I agree that the 21833 and 22114 have very different designs and different feature sets. They’re in roughly the same overall category of saw (full size home duty stationary saw), and the main tables are pretty similar size, but otherwise they don’t have much else in common. The 22114 is an old enough design that it doesn’t sport a modern riving knife like the 21833 and newer 22116. I think it’s confusing to newbies to state that these saws are similar without pointing out the significant differences.

I have always explained the difference between a contractors saw and a cabinet saw this way: If you do remodeling, house construction … that type of work you normally only work to 1/8 inch accuracy. (That’s why tape measures generally only go to 1/8 inch) So a contractor’s saw will work fine. If you want to build fine furniture or make small intricate jewelery boxes, etc. a contractors saw is not accurate enough and you should go with a medium priced ($1500 to $3000) cabinet saw.

When I think of the contractor’s saws over the years, they all tend to be rugged saws that are used for home construction, and rough work like building shipping containers, warehouse shelving, etc. They were designed to last. None of the saws in this class were ever designed for the accuracy for fine wordworking.

The 21833 fits this definition exactly. It is a great saw for home remodeling, building an outdoor shed, picket fence, paneling your basement, etc. With the table mounted trunion it is stable and will give you the same cuts all the time. But if you want a extremely accurate saw, spend more money and buy a saw with cabinet mounted trunions. This type of saw will enable you to tweak the saw for accuracy depending on where your saw is located, the humidity and the temperature.

I had the previous version of the 21833 (I think it was a 22124) and recently sold it off. I am getting good enough in my wood butchering that I needed a more accurate saw.

Thanks

Your reference to portable jobsite saws as contractor saws is incorrect. It’s not an uncommon occurence though, and is easy to understand the cause of because portable jobsite saws are what the majority of actual contractors use in the field these days. The traditional contractor saw is a full size cast iron saw with a belt drive induction motor that hangs out the back for easy removal, and easier transport compared to a cabinet saw, which was one of the few alternatives available when the contractor saw was developed. It’s a 60 year old design that has become largely obsolete due in part to the evolution of the modern portable jobsite saws like the Bosch 4001, Ridgid 4510, DeWalt DW744, etc., that have direct drive universal motors and plastic housings…these were incorrectly referenced as “contractor saws”. The portable jobsite saws are far more portable than the former contractor saws, and have essentially replaced the traditional contractor saw on the jobsite, which in turn has made the true contractor saw title sort of a misnomer.

There other inaccuracy that I think is worth noting is the mention of the similarities between the Craftsman 22114 and Craftsman 21833. Main table size, duty rating, general duty classification, and the logo are the main similaries, but under the hood they are very different machines, with different designs, different key features, and different manufacturers. The 22114 was manufactured by Steel City/Orion and features full yoke style cabinet mounted trunnions that span the width of the cabinet. They’re large, easy to reach, and easy to align. The cabinet mounted trunnions of the 22114 also feature a set of connecting rods between the trunnion brackets as an arbor carriage. It weighs in at a fairly impressive 385 pounds, 120 pounds heavier than the 21833, which is a full 45% heavier. In comparison, the 21833 (made by Dayton AFAIK) features much smaller table mounted trunnions that are far harder to reach, and harder to align. The 21833 arbor carriage has a more elegant one piece cast blade shroud that’s more similar to what’s found on the 22116 granite top saw by Steel City/Orion. The 22114 has solid cast iron wings vs the steel wings of the 21833, and the 21833 features a modern riving knife vs the traditional splitter on the 22114.

That’s all…make some dust and enjoy!