Best 12" slider?

[Gregg Feldstone]

I want to replace my 12" non-slider with a sliding compound miter saw. FWW picked the Makita . I'm leaning toward the Makita (with lazer) or the DeWalt. They didn't review the Milwaukee and I found one online for a good price.
Please give me your opinions of these models. Also, how do the DW718 and DW708 differ?
Thanks!!

[Allan Froehlich]

I have the Rigid one from the Home Depot. It seems to work very well.

I initially did not like it because it was about 1 degree out of alignment. I went ahead and made it cut true and now it is excellent.

[Russ Boyd]

I have the 12" dewalt in my shop. Had to have it rebuilt for about $300 with no abuse whatsoever. Works well, but...... I also have a 10" makita with laser for work (had to have something while dewalt being repaired) and absolutely love it! I don't often miss the extra capacity of the 12", and due to the smaller blade I get less deflection and they are interchangeable with my table saw.

[Mike Heidrick]

Dewalt's LED light over the blade (add on for the Dewalt saws only) casts a shadow line on your workpiece of where the blade will cut. You can even see the teeth. This is always accurate and does not go out of alignment with a bump like many laser setups. It is a very slick idea.

I have the 10" Dewalt 717 slider on a mobile stand (Bosch T4B). It is an excellent saw!

For the shop permanent miter station I use the Hitachi C12LSH. It is one of the shallowest designs out there for a 12" slider. Head moves on the rails or the head/rail moves through teh base. Similar to the Kapex setup.

Up front controls in the Makita would be nice.
Newer Milwaukee has pretty simple controls as well.

[Marty Gulseth]

I just bought a Milwaukee about 3 mos ago (HD had a nice sale going for just a few days!) I did some cursory accuracy checks once I had it out of the box. I'm not yet sufficiently skilled to do the "super" accuracy checks I've read about, but my quick and simple ones indicated very good alignment, etc. I like the way the saw "handles" overall, and (at my age!) I REALLY like the little built-in work lights! The factory blade is ... well, it's a blade, and it cuts stuff. I have a moulding replacement project pending, and I'll replace the blade with something "better" soon. One thing the M'kee doesn't have from the factory is a laser gadget to mark the cut. I bought one of the aftermarket ones, still experimenting with that, I'll probably keep it. Overall, I like the saw.
Regards,
Marty

[Jason Strauss]

+1 for the Ridgid. I bought mine a few years ago before building my house and haven't looke back. The angle adjustment features on the Ridgid just seem more tuned or precise than the others. Also, if you move the saw around (site to site - or friend's place to In-laws to parents), the mobile stand that Ridgid offers is sweet. It's fairly stout and the out-riggers give you another 3-4 feet of support on both side of the blade.

[Rod Sheridan]

Have you looked at the Kapex?

Regards, Rod.

[Tom Godley]

If you do a search you will find a lot of information - you just have to make sure of the model as they change all the time. You will find a plus and minus for every saw.

When I wanted to upgrade to a 12" slider I took a look at Hitachi first because I love The 8.5 I have. I found the quality to have dropped - they are no longer made in Japan. Their build was equal to the others IMO. My friend bought one and likes it a lot. The Bosch and Mikita units are also well regarded and you will find those who swear by each.

I had the opportunity to play around with the Dewalt and the Milwaukee side by side at the Grizzly tent sale prior to getting one. I think I would give the Milwaukee the edge -- it was a little different design and I found the handle a little off for me but it was very nice smooth saw.

I ended up with the Dewalt 718 -- It was a great price and it came with the great Dewalt stand as well as the laser and an extra blade for about $250.00 less than the Milwaukee saw alone.

I use it all the time (hobby) and I find it to be quite nice -- I am not making picture frames with it -- but accuracy has not been an issue. The 60 tooth blade that came with it was only good for cutting dimensional lumber.

From what I understand the previous saw the 708? is generally regarded to be better built - but I have never done a comparison.

[Bill Blackburn]

Makita LS1013 IIRC - best slider I have ever used or owned.

[Paul Ryan]

I highly recomend the makita too. I know you said 12" but I would recomend the 10" saw. It saves weight, $$$, and $$$ on blades. I went from a 12" non slider to the makita LS1013. It will cross cut 12" that is enough for me, if I need wider I use my sled. Blades are so much cheaper than 12". It is a really nice saw.

[Salem Ganzhorn]

Makita LS1013 IIRC - best slider I have ever used or owned.

I own this saw too. But for the life of me I cannot get the miter accuracy to where it should be. When the head is locked down I cannot get a square on the blade (head is not low enough, the teeth end up interfering). So it makes it hard to judge squareness of the bladed to the fence. Also adjusting the fence is (to me) a nightmare. I really need 3 hands to do it. One to hold the head down, one to hold a square against the fence and the blade, and one to bump the fence into position (if the fence is completely loose then the act of tightening the bolts throws it off). Oh and then you have the other side to deal with AND make sure it is directly inline with the other piece of the fence.

Also the depth stop has too much play to be useful. Any additional pressure on the head will sink the cut down deeper.

Also I find the fence too short. And if you are putting it in a permanent location you might be surprised with how much room front-to-back (something like 36"?) and side-to-side that it needs. And don't expect shopvac to do much on the dust port (but I think all CSMS' in this price range suffer from this).

Maybe I just expect too much? Or maybe I just suck at setting up the beast? But I have relegated all accurate cross cuts to a table saw sled. I only really use it for cutting up rough lumber that is dangerous to handle on the table saw.

On the positive the bevel adjustment is really nice. And all rails are very smooth in operation.

[Gregg Feldstone]

Thanks for everyone's response. A few more questions:

Does anyone know where to get a refurbished Kapex?

One of you mentioned an LED light on the DeWalt 718.....I thought it can only use the add-on lazer setup.

Can the 10" sliders cut 4x4's just like my 12" non-slider does?....part of the reason I went with 12" blades.

I have found "deals" to get either the DW718, Makita 12" slider & Milwaukee 12" slider for $450-$550 for a new saw with warranty. Which is the better made saw?
Are they all made in China or Taiwan now? Anything left from Japan? Is a saw available from Germany except the Kapex? What about the Metabo?

I just want to find a Keeper!!! Thanks!!

[Michael Pyron]

a 10" saw will cut 3.5"...a 12" will cut 4.5"...

the DeWalts and a lot of other ones have notches in the blade guard assembly which allows for higher materials to be cut, but that's for stuff like baseboard and such (crown also as only the top is recessing into the notch as the material is being cut)...

I'm not sure what the newest versions of Makita are like, but I know the recent ones blow away the slide accuracy of my DW718...I use that most of the time because its replaceable, my preference when I need precise work and I know nobody else is going to walk up and use it is my old Makita 1211 slider which miters to 60° in both directions and can be adjusted to bevel to 60° to the left tilt...

a secret to using 12" blades is to use very thick bodies blades as thin kerf blades will tend to bend away from the cut when trying to do fine adjustments....

and any saw should be checked out of the box for set up accuracy...

[Erik Christensen]

You said Best with nothing about reasonable cost!

IMO that is the kapex - the engineering and accuracy of that tool is amazing (as is the price). First time I have ever had a crown molding miter fit better than one I coped & shaved - not just some of them but ALL of them.

The hold-down adjusts instantly with no tools and grips the stock rock solid and you can swap it from side to side in seconds. The laser shows both sides of the blade with extreme accuracy and the blade guard & dust collection are excellent. The stock blade leaves a finish that is good enough for picture frames while cutting 4x stock with ease.

One of my favorite tools to use - it creates results that make me look like I know what I am doing...

[Mike Heidrick]

Thanks for everyone's response. A few more questions:

One of you mentioned an LED light on the DeWalt 718.....I thought it can only use the add-on lazer setup.

Can the 10" sliders cut 4x4's just like my 12" non-slider does?....part of the reason I went with 12" blades.



LED Technical Details


Ultra-bright LED system casts a shadow from your miter saw blade to your work surface
Acts as a guide for more precise cuts and quick, accurate alignment
Separate power supply enables use with or with out blade operation
Designed for use with the DW713, DW715, DW716, DW717 and DW718
Backed by a 3-year limited warranty
-------------------------------------------
Dewalt 10" 717 Tech Details
Specifications

Amps
15 Amps
No Load Speed
4,000 rpm
Blade Diameter
10 "
Arbor Size
5/8 "
Vertical Capacity: Baseboard Against Fence
6" L - 3- 1/2" R
Vertical Capacity: Crown Molding Vertically Nested
6- 1/4"
Horizontal Capacity: Baseboard Lying Flat
14"
Horizontal Capacity: Crown Molding Lying Flat
10- 3/4 "

[Gregg Feldstone]

I picked up the Dewalt 718 for only $475 new and ordered the LED light. It seems most like it better than the lazer setup.
Thanks for the help!!.....I'll use this a few years and maybe get the Kapex later on.