Does anyone NOT use a mitre saw in the shop?

[Clisby Clark]

I was using a friend's DW slider but he reposessed it a few weeks ago for a job he was doing. I have a nice table set up with at 4 feet on one end and 6 on the other to handle just about anything I ever needed to cut. The only problem is that rig eats a TON of space that I could be using for something else like my planer and router table. I've got a DW 705 but haven't brought it in the shop yet and the more I think about it, the more I'm thinking I can live w/o a mitre saw in the shop full time. I've been making rough cuts with the cordless Makita or the cordless Disston #8 and the fine cuts on the table saw. Has anyone else ditched their CMS and not regretted it? Thanks for your input.

[Mike Cruz]

Not only do I love having mine, I dedicated 12 feet to the left of the saw and 4 feet to the right. Granted, all that space is usually filled with a bunch of stuff (horizontal space is NEVER empty). But I can't imagine a shop without it...

[Larry Edgerton]

For some things I use a Lion Trimmer.

But ya, I make a living at this so I have 6 miter saws......

Larry

[Chris Hester]

I love having a miter saw. I wouldn't want to imagine life without one.

[Von Bickley]

My Tablesaw and Mitersaw are my main woodworking tools.

[Bruce Page]

I don't have the space to dedicate to one. I have an old 12" poj Skill that lives under my lathe. About the only time I drag it out is to do fence repair or base board/trim cutting.

[brian c miller]

I have one but it sits under the bench most of the time... I'll use a hand saw to rough cut most boards then clean them up in a mitre box or with a shooting board.

I also that a sled that goes on the table saw when I need to do a bunch of cuts.

[Paul McGaha]

Pretty much all my cross cutting is done on a miter saw.

PHM

[Jamie Buxton]

I've got a pretty good sliding compound miter saw from Hitachi. It has lived in my furniture shop, but now lives in my garage with the other house-building tools (y'know -- the sawsall, the rotary hammer, etc). It doesn't justify the space it takes in the shop. It is good at cross-cutting long parts, but in furniture work I don't often cut long stuff. I do rough cross-cutting with a saber saw. I do precision cuts to length on a tablesaw sled. I do precise 45 degree cuts on a tablesaw sled set up exactly for that.

[John TenEyck]

For more than 25 years I never had a CMS. My RAS was used for precision crosscut work, and is still my go-to saw for that purpose. But I got a pretty nice Bosch 12" CMS a couple of years ago because I needed one for an installation job. I have to say, it cuts beautifully, and for cutting compound miters (imagine that) it's the fastest and easiest way to do it. For crown molding it's a thing of beauty. I could live w/o it, but I'd rather not. Mine sits out of the way on top of my travel table saw, so it's not taking up valuable space. For most things I cut with it no additional support is needed since it has outboard supports built-in. On the occassion I do need more support I just set it on my bench and add support as needed. It's a keeper.

[Paul Grant]

I just moved and set up a new shop and it's over 3x the size of my old. I have opted out of the mitersaw station I used to have. Why?? I really don't need it. For me it's a site saw only, I can get better results with my cabinet saw and sliding table. For general rough cut offs I use a jig saw, it's safer, no binding and cuts wherever the wood is instead of the bringing the wood to the tool.

[David Winer]

I bought a good DeWalt miter saw when I was into a heavy fence building project at home. I would set it up near the main area of construction. That was a complicated job, requiring many odd compound cuts and the saw was invaluable for the purpose. I like to think it paid for itself with this one use. I then tried it out for a little interior molding and found it quite useful there too. I planned to set the miter saw in my shop, but came to realize that my excellent radial arm saw could equal and exceed the functions of a miter saw.

So the miter saw sits folded on its special table with extensions wings, waiting for the day when it will be needed. I can see that day isn't going to come and am planning to put it on Craigs List.

[Doug Colombo]

I used my RAS for cross cuts only. Once I got my miter saw (Bosch Glide) that can cross cut 14", the RAS was on its way to my brother in law and I am in the process of building a station where the RAS was. Just used the saw over the weekend sitting on my bench and can't see how I would ever go back to not having one. But as with any tool, it really depends on what woodworking you are doing and going to do as to how much you will use it.

[Mike Cruz]

Funny...not knocking ya'll who don't use the miter saw, but for cuts other than standard 45s, the infinite cutting between 0 and 48 (whatever my saw allows) on 8" and narrower boards is invaluable. Also funny that people say they don't have room for a miter saw, but can make the cuts on a TS. I just don't have the room to make a miter cut on an 8' board, let alone a 10 or 12 footer. Also, I actually trust the angle cuts on my miter saw as much or more than my TS...and I have a Unisaw... Is this just me?

[glenn bradley]

I do not use one in the shop. Takes up way too much real estate for the job it does. If I did a lot of mitered cuts on long stock, I would not be without it. As a matter of fact I used it for the first time in years to do bathroom trim at LOML's house . . . and its still there. As with a RAS, folks that have developed a method of work around a CMS of course feel differently and there is no real right or wrong in a lot of things we do. For what I do and my shop a CMS or a RAS doesn't pull its weight. This does not mean that one or the other would not be irreplaceable in your shop. Only you know that.

[raul segura]

I spent many hours setting up a mobile cart with dust hood hookup for mine. Its always in the way and it takes up some odd space. I chop with it then trim with T.S. slide for finer cuts. I also have a metal vice on my work table where I weld and work wood glass etc. Space is valuable so Ill have to rethink.
Got to say I love My chop saw but yes a pain !

[Mike Konobeck]

Had a very nice Bosch. Didn't use it enough to justify the cost and space. To be fair I have a full slider with a long crosscut fence so there is really no need. I can cut at any angle and do it with less headache. If I was trimming out a house then it would be the first tool I repurchase. For woodworking it really doesn't have a significant place in the shop but that all depends on what you have as an alternative. To each their own.

[Peter Aeschliman]

For stock narrow enough to cut on the CMS, there's no better tool (assuming you have space). I have a sliding table but I find it much easier to crosscut on the miter saw.

The key is to have a good bench with a good ruler and stop on it. I have the Kreg setup which makes repeatable cuts much easier:

http://www.amazon.com/Kreg-KMS8000-Precision-Trak-Stops/dp/B0009OMXN4

[Myk Rian]

I gave the miter saw to our son and use a restored RAS.

[Rod Sheridan]

I do have a compound mitre saw, it's an old Delta single bevel cast iron 10" machine.

It's at one of my co-workers houses, I think he's cutting fence boards with it.

I've never used it in the shop for cutting furniture components.

I have a small sliding table saw (Hammer B3 Winner) and it's far more accurate and capable than a CMS for furniture fabrication.

Now, if I was person who did onsite work, that would be different, I would probably buy a Kapex or Bosch.

For me, the CMS takes up too much space, has too little capacity, and isn't as accurate as a sliding table saw................Regards, Rod.

[Jerome Hanby]

I currently have my Mitersaw on a "portable" stand. It lives against the wall until I need it. As part of my shop reworking, I'll be getting my Dewalt GWI RAS restored and part of a workstation system (like Norm's) that will incorporate my MS and mortiser. So, my plans are for the RAS to do most if not all of the crosscutting and the MS to cut miters. While I could eliminate the MS for everything but compound miters (and I can't ever recall cutting one of those), it falls into the best tool for the job category so I don't begrudge the space to keep it.

[Cary Falk]

I have a Craftsman miter saw that I do not like all that well. It sits on the shelf most of the time. I rough cut boards to length using a jig saw. I restored a GWI RAS earleir this year. I have been using it to rough cut boards to length. My table saw has a JessEm slider and I have a Incra 1000SE/Miter express that I use to make my crosscuts. I loaned the miter saw to a neighbor over a year ago. I don't care at this point if he brings it back.

[Bobby O'Neal]

I don't currently own a MS but that is due to space and priority. If I had a large stand alone shop and space to have a real miter station, I'd love it. I just don't want it sitting on the floor and being pulled out when I need to cut a 12' piece of trim or whatever else. Nice table with built in ruler and stops or none at all for me.

[Charles Wiggins]

I once made 13 large picture frames for a friend all on one of these babies (http://www.old-woodworking-tools.net/delta-saw-jointer-combo.html) and it was one of the most intense weeks of my life. I didn't have $$ for a miter saw and she couldn't afford any more wood, so I had to sweat over every cut. I would have loved a miter saw. I now have a Bosch 12" axial glide and love it.

[Jeff Monson]

I'd be lost without my Kapex, I built a nice station so I can quickly and accurately cut stock to length, repeatability is awesome. I use it for moldings and trim work alot also. One of the most used tools in my shop.

[Brett Robson]

I have one, a cheap single bevel Ryobi, but I very rarely use it. I don't have the space for a dedicated MS station. It would be handy for crosscutting long boards to rough length but as it's not a slider, it doesn't have much capacity. I generally cut long boards to rough length with either a hand saw or sometimes my circular saw.

For cutting miters and such, I have jigs to do that on my table saw which gives far more accuracy than my cruddy little MS ever could do.

It is handy to have for on-site use, like installing hardwood flooring and base moldings. I guess that's why I keep the thing around. For furniture use though, I have no need for it.

[Neil Brooks]

... when they pry it from my cold, dead hand .... ;)

[I actually appreciate my RAS more than my CMS, but ... would _probably_ like an SCMS better than my RAS. Wait. What ???]

[Prashun Patel]

I'm also space-challenged. A 10" CMS takes little space and is convenient to have. I use a circular saw and tablesaw for anything that's beyond its capability.

[Jim Rimmer]

I have one and use it a lot. Right now I don't have a decent stand for it but am planning to build one. I want to use all the space under it for storage of miscellaneous and sundry items. I am space limited and will have to maximize the use of that space.

[John Nesmith]

I have a basic Delta 10" compound that sits on a shelf. I set it up in the driveway when I need to use it. That's not often. I use it for carpentry and rough cuts. Most all crosscuts, and all crosscuts that need to be accurate, are done on a large TS sled.

But if I had the room, I would love a better miter saw and a permanent setup with accurate fences and stops.

[paul cottingham]

I have one that sits on a shelf. It takes up too much room, and makes too much nasty dust. If I need it, I set it up outside in the covered area in front of my shop. I use an old Stanley 246 miter box with a nice sharp 26" backsaw for precise cuts. I'm in no hurry so it works for me. Less (way less!) noise, too.

[Larry Fox]

I have one and it spends most of it's time on the floor under the bench. It is a Delta non-slider with the twin lasers and all the bells and whistles but I neither like it nor trust it. I have found it to be way too tough to keep aligned to be worth the trouble. I use it for trim and when I need to rough crosscut a board and am too lazy to use a hand saw on.

Oh, I also use it for cutting pieces of fruit wood for use in the smoker. I trust it to do that.

[Dave Cav]

I use my 12" Delta turret RAS for breaking down stock and routine crosscuts (and I'm looking for a 14" DeWalt). For precise crosscuts I use my 10" cabinet saw and an Incra gage. I have a simple chop saw that lives on the floor of the shop, covered in sawdust, 99.9% of the time. It only gets used outdoors if I have to do a framing job cutting 2x stock.

If I was doing trim and finish carpentry work I would probably have a Bosch SCMS, but most of what I do is furniture.

[Mike Ruggeri]

I only use my compound miter saw when doing trim work in the house. Otherwise, I use my tablesaw. Maybe if I had dedicated space in the shop for the miter saw I would use it more but I won't dedicate the space as I doubt I will use it very often - maybe a catch 22. I do find it useful for breaking down longer pieces that are too long for the tablesaw (although even there I can handle fairly long pieces on the tablesaw). I don't have any desire to upgrade my miter saw or have a dedicated one as I am happy with my current working situation that includes very limited use of the miter saw.

Mike

[Frank Drew]

For years I used a Langdon Acme miter box for job-site trim work on built-ins and such; it did a good job but you'd better get your cut right the first time since you can't go back and take just a hair more off. Next I bought a Rockwell chop box; again, it did the job but had I waited for the arrival of the more sophisticated models (compound, sliding, etc.), I would have gotten greater capacity.

But in the shop, I got a sliding table saw just so that I wouldn't need a number of saws; I've never owned a RAS and never needed one once I got the slider. I kept the chop box but it was strictly for site work or carpentry.

[Chris Tsutsui]

I had a hitachi 10" SCMS that I loved to use and it treated me very well. I sold it and upgraded to a Kapex which is just a pleasure to use.

But after I got a sliding tablesaw, I havn't used the kapex. WHen you have a sliding table, you can put your stock on the slider and cross cut using the stops.

I'm thinking of selling my Rigid MSUV and storing the kapex on a shelf because I would only need it for compound miter cuts and crown mouldings. So although I don't want to officially retire it, it's just being put on the "shelf" to collect dust for the most part.

[raul segura]

If i had a penny for every other chop saw that was in the way,
id add on to my garage and keep mine on the floor. I always thought it would be the next thing to a standing drill press after the table saw of course. Wow. Gues my work is a little rough.

[Cyrus Brewster 7]

I kind of agree with Mike Cruz on this one. I do not feel a miter saw station takes up any extra space. I am limited to a 20' x 20' in which 25% is taken up by the kids. I try to keep the TS in the same spot for ease of shop set up. Crosscutting a long board would require me to move at least one tool other than the TS.

So one wall has a built in 16' x 24" shelf that includes a station (usable but still in the works) for a 10" slider. I have gained storage under and now have a dedicated desk space in the shop. I have really only lost the 25" width of the saw - if you do not consider the 24" counter top lost space. One BIG caveat, though... Sometimes my wife needs to cross cut some boards for drapes she is making for her customers. As I am not always home, I felt building the station and teaching her to use the SCMS was the safest route to go considering the other alternatives (she only does 90's). I also find it to be the fastest way to set-up and make a crosscut.

[Tom Hargrove]

In the shop, I use a cross cut sled for 90 degree cuts, and have a second sled that is purpose built for 45 degree cuts. I have an Incra miter gauge for cuts that are in between. The sleds produce very accurate cuts and this method saves me space and set up time, and fewer steps around the shop. I have a CMS on a portable cart, but I use it only for construction and trim work.

If I had a bigger shop with a built in, ducted dust collection system, I might go for a dedicated work station, but the sleds and miter gauge work very well for me.

[Matt Cook]

I have a dewalt and a portable stand. The only time I get it out and use it is when I'm cutting 2x4's and, even then, I almost always try to use the TS first. It's not that I don't like the CMS, it's that I don't have a setup where it's readily available (dedicated) and setting it up takes more time than I care to spend. Truth be told, most of my past projects have been centered around sheet goods so there really hasn't been a need. If I had more space to dedicate to it though, I'd probably use it more.

[Don Wacker]

I have a tall piece of aluminum extrusion that bridges two miter gauges. They can be pushed across the saw either direction depending on the width of stock. My old delta miter saw is more of a construction tool that lives in the shed.

Don

[Jerome Hanby]

I don't like to cut construction grade lumber on my TS. Too often it's still a little wet and I get rust spots...


I have a dewalt and a portable stand. The only time I get it out and use it is when I'm cutting 2x4's and, even then, I almost always try to use the TS first. It's not that I don't like the CMS, it's that I don't have a setup where it's readily available (dedicated) and setting it up takes more time than I care to spend. Truth be told, most of my past projects have been centered around sheet goods so there really hasn't been a need. If I had more space to dedicate to it though, I'd probably use it more.

[Matt Cook]

I don't like to cut construction grade lumber on my TS. Too often it's still a little wet and I get rust spots...

Yeah, I can see that. I should have clarified stating frequency. For what I use 2x's for, and how often I use them, a rust spot won't bother me if the cut is a one-off. I only deal with construction grade lumber when I'm doing construction like activities and when I do, it's many multiple cuts and not likely in the garage - which makes the CMS and the portable stand make sense. When it's a one off cut, the board has likely been sitting in the garage for months by the time I even think about cutting it.

And that's the long-winded version of - not everyone has a daily use for a CMS. :D

[Doug Herzberg]

I use my CMS for field work, but I have an old RAS in the shop for long stock. Lately, I've been thinking about a combined table for both, as I don't have any built in side support for the RAS now. Seems like if they were set up side by side, they would take about the same amount of space and I could use the miter saw for what it does best and keep the RAS for 90 degree cross-cuts, large tenons, etc.

[Aleks Hunter]

For most crosscutting in the shop I'll use the RAS , on pieces wider than 16" I use the EZ square and EZ track. http://www.eurekazone.com/ Works like a dream. Layout the marks on the workpiece and lay the track down with the edge on the cut line and slide the saw across. perfect every time. I love Dino's stuff. My wife bought me my first EZ tracks for Christmas a few years ago. I was a little bumed at first, she ordered the case he sold at the time which was like a cheap giun case. But as soon as I started using the things I became a true believer fast.
Have a Hitachi SCMS, but only use it on site or in around the inn the inn mostly for cutting trim work. never really use it for casework.

[Brian Penning]

My MS is stored away somewhere or maybe the neighbor has it...not sure. It's been that long since I used it.
My TS is simply more accurate than the MS.

[Larry Edgerton]

To all of those that say their tablesaw is more accurate, I call.

Either your miter saw is junk or you do not know how to use it.

I make hundreds of thousands of cuts on a mitersaw every year, and if there was a better way I would do it. I have a Minimax slider, and it is not more accurate, and certianly not faster. I have an OMGA radial arm, and it is certianly not faster either, and no more accurate, if as.

I don't have a miter saw station, too inflexible. I like my miter saws to be able to move for one. Much easier to pull the saw to the stock with heavy and long items than to try to move the stock minute amounts. I use them in the shop on a big fat bench with floating support tables that fit that saw. When not in use they go on a shelf.

I do not like extended fences, bowed stock is then a problem. I do have one on my radial arm, but it is back 1" from the saw fences so bowed stock can be against the fence. It is just a track for stops to run on.

I use my miter saws daily, and I would be willing to put my work up against anyones. Like I said, I have six, and I think a Bosch Glide may find its way into my shop soon as well. If you are not comfortable with a miter saw that is fine. But your tablesaw is not faster or more accurate than a good miter saw.

Larry

[Frank Drew]

Larry,

Essentially, the OP's question was whether a mitre saw is absolutely necessary in a shop (not whether miter saws are capable of good work); my answer is no, and in terms of accuracy of joinery I'd put my work up against anyone's, and I did it with one saw, not eight, or whatever. And that was for a living, so time counted.

But I had a smallish shop, so economy of floor space was a real consideration.

[Aleks Hunter]

Exactly, the miter saw is a portable tool it has its place, and that place is onthemove on the jobsite, more than as a stationary shop tool, as evidenced by the number of posters who alls tate that it is generally an under bench dust catcher.

[Aleks Hunter]

Exactly correct Larry. A big pile of tools is no substution for actual skill. Back in NY I worked with some Japanese carpenters who with a few chisels, hand planes and handsaws working on a heavy beam on the floor for a workbench cut joinery that would have almost all of us on here scratching our heads for a while just figuring out an approach to do the same joinery on power tools. Things like spirak staircases that you clould climb when they were just dry fit. They all spent twenty years of full time work learning to be carpenters. A fact that gets lost too often. You can buy the finest tools made. Not a single one comes with the slightest bit of skill built in. Accuracy, yes. Skill, no. Skill is always the user supplied component. Before calling me on that comment, consider that I can guarantee that I can make a bad cut on whatever tool you care to name! :) Sometimes I don't even have to try! Running short on matching wood is generally enough to inspire a mistake.

[Neil Brooks]

A big pile of tools is no substution for actual skill.

Well ... there goes my entire philosophy about woodworking ;)

[Matt Cook]

For what it's worth, last night I was working on some doors for cabinets I've been pecking away at for some time now. I pulled down the MS and decided to make all of my length cuts on it instead of the TS like usual. With the stops in place on both, neither is faster however I could have my tenon jig setup on the TS so I could cut & fit each as I go instead of doing them in production like behavior. The outcome of the test was what I would have expected:

A) I made the same number of doors
B) I had the same number of machine setups
C) It took me the same amount of time per cut
D) Both make sawdust but my MS station doesn't capture it

What was different:
1) The MS has a saw blade brake (I had forgotten that and was amazed when I noticed it yet again)
2) I remembered that my MS has a 12" blade so a few times, during cuts, I wondered if it does actually flex more than a 10" blade
3) I do like my Dewalt mobile MS stand
4) I could use an additional outlet on the S.E. wall of the garage

All joking aside, I think we were asked for our opinion and each of our individual opinions will be based on our experiences and setups which is as much different to the next guy as the projects completed. I don't use my MS much because I don't, not because I can't.

[Mike Cruz]

Funny...there are entire threads here that address dust collection for MSs that are permament fixtures in shops. From what I gathered from most people's responses, is that most people don't have the room for one to be permamently set up. I don't have a shaper. Not because I don't think it is the best thing since sliced bread, but rather because I can't justify the space for something I would use so rarely.

Bottom line is that if everyone here had a 10,000 square foot shop, they might be more likely to dedicate floor space to a MS. But since most of us don't, we simply chose to make room for those tools we can get the most bang for our buck with. I, for one, use a MS all the time. Many don't. Some out of no need. Some because they don't like them. Some because they don't get good results from them.

[Matt Cook]

...we simply chose to make room for those tools we can get the most bang for our buck with.

Yep, and given a little more shop space, I'd have a dedicated MS station. With one, I know I'd use it more than I use it now. A tool that tends to sit on or under a shelf is a tool that takes additional effort to use because it requires setup and tear down. Those that have 8 of them and/or have a dedicated MS station, probably use them much more than I do because the MS is right there ready to make a cut and that, in and of itself, is an extreme time savings over having to change setups on the TS.

Hindsight is 20/20 right? The question was "does anyone NOT" use a MS in the shop. We've evolved this conversation to go a little deeper than that. I think most purchase a MS before the get a TS or RAS. I can only speak for myself, I use one in the shop.

[Don Wacker]

IMO there are different classes of miter saws. Mine is sort of junkie, a old $99 delta that is great for whacking up 2x4's and not much more. I think if a guy needs fast production a miter saw is not really the way to go anyways. I can gang cut enough door stiles and rails on a crosscut sled to keep my shaper fed as fast as it will feed. If I needed faster production and had the floor space i'd own a jump saw. For years miter saws were a contractors tool like a worm drive skil saw, they have evolved a little but are still not mandatory if the job can be done differently. What ever works and fits your workflow is more than enough.

Don

[Aleks Hunter]

Believe me, I wasn't at all happy when I figured that out either!

[Aleks Hunter]

Funny, but whenever I'm working out of the shop the ole shop vac comes along anyway, and it sucks the sawdust out of the miter saw beautifully, Its easier to hook it up, than to clean up after it. Not to mention healthier. Of all of the things I hook up to dust collection the miter saw is about the easiest. It does a great job for cutting moldings, but its just a personal preference for me that I like the RAS setup that I have better than the miter saw. Wider cut capacity, easier to change blades, it can dado cut, it can rip rabbets, plus the spindle is nice for adding bits and cutters. The real downside is the Radial Arm Saw is still defying true taming sawdust wise.

[Charlie McGuire]

My SCMS was the first larger power tool I bought. Built a deck, hardwood stairs, and trimmed a house with it. I use it for all of my crosscut and miter work. At least I did for 11 years until the bearings were rumbling. It has been replaced with a Bosch Glide.

[Ken Shoemaker]

I use a self-built, sled on the table saw. Not enough room in the shop to dedicate a place for a CMS.