Too many saws; which to keep?

[Jay Jeffery]

I currently have 4 cross-cutting saws in my garage and I need to figure out which ones to sell. I could use some advise.

First, there is the 1950's-era DeWalt radial arm saw. It uses an 8 1/2" blade and I've never got it tuned to cut perfect 90's. It is worthless for anything but 90's, but it cuts them so effortlessly I know I will miss it if I sell it. If I put some real time and money into getting it working right, I suspect it would cut dead on, but previous efforts to that effect have not worked out.

The other saw with any tenure in my shop is an Omga commercial chop saw. It's the direct-drive and is 3-phase power model. I put a button opperated start capacitor on it so I don't have to manually start the blade spinning anymore, but haven't been impressed enough with it to buy a VFD or proper phase converter. It is a 12 inch saw that won't cut a 4X4, compound miters, weighs too much to move anywhere and has a stiff return mechanism. I did get it adjusted to where it cut perfectly, but it has gotten out of alignment.

A recent find on Craigslist got me a 12" DeWalt dual bevel miter saw. It is the old style with a screw miter adjuster. It was new when I got it and I made about 10 unimpressive cuts with it. It is not as acurate as I'd hoped, but still acceptable for most applications.

Today at HD I found a Milwaukee 12" sliding miter saw. I could probably flip in on Craigslist for a small profit to help cover the cost of my new Ridgid table saw, but it would be a 1-saw solution that will cut anything thick, wide, or compound-mitery. I worry about accuracy and the tedium of having to move all that saw out, down, in and up on every cut.

My most pressing projects are mirror and picture frames. I hear a good cross cut sled can cut some good miters, but I've never before now had a table saw worth putting one on. I want to make some furniture, and whatever cross cutting saw makes the cut needs to handle the basic homeowner needs while the table saw is stowed in the corner (my wife wants to keep a car in the garage again).

I've got a garage full of saws and it's time to make some compromises.
Any ideas or insights from tool junkies out there?

[Van Huskey]

I currently have 4 cross-cutting saws in my garage and I need to figure out which ones to sell. I could use some advise.

First, there is the 1950's-era DeWalt radial arm saw. It uses an 8 1/2" blade and I've never got it tuned to cut perfect 90's. It is worthless for anything but 90's, but it cuts them so effortlessly I know I will miss it if I sell it. If I put some real time and money into getting it working right, I suspect it would cut dead on, but previous efforts to that effect have not worked out.

The other saw with any tenure in my shop is an Omga commercial chop saw. It's the direct-drive and is 3-phase power model. I put a button opperated start capacitor on it so I don't have to manually start the blade spinning anymore, but haven't been impressed enough with it to buy a VFD or proper phase converter. It is a 12 inch saw that won't cut a 4X4, compound miters, weighs too much to move anywhere and has a stiff return mechanism. I did get it adjusted to where it cut perfectly, but it has gotten out of alignment.

A recent find on Craigslist got me a 12" DeWalt dual bevel miter saw. It is the old style with a screw miter adjuster. It was new when I got it and I made about 10 unimpressive cuts with it. It is not as acurate as I'd hoped, but still acceptable for most applications.

Today at HD I found a Milwaukee 12" sliding miter saw. I could probably flip in on Craigslist for a small profit to help cover the cost of my new Ridgid table saw, but it would be a 1-saw solution that will cut anything thick, wide, or compound-mitery. I worry about accuracy and the tedium of having to move all that saw out, down, in and up on every cut.

My most pressing projects are mirror and picture frames. I hear a good cross cut sled can cut some good miters, but I've never before now had a table saw worth putting one on. I want to make some furniture, and whatever cross cutting saw makes the cut needs to handle the basic homeowner needs while the table saw is stowed in the corner (my wife wants to keep a car in the garage again).

I've got a garage full of saws and it's time to make some compromises.
Any ideas or insights from tool junkies out there?

I have five counting my RAS with the same Milwaukee addition. I will get rid of the CSMS the Milwaukee replaces but my two other 10" MS will stay, I keep one of them set up with a cheap blade for construction lumber and another that stays set up for the odd piece of metal I need to cut. If it were me I would keep the Milwaukee it is the best of the current sliders and will cover the same ground as the others, light and accurate. It seems like a easy decision unless you can't part with the others.

[Scott T Smith]

I currently have 4 cross-cutting saws in my garage and I need to figure out which ones to sell. I could use some advise.

I've got a garage full of saws and it's time to make some compromises.
Any ideas or insights from tool junkies out there?


Sell all 4 saws and buy a Kapex.

[Erik Christensen]

+1 what scott said

[Bill Orbine]

For most intent and purposes, the radial arm saws a set for 90 degree cuts only and very seldom (never on mine) are used for angular cuts... That's especially true in most pro shops. Any special cuts are done on mitre saws or a radial arm saw. You need to determine your needs and in many cases if you do a great deal of repititive cross cutting for length, the radial arm saw is the real deal.... especially if you set up a fence with a measured stop. It's very productive.

I have one nice Topps radial arm saw and it's never set for anything other than 90 degrees. Three mitre saws for angular cuts, each differ in sizes and sliding compound factors. One saw is not slider nor compound.

And finally, the Omga is an impressive saw.... Big saw and long arm, that it is and I 've worked at place long time ago that had one.... super saw. I think you're underrating this saw without proper power supplied to it (you're running the three phase saw under single phase power with a motor capacitor to start the spin if I read that correctly). That machine kicks butt with three phase power.

[Van Huskey]

I think the Omega is a chop not a RAS.

I like the Kapex and think Festool in general is only marginally overpriced for their product but I wouldn't trade the Milwaukee and $1000 for a Kapex in most any senario. It is the least impressive Festool I have used not to say I don't think it is maybe the best SCMS I have ever used but the margin between it and the Milwaukee is pretty minamal in almost all shop senarios.

[Jay Jeffery]

Sell all 4 saws and buy a Kapex.

That'd be nice.
It is not only space, but budget that requires that at least 2 saws go. If I sold all 4, it's unlikely I'd have enough funds to get anything nicer than what I currently have, and certainly not anything that starts with "Fes."

[Jay Jeffery]

I think the Omega is a chop not a RAS.

I like the Kapex and think Festool in general is only marginally overpriced for their product but I wouldn't trade the Milwaukee and $1000 for a Kapex in most any senario. It is the least impressive Festool I have used not to say I don't think it is maybe the best SCMS I have ever used but the margin between it and the Milwaukee is pretty minamal in almost all shop senarios.


That's right, the RAS is an iron-age DeWalt.

Thanks for the input on the Milwaukee.

[Jay Jeffery]

Thanks for all the replies. The Milwaukee is looking really good.

Does anyone know a good place to sell a used piece of 3-phase equipment? Craigslist is far from ideal place to sell my Omga.