or have some sort of mechanism that will keep the saw from moving. I would put it on a base before you completely assemble it, it's much easier.


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## MT Stringer (Jul 21, 2009)

Scomel Basses said:


> Absolutely put it on a mobile base. Most bases wil allow you to lock the wheels or have some sort of mechanism that will keep the saw from moving. I would put it on a base before you completely assemble it, it's much easier.


What he said.
My 1023RLW is on the Shop Fox mobile base advertised on the Grizzly site. Works just fine.


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## Mad Turner (Nov 12, 2012)

Ryan S said:


> Hello I am looking for input on which grizzly table saw to buy. I have several grizzly gift certificates I plan to use so the two for sure things are that it will be new and that it will be a grizzly. I have read many reviews and have also contacted grizzly. Both the 1023rl and 0690 have lots of positive reviews. I feel both will have plenty of power. Quality of the fence and ease of adjustment are both important to me. Would anyone be kind enough to offer their opinions? Thanks in advance for the help.


I spent weeks (maybe months) reading every review on the web regarding this same dilemma - Mostly on this site. Finally when I got my Income tax refund "the Boss" said "order the dang saw!!!!"

I changed back and forth but finally decided on the G1023RLX. It arrived literally in two (2) days from the date I placed my order. It is all set up & I couldn't be happier. I really like the router table since I have limited space in my shop. The fence is great, and will glide with very little effort. (I can move it with one finger). Also the dust collection is a much better design.


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## fire65 (Apr 27, 2013)

Had my 691 for about 3 weeks now and love it. I read all the reviews and picked this one because it had close to the same price and the extension table for cheaper than the 1023. It says the 1023 has better dust collection. 
The 691 has poor collection. One of my pros is I wanted the triple belt drive. The 1023 had the new poly belt system, I have no idea which is best. All I can speak for is my 691. I LOVE IT.


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## Mad Turner (Nov 12, 2012)

fire65 said:


> Had my 691 for about 3 weeks now and love it. I read all the reviews and picked this one because it had close to the same price and the extension table for cheaper than the 1023. It says the 1023 has better dust collection.
> The 691 has poor collection. One of my pros is I wanted the triple belt drive. The 1023 had the new poly belt system, I have no idea which is best. All I can speak for is my 691. I LOVE IT.


I also wanted the three belts because it was just the the Unisaw I used in school, which I loved. But then I read somewhere someone made the comparison to cars where all the cars today use a serpentine belt while they used to use multiple V belts years ago. All the carmakers can't be wrong.


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## onesojourner (Sep 13, 2013)

Mad Turner said:


> I spent weeks (maybe months) reading every review on the web regarding this same dilemma - Mostly on this site. Finally when I got my Income tax refund "the Boss" said "order the dang saw!!!!"
> 
> I changed back and forth but finally decided on the G1023RLX. It arrived literally in two (2) days from the date I placed my order. It is all set up & I couldn't be happier. I really like the router table since I have limited space in my shop. The fence is great, and will glide with very little effort. (I can move it with one finger). Also the dust collection is a much better design.


Thanks for the info on the fence. You may have just made my decision for me.


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## MattS (Feb 17, 2010)

Another vote for the G1023RL, I recently snagged one off Craigslist and am already getting lots of mileage out of it. Can't speak to the G0691, but I love mine!


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## onesojourner (Sep 13, 2013)

Just so everyone is aware the 690 is similar to the old 1023 with an added riving knife. The new 1023 is a complete redesign. The old 1023 and the 690 are unisaw copies.

I am going with the 691. Ultimately it came down to liking the fence better. I played with all the 1023 and 690s in the show room, and I went back over 3 days.


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