Miter saw

[Weekendworrior]

I see an awful lot of dewalts for sale on craigslist. Anyone want to chime in as to why?

 

[Hmerkle]

Solely my opinion, but these tend to be workhorses, typically in the contractor trade and there have been numerous models for someone to upgrade to so that creates a secondary market (pawnshops, Craigslist etc.)

I have had three versions that I bought used and found one I really like.

 

[JimD]

I doubt there is anything seriously wrong with them. As Hank points out, people get bored and want the latest and greatest. Depending on your pocket book, the Bosch Glide or the Kapek. Newer tools may be a bit nicer but that doesn't mean the older ones won't do the job.

I have a pretty new Hitachi 12 inch that will get a place on the new bench I'm making but I used an old "Pro-Tech" 10 inch over the weekend. It worked fine to cut up 2x4s and a 1x6. I'll keep the 15 year old Pro-Tech because it's lighter and easier to transport and for many things it is plenty good enough.

 

[patlaw]

If you want a bad Hitachi, I have one.

 

[Hmerkle]

If you want a bad Hitachi, I have one.

It has all to do with training when they are puppies...

 

[patlaw]

It has all to do with training when they are puppies...

That's Hibachi, not Hitachi.

 

[Jeremy Scuteri]

My guess is that DeWalt is probably one of the most common miter saws that people buy.

 

[Skymaster]

+1000000223457768 My de walt is close to 25 yrs old, ran thousands upon thousands of feet of trim on over a thousand houses and condos, still in my shop and running like new.

 

[CrealBilly]

Solely my opinion, but these tend to be workhorses, typically in the contractor trade and there have been numerous models for someone to upgrade to so that creates a secondary market (pawnshops, Craigslist etc.)

I have had three versions that I bought used and found one I really like.

Only 3 what's up with that?

Maybe the Fountain of Youth isn't a fountain at all. Maybe it's a way of looking at things. A way of thinking.

 

[Pop Golden]

This is a heads-up. I've heard rumors about the accuracy of the Bosch Glide saw. I thought this saw was the answer to prayer, but I may be wrong. Has anyone out there heard such? Has anybody had experience with this saw?

Pop

 

[Raymond]

This is a heads-up. I've heard rumors about the accuracy of the Bosch Glide saw. I thought this saw was the answer to prayer, but I may be wrong. Has anyone out there heard such? Has anybody had experience with this saw?

Pop

Here is what I have found on the 12" saw:

On Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-GCM12SD-120-Volt-12-Inch-Glide/dp/B004323NNC

On ConsumerSearch:
http://www.consumersearch.com/miter-saws/bosch-axial-glide-gcm12sd

Here is what I found on the 10" saw:

On Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-CM10GD-10-Inch-Bevel-15-Amp/dp/B00G5R4E9A

 

[ehpoole]

+1000000223457768 My de walt is close to 25 yrs old, ran thousands upon thousands of feet of trim on over a thousand houses and condos, still in my shop and running like new.

I have no use for a running saw, I can barely keep up with my stationary saws.

As others have said, DeWalt is one of the most popular manufacturers for miter saws, so it is only natural that they will make up a large percentage of the secondary market as well -- especially if they outlast many of the competing models (that get thrown away).

One of these days, when I get active in woodworking again, I'll add a Bosch Glide miter saw to my collection as that was my next planned upgrade. I pretty much devote my CC rewards to my equipment budget to help knock a few hundred off the price of new tools and test gear.

 

[JimD]

My Hitachi is a C12FDH I bought reconditioned for $150. The laser doesn't work any more and I had to put a new start switch in it earlier this year. It has a 80 tooth Hitachi blade on it. I don't know if it's the blade or something on the saw but there is a bit of runout on the blade. If I position the cut based upon the closest tooth and do not rotate the blade to check other positions, I could get a little shorter board than I wanted. But the effect is maybe 1/64 inch. If I am cutting to an accurate size, I position a stop and then use business cards against the stop to nibble up to size. So it doesn't affect me significantly. I should try changing the blade. I don't view my Hitachi as a terribly nice tool but it is, at least better than my old Pro-Tech. Both will cut things well when I give them a decent blade and position the work correctly under them. It's nice the Hitachi bevels both ways sometimes. For crosscuts within it's capacity (about 8 inches) I use it. For wider I use my even older Ryobi RAS. The Ryobi has it's issues but will, when I do my part, make cross cuts up to about 12 inches.

So I guess I am not real picky. I would have probably kept my old DeWalt if that is what I had instead of the Hitachi. The DeWalt tools I have I like well enough. I really like my DeWalt track saw.

Seems there is always a nicer brand or model. But when my tools do what I need them to, I tend to stick with them.

 

[Rick M]

I have 3 Delta miter saws, make you a deal on any or all. One sounds like a cat on fire but it's accurate.

 

[jazzflute]

This is a heads-up. I've heard rumors about the accuracy of the Bosch Glide saw. I thought this saw was the answer to prayer, but I may be wrong. Has anyone out there heard such? Has anybody had experience with this saw?

Pop

This post may not be very helpful, as it doesn't quote any rumors, forum posts, online reviews, magazine articles, or 'this guy I know who knows this guy'. I only have one source of information.

I just own one.

I make picture frames on it and don't have to shoot the miters because the come off the saw (using a 100 tooth 12" Freud Diablo blade) accurate enough for assembly as-is.

Like any saw, if you pull hard on it laterally as you chop down, it will indeed deflect a little. So my advice is: Don't do that. The only thing that is bad about the saw is the dust collection, which doesn't. Which makes it just like any other SCMS except the Kapex.

if you want to try it, feel free to stop by my shop sometime.

K

 

[JimD]

If you look at the Festool Owners forum you will find complaints about the lifetime of Kapex too. With what it costs, that would concern me if I wanted to spend that much (and I don't). Overall the Bosch Glide saw reviews are positive. If there are enough reviews of anything, at least a few will be negative. Possibly they should be, all manufacturers build a "bad one" at least occasionally. I could come a lot closer to justifying $600 on the Bosch than I can $1200 for the Kapex.

 

[zzdodge]

This is a heads-up. I've heard rumors about the accuracy of the Bosch Glide saw. I thought this saw was the answer to prayer, but I may be wrong. Has anyone out there heard such? Has anybody had experience with this saw?

Pop

I recently looked into this saw, as I liked the ability to put it up close to a wall. One woodwork personality who I ran it by said that a school he was working at had one, and quickly retired it as it would not repeat accurate cuts. Frankly I was surprised. Then I got my hands on a new one that a contractor friend got. The 12" version. I make some cuts two weeks ago on 2x that he had at the job site I stopped by at. Indeed, there is significant (1/8"? did not measure it) slop, and this saw is out of the box two weeks before I played with it, and had not been dropped, etc. The unit is rugged, but it is not "tight." A disappointment for me. I still lug my 50# Delta cast iron miter around for projects, and can't find anything that has me wanting to switch...as much as I am ready to.

PM me if you want the snippets from the reference I mentioned.

 

[jazzflute]

I recently looked into this saw, as I liked the ability to put it up close to a wall. One woodwork personality who I ran it by said that a school he was working at had one, and quickly retired it as it would not repeat accurate cuts. Frankly I was surprised. Then I got my hands on a new one that a contractor friend got. The 12" version. I make some cuts two weeks ago on 2x that he had at the job site I stopped by at. Indeed, there is significant (1/8"? did not measure it) slop, and this saw is out of the box two weeks before I played with it, and had not been dropped, etc. The unit is rugged, but it is not "tight." A disappointment for me. I still lug my 50# Delta cast iron miter around for projects, and can't find anything that has me wanting to switch...as much as I am ready to.

PM me if you want the snippets from the reference I mentioned.

Maybe they are having QA problems, but my saw is dead-repeatable. I use a zero clearance insert/base for it in order to make precise cuts, and after hundreds of cuts, the kerf in the insert is still the same width as the blade. I don't think I could even strong-arm it to be off by an entire blade width! (1/8") That is QUITE a lot of error!

K

 

[zzdodge]

Maybe they are having QA problems, but my saw is dead-repeatable. I use a zero clearance insert/base for it in order to make precise cuts, and after hundreds of cuts, the kerf in the insert is still the same width as the blade. I don't think I could even strong-arm it to be off by an entire blade width! (1/8") That is QUITE a lot of error!

K

Kevin, If a light pressure, say 10# deflected the blade 0.030" I would expect that. Instead it was more than 1/8" probably good enough for framers, but certainly not for trim carpentry. Sounds like they are having consistency problems. I am glad I tried it myself, because I didn't expect what I found. Not from Bosch, Dewalt, Makita, or any of the good tool companies.

 

[chris_goris]

This post may not be very helpful, as it doesn't quote any rumors, forum posts, online reviews, magazine articles, or 'this guy I know who knows this guy'. I only have one source of information.

I just own one.

I make picture frames on it and don't have to shoot the miters because the come off the saw (using a 100 tooth 12" Freud Diablo blade) accurate enough for assembly as-is.

Like any saw, if you pull hard on it laterally as you chop down, it will indeed deflect a little. So my advice is: Don't do that. The only thing that is bad about the saw is the dust collection, which doesn't. Which makes it just like any other SCMS except the Kapex.

if you want to try it, feel free to stop by my shop sometime.

K

I too own one of these. I have had it for about 6 months and use it almost daily. I was VERY impress the cut mitering 5/4 maple 8" across. The joint was tight and at a perfect 90 degree angle. And that was with the factory blade, I have since installed a Forrest blade on it. Kevin is spot on, sure you can deflect the blade by twisting it etc, but as he says, "dont do that"…I also have had zero repeatability problems