Craftsman Table Saw Review: What the CMXETAX69434502 Gets Right (and Wrong)

Craftsman only sells one table saw right now: the CMXETAX69434502, a 15-amp corded jobsite saw with a folding steel stand. It’s not a cabinet saw, it isn’t sold on Amazon, and it has a couple of known weak points worth knowing before you spend $199 on it. Here’s what the spec sheet doesn’t tell you, and what Craftsman table saw parts and blades are actually worth buying separately.

The Short Answer

The CMXETAX69434502 is a reasonable $199 jobsite saw for someone who needs to rip plywood and 2x lumber occasionally and doesn’t want to spend DeWalt or Bosch money. It is not a saw for cabinetry-grade joinery, and two of its safety components (the riving knife and the rip fence lock) have real, documented shortcomings covered below.

Craftsman’s Brand History, Briefly

Craftsman isn’t a Sears brand anymore. Stanley Black & Decker bought the Craftsman name from Sears Holdings in a deal that closed on March 9, 2017, worth roughly $900 million, with royalty payments to Sears continuing through 2032. Sears itself filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy the following year. That matters for a table saw review because it explains two things buyers keep running into: older “Craftsman” table saws from the Sears era (orange-and-black models made by Emerson Electric or Ryobi under license) are a completely different product line from the current gray-and-red Stanley Black & Decker tools, and current Craftsman power tools are sold through Lowe’s, Ace Hardware, and Craftsman.com, not through Sears or, in the table saw’s case, Amazon.

The Current Model: CMXETAX69434502 Specs

As of this update, Craftsman’s table saw lineup is a single SKU. Here’s what’s actually on the spec sheet:

• Motor: 15-amp, 120V corded, roughly 5,000 RPM no-load
• Blade: 10-inch carbide-tipped, 5/8″ arbor
• Table: Cast aluminum, 27-3/8″ x 21-7/8″
• Rip capacity: 12″ to the right of the blade, 10″ to the left
• Stand: Folding steel roll cage, collapses for storage/transport
• Warranty: 3 years
• Price: Around $199 at Lowe’s and Craftsman.com

That puts it squarely against the SKIL TS6307-00 and the entry tier of the DeWalt DWE7491RS category on paper, but at a noticeably lower price than either. The tradeoff is build quality: several components on the CMXETAX69434502, including the blade guard assembly and parts of the fence rail, are plastic or lighter-gauge stamped metal rather than the machined aluminum and steel you’d find on the DeWalt.

The Rip Fence: Where It Actually Disappoints

The rip fence uses a front cam-lock lever, and the recurring complaint from owners is locking pressure: when you push the lever down to lock the fence, it can shift the fence a hair as the cam reaches full engagement. On a $600 saw that’s a return; on a $199 saw it’s a known quirk you work around by locking the fence, then nudging it back to your mark and re-locking before you make a cut that has to be dead-on. It’s not a dealbreaker for framing and shop projects, but if you’re building cabinetry where a 1/32″ is the difference between a good joint and a gap, plan on double-checking every rip.

The Riving Knife Issue You Should Actually Understand

This is the part most spec-sheet reviews skip. The riving knife is the curved metal blade behind the saw blade that’s supposed to keep the kerf open so wood can’t pinch the blade and kick back at you. On the CMXETAX69434502, the riving knife’s height is user-adjustable, and it can be lowered well below the top of the blade, or removed for certain cuts. That’s normal on most saws in this price range, but it means the anti-kickback protection is only as good as whoever last set it. If a previous owner (or a previous project) left the knife low or off, the saw’s single most important safety feature is doing nothing. Before your first cut, and any time you’re not sure, check that the riving knife is raised to within about 1/8″ of the blade’s height and reinstalled after blade changes. It’s a 30-second check that the manual buries and most reviews don’t mention.

Why You Won’t Find the Saw Itself on Amazon

If you searched Amazon for “Craftsman table saw” expecting to buy the CMXETAX69434502 there, you won’t find it. Craftsman sells the saw exclusively through Lowe’s, Ace Hardware, and Craftsman.com. What Amazon does carry is a large parts ecosystem for it: replacement throat plates, push-button switches, blade guards, and factory blades like the CMAS21040 above, all sold by third parties. That’s a real, verifiable gap worth knowing before you go looking — and one reason a lot of “Craftsman table saw” roundups on other sites end up recommending a DeWalt or SKIL instead, without saying so plainly.

Older Craftsman Table Saws: A Different Animal

If you inherited or bought used a Sears-era Craftsman table saw (contractor saws with cast-iron tops and belt-drive motors, sold roughly through 2017), you’re dealing with a different manufacturer entirely, usually Emerson Electric or Ryobi built under license, not Stanley Black & Decker. Parts for those older saws are a mix of NOS Sears stock and reproduction parts from third-party sellers, and compatibility depends heavily on the exact model number stamped on the saw’s data plate, not just “Craftsman.” If that’s your saw, our guide to older Craftsman table saws and our Craftsman 10-inch table saw parts guide cover what to check before you buy replacement parts.

Dust Collection and Dado Compatibility

Two things buyers regularly ask about that aren’t obvious from the box: dust collection and dado stacks. The CMXETAX69434502 has a 2-1/2″ dust port at the rear of the cabinet, but with no enclosed lower cabinet, a shop vac connected to that port will still only catch somewhere around half the dust a cut throws, the rest ends up on the floor and the table. If you’re cutting indoors regularly, budget for a cheap dust collection attachment or plan on sweeping. As for dado stacks, the saw’s arbor is a standard 5/8″, but Craftsman doesn’t officially rate this model for dado blades, and the stock throat plate isn’t a dado insert. Some owners run a stacked dado set anyway with an aftermarket zero-clearance dado plate, but that’s outside the manufacturer’s intended use, and the riving knife has to come off to do it, which reintroduces the kickback risk covered above. If dado joinery is a regular part of your projects, this isn’t the saw to build that workflow around.

Who the CMXETAX69434502 Actually Makes Sense For

This saw fits a narrow, specific buyer: someone who needs a portable table saw for occasional jobsite or garage use, mostly ripping plywood and dimensional lumber, on a tight budget, who already owns other Craftsman tools and wants matching batteries or a familiar warranty process. If you’re doing furniture-grade joinery, cutting a lot of sheet goods for cabinetry, or need dado stack compatibility, the DeWalt DWE7491RS or a benchtop saw with a better fence system is worth the extra cost. If you just need to break down a few sheets of plywood a couple times a year, the Craftsman does that job for less money than almost anything else on the market.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Craftsman still make table saws?

Yes, but only one model right now: the CMXETAX69434502, a 15-amp, 10-inch jobsite saw with a folding stand, sold through Lowe’s and Craftsman.com for about $199.

Can you buy a Craftsman table saw on Amazon?

No. Amazon carries replacement parts, switches, and blades for Craftsman table saws, but not the CMXETAX69434502 saw itself. It’s sold exclusively through Lowe’s, Ace Hardware, and Craftsman.com.

Is the Craftsman table saw’s riving knife safe?

It’s effective when set correctly, but it’s user-adjustable and can be lowered below the blade or removed. Check that it’s raised to within about 1/8″ of the blade height and reinstalled after any blade change; a low or missing riving knife significantly increases kickback risk.

Is Craftsman owned by Stanley Black & Decker?

Yes. Stanley Black & Decker bought the Craftsman brand from Sears Holdings in a deal that closed March 9, 2017. Sears filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy the following year. Current Craftsman tools are made and sold independently of Sears.

What blade fits the Craftsman CMXETAX69434502?

The saw ships with a 10-inch carbide-tipped blade on a 5/8″ arbor. The genuine factory replacement is the CRAFTSMAN CMAS21040, a 40-tooth general-purpose blade with the same 5/8″ arbor.

Bottom Line

The Craftsman CMXETAX69434502 is a budget jobsite table saw that does what a $199 saw should do: it rips plywood and dimensional lumber reasonably well, folds up for storage, and carries a 3-year warranty. It isn’t a precision cabinetry tool, its fence needs a re-check after every lock, and its riving knife only protects you if it’s actually set correctly. Know those two things going in, buy the genuine CMAS21040 blade when the stock one dulls, and it’s a fair budget pick, just not a saw to expect cabinet-grade accuracy from out of the box.