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Thread: Just Curious - Cordless Circular Saws?

  1. #1
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    Just Curious - Cordless Circular Saws?

    Watching This Old House, I saw a carpenter using a battery powered circular saw.

    I have battery powered drills, but my saws are tailed. I had a 6" and an 8" Porter Cable saws.
    They were my dads, one of my sons have them now. The 8" saw is almost scary to use, when you pull
    the switch, it will really jump. I still have a 6" circular saw, but only occasionally need it. I have it and I will keep it.

    My question is do framing carpenters really use battery powered saws? I think you would still need tpoles
    when building a house.

  2. #2
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    They all have one but they rarely use it. My son is left handed and he prefers his worm drive skill saw.

  3. #3
    Weve never found a cordless saw thats worth its weight but that said I cant say we chased the option very heavily. Saws seem to be the first thing to suffer in an average kit when the batteries start to weaken. They run slower and slower (and they are slow to begin with). They are handy for an odd cut here or there, or climbing up somewhere for a single cut but other than that they havent been of any use to us.

    We about swore off cordless tools all together several years back simply due to aging batteries, and constantly having to pack 3-4 batteries in your belt when you take off with a cordless drill (no major advantage over stringing a cord). That said, we bought out a guy's tool collection who was injured in a car wreck and wound up with an arsenal of Makita LXT tools and about 25 batteries. The haul included several impact drivers. Those see daily use all day, every day. Cordless impact drivers have been a game changer for us in the shop and the field but the circular saws and sawzalls in our experience are just about useless. Our corldess sawzalls are relegated to footer drains (pvc) and plumbing. Not useful for much else.

  4. #4
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    A cordless is certainly handy in certain situations especially remodeling. But I would never only have a cordless.

  5. #5
    I'm a carpenter that does a wide scope of work from framing to finishing. I would never not have a corded circular saw available on a job site, but there are times when a battery powered saw can really come in handy. I was recently given a 6 1/2" Makita cordless saw. Like Neil said above, remodeling is a good reason to have one as well as working up on a roof deck. I wouldn't rip framing lumber with a battery saw, but cross cuts and plywood cuts can be just fine. Sometimes it is way more convenient to grab the battery saw instead of snaking 200' of ext cord to the roof to make some cuts.

    So in short, they are handy for back up, tight/awkward situations, or obviously where power isn't readily/easily available. Not a substitution for a corded saw for framing, IMO.

  6. #6
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    Actually, the saw I have now is a 7 1/4" .

    It is a good compromise between 6" and 8".

  7. #7
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    I have an old Crafstman 19.2V cordless saw with a 5-1/2" blade. I often grab it when I don't want to drag around an extension cord. And it is probably 1/3 the weight of my worm drive saw. Sure, it has a lot less power so you have to know its limits.

    I've never tested how long the battery lasts, but it would do at least 3-4 long cuts through 3/4" plywood on a single charge, maybe more.

    Steve

  8. #8
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    I had a Bosch 18v cordless, don't remember the model number, but it struggled with 3/4" plywood. Sold it on CL, to a guy who wanted it to "fill out his Bosch collection." Whatever.

  9. #9
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    I used to have a cordless saw.It was very handy for doing small shake roofs at Disney Land.It was nearly impossible to get a spider box within a 200 ft.
    I used it to cut the top two rows at the ridge off.Very handy but super small roofs.
    I did many or the roofs at the California adventure park when they first opened.Batterys surly have gotten better since then.
    Aj

  10. #10
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    I am a full time carpenter for a living. I use Milwaukee M18 Fuel cordless impact drivers,drill ,sawzall, and circular saw. The circ saw I have uses a 7 1/4 blade with the blade on the right side just like my corded saws. We use it constantly,just yesterday I used it to rip two ten foot 2x10s . The sawzall is also used alot,good tool as well. The impacts we could not function without they are used daily. I would say that these tools are definitely not going to replace all my corded tools,however they work well. It is real nice to be able to work on a site forming footings without having to listen to my generator. Mike.

  11. #11
    Modern battery technology is much better than just a few years ago. Dewalts cordless miter saw will very likely get through a day of framing on a single battery. With newer quick chargers, changing out a battery one or twice is still more convenient than dealing with cords. My cordless mower will mow my lawn, about 1000 sf, 5 or 6 times between charges.

  12. #12
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    I agree with Johnny...today's cordless tools have come a long way. That said, my personal view is that cordless cutting tools are a valuable addition to someone's "bag of tricks" and not necessarily going to completely usurp corded tools for heavy use. They are bringing efficiency to many operations since they are "more portable" and easier to use in some situations, such as up high for a few cuts when dealing with a cord might bring more safety concerns, etc. As battery technology continues to soar to new heights, cordless will likely become even more mainstream, however, and more and more displace corded tools, even for heavier work.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  13. #13
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    I built 20 or so houses back in the 60's. The responses in this string do not surprise me.
    I would be surprised if they were different. Back in the day, the first thing I did when starting
    the forms for a house was to set a t-pole and call the power company.

    I suspect a trim carpenter might use one, but I had some subs bring a table saw and set up
    when starting Job built cabinets. I think I remember when cabinet plywood was a full 3/4" thick.
    I had a hissy fit the first time I had to settle for 11/16" thick, or was it 23/32".

    If I were building today, I would probably have both corded and cordless saws.

    OBTW, I quit building when the interest rates at the bank hit 20%.
    Last edited by lowell holmes; 08-20-2017 at 11:21 PM.

  14. #14
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    I am doing fixture installs for a national company on new stores. We fly around to different states and I found it easier to carry all cordless tools, with one exception. My cordless tools include a 6" Milwaukee 18v circular saw. We use it to cut panels and aluminum on every install. Before buying one, I tried a Dremel saw, but it didn't last. I tried a Rotozip for the panels, but kept breaking the bits. Finally just settled on the circular saw. The only corded tool we carry is a Milwaukee hammer drill for putting Tapcons in place. We frequently do not have power on site for the first couple of days, so have to borrow an outlet from a nearby store to charge batteries. The Tapcons could be put in place by the GC or someone else if we cannot get power by the last day.

    Yes, the saw burns through batteries faster than the other tools, but will still give pretty good results. I just bought a 12v 'sawzall' too for cutting out parts of the wall frames when an outlet gets covered. Works good too.
    I am in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection, but with Montana it is love.... It seems to me that Montana is a great splash of grandeur....the mountains are the kind I would create if mountains were ever put on my agenda. Montana seems to me to be what a small boy would think Texas is like from hearing Texans. Montana has a spell on me. It is grandeur and warmth. Of all the states it is my favorite and my love.

    John Steinbeck


  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    As battery technology continues to soar to new heights, cordless will likely become even more mainstream, however, and more and more displace corded tools, even for heavier work.
    Totally agree. Only a few years ago, most of us would have thought a battery powered car to be a joke. Today, a decked out Tesla is one of the most high performance cars on the road. If battery technology can meet the demands of a car like that on an economically realistic basis, cutting the jobsite power tool cord for even the heaviest tools should be very doable. As Jim points, out, they've come a long way already. They will keep getting smaller, more powerful, lighter, cheaper, longer lasting. It won't be long.

    Sorry if this goes off topic, but the real Tesla - Nikola Tesla, envisioned a world of wireless, unlimited power (millions of volts) and documented exactly how to do it - over 100 years ago!
    Last edited by Edwin Santos; 08-20-2017 at 11:42 PM.

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