I am considering a sliding compound miter saw purchase. The one I had has died and I am looking to replace it. Not looking for top o the line but more mid range area. Any recommendations?
sliding miter saw.
- Thread starter Mark Stewart
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I recently bought a Makita 8" for job site work as it is very portable. It also has a brake and a quality guard making it safer. I bought it locally for around $300
I hate to bad mouth other people's equipment as the best tool for you is the one that does what you want it to do. That being said, I had the Hitachi 8" version of the saw in the link above. It was a piece of junk. I gave it away to a guy who's good with cutting accurately within a 1/4". If you decide to buy the Hitachi, make sure you check it out thoroughly first, and buy it from a dealer that has a liberal return policy. It seems that Hitachi SCMS are hit or miss.
I should add to my earlier post that I do not own a sliding compound miter saw -- I have a non-slider -- a 12" Porter-Cable Saw that cuts true that I bought back in 2006 or 7. It is my go-to saw for most crosscuts under 7" in cut length. I use my table saw with a sled for larger crosscutting.
My son has the 12" Hitachi sliding saw. When I say its a beast I mean it. Its big, heavy and tough to move around if portability is on your list of needs. If you want to keep it in one place-- its a very handy tool. In truth it renders my radial arm saw obsolete.
Bouncing a saw around in the back of a pickup truck will put any saw out of alignment. If you are doing close tolerance work, you need to tweek it to get it just right.
Some serious considerations if you go up to 12"
1. the arbor is not 5/8" and that introduces a different blade pattern and cost
2. the tool is heavy
3 be prepared to make several replacement bases for the plastic insert in the cut slot. With all the tllt work cuts you will tear up the cheap plastic factory insert. Not tough but it will come.
I have a Dewalt 10" non slider. It has surprised me as a tough little box. I do want to get a slider. From my research, I want the 10" for my work. The 8" limits the slide function a bit too much for what I like to do. Just me.
Now if you have lots of money.... nothing is equal to the Bosch for performance and space. If you are on a budget but you want to make one purchase and move on, the Makita seems like the best value for the money at the 10" level. Its a well made saw and it has some nicer features than the Dewalt in my view. The standard shaft on a 10" or 8" make it easier and cheaper to find blades for the saws. That's worth considering on your big purchase.
Its always a tough moment to make a final decision when there are so many tools out there. I think I'm a little bias with Makita stuff since I have had good luck with all of the stuff made by them.
Good Luck on your search
Dan
Bouncing a saw around in the back of a pickup truck will put any saw out of alignment. If you are doing close tolerance work, you need to tweek it to get it just right.
Some serious considerations if you go up to 12"
1. the arbor is not 5/8" and that introduces a different blade pattern and cost
2. the tool is heavy
3 be prepared to make several replacement bases for the plastic insert in the cut slot. With all the tllt work cuts you will tear up the cheap plastic factory insert. Not tough but it will come.
I have a Dewalt 10" non slider. It has surprised me as a tough little box. I do want to get a slider. From my research, I want the 10" for my work. The 8" limits the slide function a bit too much for what I like to do. Just me.
Now if you have lots of money.... nothing is equal to the Bosch for performance and space. If you are on a budget but you want to make one purchase and move on, the Makita seems like the best value for the money at the 10" level. Its a well made saw and it has some nicer features than the Dewalt in my view. The standard shaft on a 10" or 8" make it easier and cheaper to find blades for the saws. That's worth considering on your big purchase.
Its always a tough moment to make a final decision when there are so many tools out there. I think I'm a little bias with Makita stuff since I have had good luck with all of the stuff made by them.
Good Luck on your search
Dan
Speaking of lots of money, the Kapex KS120 is pretty good, too.
That's not lots of money ... that's lots and lots and lots of money for a tool. 1500.00 for a sliding chop saw?
If I was doing trim work most of my work week, I would get a double tilt Bosch.
I would need a craftsman and not a salesman to convince me that I needed a Kapex 120. The Kapex at that price would have to do something the Bosch could not do in a pinch. I'm wondering what ??
I'm not a tool collector Mike. If its expensive and I make money with it I'm in. If its a fun to own sit in the corner tool to show my friends... nah.
By mid range, I assume you're referring to cost, not quality, right?
I find its better to study several reviews by people who have actually compared them rather than ask on a forum because you will get very skewed and limited in scope. Fine Woodworking & Popular WW both have reviews available online for several SCMS's. As I recall, the Ridgid would be worth a check. It got good reviews and could be in your price range.
I find its better to study several reviews by people who have actually compared them rather than ask on a forum because you will get very skewed and limited in scope. Fine Woodworking & Popular WW both have reviews available online for several SCMS's. As I recall, the Ridgid would be worth a check. It got good reviews and could be in your price range.
I saw an on-line review where they compared sawdust collection of non-Kapek saws and the Ridgid came out very well. I would look at it if I was in the market. Their warranty is good too.
I haven't tested my theory yet but I think the dust collection of the non Festool saws can be improved by the addition of the dust chute from the Kapek. I plan to buy one and try it on my Hitachi 12 inch non-slider. One reason I think this is the Youtubes where people do something to the dust chute and get significantly better dust pickup. If it is this simple, however, I wonder why the other manufacturers don't just do it.
Dust pickup is one thing the Bosch glide saws get dinged for.
I haven't tested my theory yet but I think the dust collection of the non Festool saws can be improved by the addition of the dust chute from the Kapek. I plan to buy one and try it on my Hitachi 12 inch non-slider. One reason I think this is the Youtubes where people do something to the dust chute and get significantly better dust pickup. If it is this simple, however, I wonder why the other manufacturers don't just do it.
Dust pickup is one thing the Bosch glide saws get dinged for.
Not to worry I don't have a table saw lol
Mark I'm not using my chopsaw to cut picture frames but a clean cut is nice. From some reading I've done from time to time it seems like the best performance comes with a dedicated crosscut blade. Lots of teeth. I tried a 10" freud blade with 60 or more teeth and it seems to do a great job. Now I am lazy at times and I do "just one cut" thru some pressure treated lumber and sure as the sun rises in east, the teeth have crud on them. That does not make it cut better. I'm still learning... the hard way.
I used to cut all kinds of wood with one blade on my bandsaw and found out the importance of keeping the teeth clean. Recently, I had a friend bring some old growth yellow pine in for some resaw cuts. My new carbide blade was covered with tar. It took lots of time to clean it up. Next time my little buddy asks to cut that I will tell him its on my teak list and I don't do it any more.
There are lots of cross cut blades out there you'll just have to find one in your price range that suits your needs. I hear lots of positive feedback on the Infinity blades so that might be worth a look.
Dan
I used to cut all kinds of wood with one blade on my bandsaw and found out the importance of keeping the teeth clean. Recently, I had a friend bring some old growth yellow pine in for some resaw cuts. My new carbide blade was covered with tar. It took lots of time to clean it up. Next time my little buddy asks to cut that I will tell him its on my teak list and I don't do it any more.
There are lots of cross cut blades out there you'll just have to find one in your price range that suits your needs. I hear lots of positive feedback on the Infinity blades so that might be worth a look.
Dan
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