Wish I bought the #744x that it would seem does 24" cuts or it was available at Lowes. Instead I bought the DW745 that only has a rip fence sufficient for 16" cuts and cross cuts with its bevel gauge bairly sufficient to hold a 1x4 or 2x4.
Used it over the weekend but not for cutting plywood sheets in larger than 16" cuts. Instead it was the Delta Worm drive used with plywood and guide clamped to the table for those cuts.
Suppose in a way, I wanted a really small table saw for my garage so as to when not in use store under the work table and it will be minimumly sufficient for my needs for cutting stuff the bench mounted DeWalt chop saw won't. On the other hand, for a 16" cut - though I don't as much like sliding miter boxes, I could have just bought one of them to do what this one does. Just don't like the concept of a power miter box or any saw including a radial arm saw that should one not pay attention or run into a problem walk up on you in a direction one is not sufficiently used to. You are either ready for a chopping action or a blade walking to you, not both thus my avoidance of a saw that does both even with years of training.
Hmm, remember good times with a properly set and wire rope clamped so it stays there radial arm saw that even has a dado blade set on it, this much less a proper for the radial arm saw, if not even a blad specifically designed for such a tool. Eawy stop block, easy furnature type stuff built, much less production line cutting on a large scale. Good old time Delta type or even Craftsman type saws for such tools either industrial or clamped so they are locked to 90 degrees.
Still, I have good blades which do help left over from my Delta Contractor II. The blade was not the issue. $75.00 saw blades even in them being really good blades for use with it. More in reading the manual that my dado blades were not specified for use with the tool - though I am fairly sure it is more a blade guard thing than actual tool problem.
Still for a home owner grade tool I see this as, why the $300.00+ price for it over that of a tool shop or what ever brand $100.00 price? Just don't get it for what I got.
For what theaters should be using or those that have more than a one car garage, I would say Delta, Jet, even Powermatic, if not Freud and other brands no doubt are better. Loved my Delta Contractor II, (a little under-powered for production use but really good saw overall.) Had it on a portable base that could wheel it out of the way - though always a bad idea. It as with even industrial fences was sufficient though much improved by an after market fence and table assembly. Most table saws with their side supports worth their weight in gold also will mount a router so it is also a router table.
I'm thinking that a belt driven saw with stand that comes with it for a scene shop is minimum. After that an industrial base mount and not portable optimum. After that you get into after market
safety guards, fences and even saw stop mechanisms. This plus always a good saw blade and the proper saw blade for what is being cut.