circular saw

[Robert Snowden]

I need a good saw.Any suggestion's? 7 1/4 blade.I do dream about festool.

[Lex Boegen]

I have a Dewalt side-winder, and it works well. The depth adjustment is a large easy-to-grip knob, and it has a push-button spindle lock that makes blade changing a one-wrench job. I like it. I've also got a lot of Makita tools and I'm very happy with all of them. The next circular saw I am considering getting is the new Makita 6 1/2" SP6000K plunge saw. It's a couple of hundred cheaper than the Festool. It can use the Festool guide track. It also has a neat 1/8 inch depth pre-set for a scoring cut on plywood to eliminate tear-out along the cut line. Like the Festool, when you tilt the saw for a bevel cut, it doesn't change the cut line (so if you're using the guide track with the plastic edge to ride against the blade to prevent tear-out, it still rides against that edge when you're bevel cutting.) It's also variable speed and has more torque than the Festool.

[Don Whitten]

Well I have a Skil Mag77 Worm Drive and a Porter Cable Mag423, depends on what I'm doing decides the saw I'll use. Both are great saws and blades are located on the left so its real easy to see the cut line.

[Jim Andrew]

Makita has a terrific skilsaw. I've abused them and been unable to wear one out completely. Had an employee drop one out of the attic 3 times onto the garage floor, did bend the plate, but I managed to straighten it up enough to still use it. Seen them broken, but boy they are tough. And they seem like they might just run forever. Although when they get worn out they sound like their bearings are rough, but still cut fine.

[Mark Woodmark]

Bosch worm drive. I give it a slight edge over the Skil worm drive due to the magnesium footplate. Some reviews have complained the Skil footplate is not flat and gets bent easily.

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-1677M-4-inch-120V-Wormdrive/dp/B00173B148/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1269487195&sr=8-8

[Rich Engelhardt]

I do dream about festool.
If it's any consolation....

As circ saws go, the Festool leaves a lot to be desired..

Don't get me wrong. My TS55EQ is a marvel of machinery, but, take away the tracks & it's pretty useless..

[Paul Murphy]

I need a good saw.Any suggestion's? 7 1/4 blade.I do dream about festool.

Robert, what do you intend to use the saw for? If you are using it to build your workshop, something like the Milwaukee would be great. If you are using it in your workshop to crosscut a dining room table glue-up to size, you might want a saw with better dust collection.

A framing saw can be made to cut at a higher level of accuracy, and yield a better cut quality if used for woodworking. Square it all up, get a decent atb 40t blade, screw a mdf shoe to the base, and plunge the squared blade through the mdf. You now have a zero-clearance insert base. Next, build a crosscut t-square guide out of 10" wide x 1/4" thick x 3'(or whatever length needed)hardboard and 5" x 3/4" birch plywood for the "T". After squaring & glueing your t-square gutting guide, run your saw down the guide to trim the excess from the hardboard sled. You now have the economy grade "festool" rig. You can even glue the cutoff hardboard to the mdf base on the outside edge of the blade, giving you the zero-clearance on both sides of the blade for dedicated cutting guide use. Nice, because now your "offcut" cutline is also fairly clean, usefull for veneer plywood projects. I have done all this with an old Porter-Cable saw, and it works surprisingly well. The PC saw has a dust collection port, and it really helps for indoor use.

If I used the circular saw more regularly, I would buy the Festool. It is pretty much ready for quality work, and built to a higher standard than a framing saw. Lots of flex in most uncorrected framing saws.

[Glen Butler]

Bosch worm drive. I give it a slight edge over the Skil worm drive due to the magnesium footplate. Some reviews have complained the Skil footplate is not flat and gets bent easily.

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-1677M-4-inch-120V-Wormdrive/dp/B00173B148/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1269487195&sr=8-8

I have a bosch from a few years ago and really like it. These days I can't find one with a flat plate; they are all twisted. My vote for best saw these days goes to the Makita 5337MG. I do like the skil wormdrives for durability, but not for ease of adjusting and accuracy.

[Bill White]

My PC replaced a CS (Craftsman) that I bought in 1978. Dropped the danged thing and bent the shoe. Sooo.....I looked at a bunch until I settled on the PC. Been well pleased with it for over 3 years.
Bill

[Kyle Iwamoto]

If you get a Skill wormdrive, you probably won't have to replace it. Yes they be heavy, and dated. Time has proven it's durability. Lots of power, the balance on any of the worm drives are more centered than a side winder. Left handed blade, so you can see your cut. (assuming you're right handed) The Skill shoe is wider than the saw itself, so you can use a clamp guide on either side of the saw, and the saw won't hit the clamp, a nice plus IMO.

[Kevin L. Pauba]

I agree with Kyle ... it's a great saw.

Just make sure and use a good extension cord. I burned up my armature and stator by using a cheap cord (but now I know!).

[David Helm]

I agree with Kyle ... it's a great saw.

Just make sure and use a good extension cord. I burned up my armature and stator by using a cheap cord (but now I know!).

It's not about the price of the extension cord, it's about the size. Larger gauge wire has less resistance and less voltage drop from the cord. Motor gets delivered the current it needs by the pushing voltage. My worm drive is still going after 30 years partly because I always used 10 gauge extension cords.

[Von Bickley]

Robert,

I use a Makita circular saw and when I have to get another one, it will be another Makita.

Did I mention that I like Makita circular saws...... :D

[Kevin L. Pauba]

I've got a Porter Cable 325MG (right blade with brake) and it works great on or off my EZ guide rail.

[Dave Gaul]

I love my Milwaukee!! "Heavy-Duty" 15amp model.. with the "tilt-lok" handle... It's the first and only one I've owned myself, and I couldn't imagine any better! It has cut through everything I've used it for and never a kick-back. I do wish it had a dust shroud though...

[Curt Harms]

It appears the right handed Mag-Saw is discontinued. Go on their web site they have what looks like a Ryobi-Skil-Craftsman clone (but it has a laser!!). They are listing the left blade Mag-Saw for the time being. The P-C's are nice in that they have built-in dust collection. Milwaukee, Makita etc. don't as far as I know.

[Augusto Orosco]

Robert,

I use a Makita circular saw and when I have to get another one, it will be another Makita.

Did I mention that I like Makita circular saws...... :D

I love my Makita, too (the MG model, but without the brake). It is light, cuts smoothly and aligns well. I got it after reading several opinions here at SMC and am not dissapointed.

For full disclosure, though, I upgraded it from a cheap and underpowered B&D model, so I haven't had a change to test other highly praised models.

[Roger Jensen]

I have Hilti 267e (from Home Depot). Sort of expensive - about half-way between a typical circle saw price and a Festool.

I like it because it fits in the Festool guide rails so I can use it as a regular saw or a track saw. It doesn't plunge so it isn't as good on a track as a Festool, but it works pretty well.

Hilti discontinued them last year, but check with your local HD. They also pop up on eBay every once in a whille. I think they were in a no-man's price zone - too expensive to compete with the big-box retailers' circle saws but Festool owns the high end niche. Too bad, everyone that has the saw likes it.

Roger

[Nick Mastropietro]

I've got a Porter Cable 425MG (left blade with brake) and it works great on or off my EZ guide rail.

[Doug Carpenter]

I was browsing our local Marc's the other day. (for those of you that don't know marc's it is one of those stores that buys leftovers from other crappy stores).

Anyway I saw a Kawasaki circular saw!?!

It was a total peice of crap. It was interesting though I have never seen an electric tool made by Kawasaki.

I have had a couple Hitachi's that I like because they are light and easy to cut with when you are in the "air"

I also have a Milwaukee that I have had for ever. It is heavy but much tougher and has lasted much longer than any other saw. I beleive I have had four other saws while I owned the milwaukee. We often had two saws going at one time on the site.

I always wanted one of those worm drive saws but I never got around to it.

[Richard M. Wolfe]

I have a Makita with a built in light. The light is ridiculous and useless, but it's a very good saw.

[David Thompson 27577]

I need a good saw.Any suggestion's? 7 1/4 blade.I do dream about festool.

I have a Milwaukee sidewinder, with the moveable grip handle. Its a really good saw. I use it a lot for trim work, where dimensions can be critical. It has a carrying case with space for some extra blades and such.

I also have a Dewalt sidewinder. Its as good as the Milwaukee, but its handle doesn't have the moving feature. But since I don't have a carrying case for the Dewalt, it rarely goes out on jobs with me.

And I have a Makita hypoid-gear saw. Looks and acts a lot like a worm drive. Has about two tons more torque than either of the above. When I pull the trigger switch, I get the impression that the saw is pizzed off at me -- its that powerful. This is a great saw for framing and rough cutting.

[Don Whitten]

Just used my PC 423MAG again last night, yup really like this saw. I forgot to mention that it has built in dust collection in my earlier post.

[Curt Harms]

it does sound interesting. Riving knife and built in dust collection on a circle saw for considerably less than $500-
http://www.onlinetoolreviews.com/reviews/ryobiECS1519.htm