How Taikra researches a tool

Specifications come from the maker

Motor, voltage and current, blade and cutting capacities, table and fence sizes, airflow, tank size, dimensions and weight are taken only from the maker's own website, specification sheet or manual. Each row in a specification table links to the source it came from, and the note under the table gives the date we read the maker's specifications.

Retailer listings are not used as sources for specifications. Retailers often copy, round or mix up figures between models, so a figure found only on a retailer page is left out.

We print a maker's figure in the maker's own units and wording. When two pages on a maker's site disagree, or we cannot find a figure again on the maker's own page when we check it, we leave it out.

Comparisons use the same figures

Comparison pages set two tools side by side using exactly the figures on their tool pages. We pair tools that the makers' own figures put in the same class: saws with the same blade diameter, planers with a similar cutting width, dust collectors with a similar stated airflow. A dash in a cell means the figure is not on the maker pages we cite.

Guides cite makers and recognised bodies

Our guides draw on makers' manuals and published specifications, and on standards and government bodies. Each paragraph that states a fact links to its source.

Owner reports

Where a page summarises what owners report, the summary says how many reports it rests on and from how many places. We publish one only when at least 10 independent reports from at least 2 separate places agree, and we label it as a summary of reports. It is never presented as a trial of our own.

What we never publish

• Any claim that we have put a tool through trials of our own, and any score or ranking of our own.
• Claims about what a tool does to your body, of any kind.
• Estimated or "typical" figures in place of a maker's published one.
• Safety instructions of our own. A maker's safety feature or requirement is quoted and cited.
• A retailer's price. The only price we show is the price the maker's own site showed in US dollars, with the maker's domain and the date we read it. Prices change; the seller's page is the one to trust at checkout.

Corrections

If a figure is wrong, or a maker has changed a model, write to us from the contact page. We check the maker's current page and correct the entry.