Anyone have a laser guide on their miter saw?

[Mitchell Andrus]

Anyone have a laser guide on their miter saw?

I got one, lined it up and don't use it. I find it's more accurate to sight down the blade to hit the mark, or use the stops/ruler on the table's wings.

Save your money, IMHO.
.

[Myk Rian]

I took mine off.

[John Coloccia]

I use it when I'm framing. That's about it. Any precision work, I use a line and my eyeball. The laser is much to thick for any sort of precision. It always drifts too much.

[John Buzzurro]

I don't use mine either. Just touch the (non-spinning) blade to the wood near the line to check alignment.

[Chris Matus]

I don't use mine either. Just touch the (non-spinning) blade to the wood near the line to check alignment.

+1

Do the same here.

[Marty Paulus]

The laser on my saw is one of those that double a a washer on the side of the blade. I never took the time to figure out where the laser line needs to be for each of my cuts plus the blade needs to be spinning to turn it on, so it doesn't get used. Now some of the newer systems that mount to the frame behind the blade and are the same width as the blade may be worth checking out. Those, at least, simulate the kerf of the blade and don't require the blade to be spinning to work.

[John Thompson]

Use it to get close then let the blade do the talking on final alignment.

[Dave Sweeney]

I just love the way the laser line stays illuminated while the blade cuts 1/16" to the right of the line.:mad: I know they have improved on them since they first came out when I bought my CMS but I still feel they are an overpriced gimmick.

[Michael Peet]

I have one, made it worse trying to align it, and don't use it. Didn't really expect it to work that well when I bought the saw, so I'm not disappointed.

Mike

[Jim O'Dell]

I also use mine for rough cuts. I use it on other cuts to get close, then do the Pink Panther number on my cut line. Usually with the same results as Peter Sellers!!! :D Jim.

[glenn bradley]

Save your money, IMHO.
.

I agree. I can get a more accurate cut with the methods you describe than I can with the laser. There are probably varying levels of these instruments but the fuzzy outsides of the line on mine carry more variation than my eyeball and a pencil mark. For quick rough work I could see a value. In my shop, not so much.

[Mike Goetzke]

I have a Makita 12" slider and it took some time to adjust but mine is very accurate. It can even be moved to one side of the blade or the other. It's fine for working in the garage but in the sunlight it's about impossible to see.

Mike

[Robert Parrish]

Mine never worked properly. I don't need it with my Kreg fence system. Heck I don't even measure anymore!

[Howard Boehm]

I have the Hitachi C10FSH 10-Inch Sliding Compound Miter Saw with Laser. You can adjust it for left or right side of blade. Very simple and dead on. If you need it on the left or right just take a piece of scrap and cut just barely into the wood. turn the laser adjusting know and line it up exactly on the edge of the sample cut you just made. from there on they are dead on. I did a lot of in and out angle molding on my entertainment center and I purchased this so I could cut those safely. The lasers that go on the arbor don't work that well, no way to adjust those and you can only have it on one side. You always want a laser that can be independently adjusted .

[Erik Frederiksen]

I like the lasers on my Kapex. One for each side of the blade. They are very accurate. I can be more accurate with the other methods described above, but the lasers are good enough for many cuts and save time.

I particularly like using them to line the blade up with angled cuts.

[Clay Crocker]

I have a 12" Delta w/ twin lasers; it is very accurate. I put the laser on the line, and that's where it cuts.:)

Clay

[Bob Leichner]

I use a DEWALT DWS7085 Miter Saw LED Work Light on a DW716 non-sliding 12" CMS. This IS NOT a laser, rather an LED light that shines down on both sides of the blade.

The light casts a crisp shadow on both sides of the blade including the outline of the individual teeth. Shadow and blade converge as the blade approaches the wood. Can't get more accurate than that!

Only drawback I've found is that the light is not really bright enough to use outdoors unless well shaded.

Best,
Bob

[Alex Leslie]

The previous advice has been great. :D

I have a Bosch 5412L with the laser. I only use the laser for framing. Cabinet-grade accuracy require placing an outside tooth on the line before starting the cut.

[Kelly C. Hanna]

I have the Hitachi C10FSH 10-Inch Sliding Compound Miter Saw with Laser. You can adjust it for left or right side of blade. Very simple and dead on. If you need it on the left or right just take a piece of scrap and cut just barely into the wood. turn the laser adjusting know and line it up exactly on the edge of the sample cut you just made. from there on they are dead on. I did a lot of in and out angle molding on my entertainment center and I purchased this so I could cut those safely. The lasers that go on the arbor don't work that well, no way to adjust those and you can only have it on one side. You always want a laser that can be independently adjusted .

I have one on mine and it's accurate but I never use it. Most of my cutting is outside and the laser is useless there.

[Richard M. Wolfe]

The Makita SMCS that was on sale not long ago has one on it. I usually never think to turn it on and use it. Too many years of not using one and just eyeballing the edge of the blade or for very accurate cuts 'sneaking up' on the mark. It's also about impossible for me to see in bright light. Also I worked a good bit of Bois d'Arc (Osage Orange) recently and for that particular wood it was worthless. :rolleyes:

[John Coloccia]

I have the Hitachi C10FSH 10-Inch Sliding Compound Miter Saw with Laser. You can adjust it for left or right side of blade. Very simple and dead on. If you need it on the left or right just take a piece of scrap and cut just barely into the wood. turn the laser adjusting know and line it up exactly on the edge of the sample cut you just made. from there on they are dead on. I did a lot of in and out angle molding on my entertainment center and I purchased this so I could cut those safely. The lasers that go on the arbor don't work that well, no way to adjust those and you can only have it on one side. You always want a laser that can be independently adjusted .

On my Dewalt, I use a framing square to get the laser parallel and square, and then I make a complete cut through a 2X4. Then I adjust the laser so that it illuminates the cut side of the 2X4, but not illuminate the top side, i.e. it's adjusted so that the blade exactly removes the laser line.

I find that it's deadly accurate when adjusted properly, but it drifts a bit with temperature and use. It's not much, but it's enough that if you're trying to do precision work it will annoy you.

Does yours drift as well? I have to say that I've used the 10" and it's one of my favorites, especially for miters. Everything seems to always fit the first time! I never saw one with a laser, though. I did try their 12" compound miter saw and found it to be a piece of junk. Never mind that 15 minutes into trying to get it to cut properly, it made a bunch of noise and smoke and a couple of nuts fell out of the thing (no joke). The fence was broken as well. Maybe I just got a lemon since every other Hitachi tool I've tried is fantastic.

[Harold Shay]

I have a 12"cms with twin lasers and they are very accurate
Harold

[Narayan Nayar]

I like the lasers on my Kapex. One for each side of the blade. They are very accurate. I can be more accurate with the other methods described above, but the lasers are good enough for many cuts and save time.

I, too, like the lasers on the Kapex. But as with all lines, they have a thickness, and it's hard to know all the time whether the laser should be all the way outside the cut, split down the middle, etc.

I use the lasers to ensure I'm not cutting more than I should. Then I use other means to fit a board (shooting board and plane mostly, though admittedly I sometimes jump up and down on assemblies or pound them until they fit... :) )

[Mike Heidrick]

I use a DEWALT DWS7085 Miter Saw LED Work Light on a DW716 non-sliding 12" CMS. This IS NOT a laser, rather an LED light that shines down on both sides of the blade.

The light casts a crisp shadow on both sides of the blade including the outline of the individual teeth. Shadow and blade converge as the blade approaches the wood. Can't get more accurate than that!

Only drawback I've found is that the light is not really bright enough to use outdoors unless well shaded.

Best,
Bob

Best invention for a cms/scms in a LONG time! I love it! +1

[Vic Damone]

I have an add on but it's not accurate.

[Nathan Callender]

I have one, and I always leave it on, just to tell me that the saw is plugged in. :-) It's not very accurate though, and I guess I could spend time aligning, etc, but I'd still always sight down the blade on precision cuts anyway.

[JohnT Fitzgerald]

I use it when I'm framing. That's about it. Any precision work, I use a line and my eyeball. The laser is much to thick for any sort of precision. It always drifts too much.

Pretty much the same here. For "accurate" cuts, I scribe a line and then use the laser to get close, and then adjust the piece as needed to just kiss the line.

[Brian W Evans]

I have a Makita 12" slider and it took some time to adjust but mine is very accurate. It can even be moved to one side of the blade or the other. It's fine for working in the garage but in the sunlight it's about impossible to see.

Mike

I also have a Makita 12" SCMS with an adjustable (not arbor mounted) laser. I don't trust it for fine work because of the width of the laser and the fuzziness around the edges, but for rough work or even some trim carpentry, I love it. I wouldn't hesitate to use it for work with tolerances of 1/32" or so. This only applies in the shop, though; in the driveway with the sun shining it's useless.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,

Anyone have a laser guide on their miter saw?
Nope.
Had one on my Craftsman CMS until a cutoff took it out.
I resorted to using stop blocks & my accuracy and overall quality showed a significant improvement.

When I bought a replacement for the Craftsman, I only considered brands that came w/out a laser since I didn't care to pay for a feature I wouldn't use.

In all honesty I feel that lasers are a bad thing for a beginner. Not only are they inaccurate, but they teach bad habits.

What I find interesting here is that so many use one for framing.
That's where I both ran into trouble using a laser & learned about "cumulative" error.
W/out the laser & using stop blocks (along with a healthy dose of "good advice for paying attention to details I picked up here @ SMC) I was able to frame a 25' section of wall that was only out of square by less than 1/4".
I've been told that was pretty good.

[Jerome Hanby]

I like it for checking that my saw angle matches my pencil line on angled cuts. I tend to cut a little strong then sneak up on the correct cut. My laser is the arbor nut variety, an Irwin I think.

[Kerry Wright]

Bosch 4410L hits the line every time. The only complaint I have is it's hard (impossible) to see in direct sunlight. Other than that, I'm quite happy with it.

[John Urban]

I use a DEWALT DWS7085 Miter Saw LED Work Light on a DW716 non-sliding 12" CMS. This IS NOT a laser, rather an LED light that shines down on both sides of the blade.

The light casts a crisp shadow on both sides of the blade including the outline of the individual teeth. Shadow and blade converge as the blade approaches the wood. Can't get more accurate than that!

Only drawback I've found is that the light is not really bright enough to use outdoors unless well shaded.

Best,
Bob

Bob,

Saw this posting and decided to "upgrade" from the $60 laser on my DW718 to a $20 LED light after reading the reviews on Amazon and checking out the pictures at Dewalt's website. Thanks for making me aware of the option.

The laser was better than nothing, I suppose, but I never felt like I got my money's worth. It did an okay job if you were rough framing, but I always did a "tooth" check on the cut line for anything detailed, which defeats the purpose of the laser.

Plus, the laser is only on 1 side of the blade, while the LED creates a kerf shadow on both sides.

I found the LED for $20 with FS at the following website and put in an order ($10 less than Amazon):
http://www.hardwaresales.com/Accessories/Saws/Misc/DEWALT-DWS7085-Miter-p7777878.html

Seems like a must have accessory for DW718 users, especially in my situation since I use my miter saw in a basement workshop and could use the extra LED light on the workpiece. Wish they would have had the LED option when I bought my DW718. With any luck, I'll be able to sell my laser to recoup some of the cost...

John

[keith micinski]

I have a 3 year Old DW716. Does anyone know if this led light is made to fit on one that old or does it have to be a newer saw?

[tyler mckee]

I use it for setting angles sometimes but thats about it.

[Steve Griffin]

Mine never worked properly. I don't need it with my Kreg fence system. Heck I don't even measure anymore!

It's killing me to hear of all these folks who don't have a Kreg or other stop system on their saw.

Guys who otherwise are certified tool geeks, are still using a measuring tape, a pencil mark, horsing around with the blade with their bare hands looking for the right tooth, and then making multiple cuts to "sneak" up on it. And then they repeat it multiple times for the same length...all that just to avoid a $100 stop purchase and an afternoon of building a proper miter saw station.

And yes, a laser is nice if it comes with the saw--I like mine for rough work.

-Steve

[Gerry Werth]

I have a Ridgid SCMS and use the laser on EVERY cut...rough or fine. Most reviews said this laser was not accurate and not adjustable. Wrong on both counts. When you start the saw, the laser is a dashed line, and once you have it dialed in, you can line up the cut to leave your mark line or cut it off exactly on the line. Howard, I have to disagree that arbor lasers are not adjustable. Almost all that I have seen can be adjusted. But like everything else we do in woodworking, it takes practice and patience. Some of the other techniques mentioned here are all good too. It's just a matter of what you are or get comfortable with to make those 1/64" cuts. :D

[Paul Ryan]

The add on lasers are for the birds. But the newer saws that have the lasers built in are a nice idea. If you spend some time setting up the laser and dialing it in, it is very usefull. I was told that lasers on drill presses are worthless too. The table, the serp belts, and laser are the only thing I like on my new jet drill press. The laser on that is very very usefull. I just think if properly aligned a laser on a miter saw that is adjust perfectly is a nice accesory. If you set it that the left edge of the laser is the left edge of the blade than what is not to trust.

[Jeff Nolan]

I have one on a circular saw and it's not worth a damn there either.

[Paul Ryan]

I have one on a circular saw and it's not worth a damn there either.

+1 on that, I had one on a circular saw. It does more harm than good.