Miter Saw - Slider Advantages-?

[BOB OLINGER]

I love my DeWalt miter saw, but it's not a slider. I may have an option to upgrade (?) to a slider. What are the advantages of a slider - I've never used one?

[Rich Engelhardt]

A slider lets you make wider wobble cuts.... ;).

[Rod Sheridan]

A slider lets you make wider wobble cuts.... ;).

LOL..................And it wastes more shop space...............Rod.

[Mike Wilkins]

I am not sure you really need a sliding miter saw in a woodworking shop. While they are nice, a non-sliding 12" machine should take care of the majority of your cross-cutting needs. Fine Woodworking magazine had an article on setting up a miter saw, and the author suggested the use of a non slider for a ww shop, which should take care of the majority of your needs.

Having said that, if I got a wild hair and a pile of cash, a Festool Kapex would be in my shop in a heartbeat.

[ken masoumi]

I am not sure you really need a sliding miter saw in a woodworking shop. While they are nice, a non-sliding 12" machine should take care of the majority of your cross-cutting needs. Fine Woodworking magazine had an article on setting up a miter saw, and the author suggested the use of a non slider for a ww shop, which should take care of the majority of your needs.

Having said that, if I got a wild hair and a pile of cash, a Festool Kapex would be in my shop in a heartbeat.
Agreed 100%, I have a 10" Bosch slider , it is a very good saw but needs to be recalibrated every couple of years to cut accurately, would love to have a Kapex in my shop but a 12" non-sliding Milwaukee or a Dewalt would be most likely my next purchase if I had to replace the 10" slider.

[Mike Schuch]

The sliders I have used have been sloppy with a lot of flex. I much prefer my non-slider for good accurate angles... but I have a radial arm saw for longer cuts (and dados). Of the sliders I have looked at in the store any that I would trade my non-slider on I can not afford. There is just a lot more mechanism in a slider which has to be engineered VERY rugged to have a chance at minimizing flex.

[Bill Adamsen]

I am still using a 25+/- year old 8" Hitachi and it still works great. Probably like a car with 250,000 miles ... it has become so idiosyncratic, it can only be operated by its owner. I replace the blades as needed ... several times a year.

One thing the slider does well (enough) that can't be done easily on a simple miter (but is easily done on a RAS) is to cut dadoes. Especially on a job site that happens more than anyone probably cares to admit.

Must say, the term "slider" had me scratching my head. It seemed such a huge leap to go from a miter to a sliding table saw. Finally it dawned on me what you were asking.

[Steve Peterson]

Having said that, if I got a wild hair and a pile of cash, a Festool Kapex would be in my shop in a heartbeat.

You could get a Bosch glide for only half a pile of cash. It is a great saw and solves the same problem of the huge bench space taken up by sliding miter saws.

Steve

[Ken Fitzgerald]

The major advantage of a slider is, as previously stated, the ability to cut wider boards. While some SCMS may take a dado blade, my old Delta doesn't. My biggest complaint is the inaccuracy of my slider and it's inability of reproducing accurate miter angles even while using the manufactured miter stops. I have to check, reset, recheck, reset every time I change to a new angle even if it's just going between +&- 45º. Eventually I won't be able to get parts, it will wear out and I will replace it with a non-slider.

[Bill Adamsen]

Per Ken's comment, I should qualify that cutting a dado on a sllding miter requires (at least in my case) multiple passes and incrementing the board.

[Jim Dwight]

I also use a 12 inch CMS and a RAS instead of a slider. I bought the RAS first and it seemed to make more to get the CMS. My main usage is in the shop and to my knowledge ALL the sliders take up too much space behind the fence. Even the articulated arm Bosch. I use my RAS and Hitachi 12 inch on a 24 inch deep bench. The knob of the Hitachi sticks out but I have the bolts purchased to reduce that several inches.

[Peter Aeschliman]

Bob, I'll give you the typical answer: it depends. If you just want to quickly break down materials and refine your cuts via other methods (shooting board, cross cut sled on the TS, etc), I think a slider is useful. If you want joinery-level accuracy right off the saw, then a slider isn't a great choice. I don't even really like my non sliding miter saw for that level of accuracy.

I've never tried the festool though, so I supposed I could be convinced.

[Frederick Skelly]

I use my mitersaw for simply cross cutting, more than anything else. I wish I'd bought the slider. I really do.

[Kent Adams]

I love my DeWalt miter saw, but it's not a slider. I may have an option to upgrade (?) to a slider. What are the advantages of a slider - I've never used one?

I have a 20 year old Dewalt miter and still love it. I actually still have the original blade that came with it and it works well. However, a slider does allow you to cut from the front and direct the saw dust back into the dust collection better than a fixed miter saw. I'd love to have a kapex, but I've settled for the Bosch. I can't bring myself to spend that type of scratch on a miter saw.

[Greg R Bradley]

The Dewalt non-Sliders, DW713, 715, and 716 are all fairly accurate saws with good dust collection. The Dewalt sliders all loose precision and dust collection by comparison.

Don't think a Kapex is somehow magic just because it costs a bunch of money. I have one and it is excellent in many ways but I'm not sure about the logic of buying one at the current silly price. It is oriented toward light weight and flexibility and isn't any more precise than a DW713 for $200. It certainly isn't any more precise than my Makita LS1214L which I sold used to someone that appreciated it for $550 used when the later Makita saws were about that price. AT the time I bought it, the Makita was the only slider that had roller bearing glides for precision on BOTH glides. The Makita was replaced by the Kapex because the Makita need WAY too much depth and threw sawdust EVERYWHERE, not because the Kapex was more precise. I sold my used LS1214L for $550 and upgraded to the Kapex for $1050 because of bench depth and dust collection, not because I gained any precision. Now that the Kapex is $1400, I would just laugh.

The still-current Makita LS714 is still fairly accurate for wide cross cuts but won't do much depth with a 7.25" blade.

I also have a Rigid 10" non-slider that my father gave me with a good blade installed for 90 degree cutoffs. It does great!

The not-too-deep Bosch Glide is the king of wide crosscut but stupidly heavy so limited to a shop only.

In one shop that is a furniture manufacturer with about a dozen Miter Saws nobody wants anything to do with any saws for precision 90 degree cut off except the DW713, even with the Kapex sitting there. Production upcut saw finally eliminated that. Now for someone doing mobile work on trim, crown, etc. the Kapex might be worth the money.

If you have a Dewalt non-slider, I would think hard before getting rid of it as they are something Dewalt did well and I'm NOT a
Dewalt lover.

What do I want? and OMGA with Kapex slider, angle adjustment, and dust collection. Still made out of OMGA cast iron and weighing 150 pounds but that is just me.

[Martin Wasner]

What do I want? and OMGA with Kapex slider, angle adjustment, and dust collection. Still made out of OMGA cast iron and weighing 150 pounds but that is just me.

A Kapex is a toy compared to an Omga or a Derda. I'm not sure if mentioning them in the same sentence is blasphemy or not.

[Martin Wasner]

And I'd take the omga angle adjustment any day

[Greg R Bradley]

You're right, I meant the slider and bevel capability of the Kapex. Omga angle capability is great. Limited crosscut capability and horrible dust collection is the problem.

The Kapex is seriously compromised for portability and light weight and too expensive for what it is unless you work only onsite. Even making it out of something more rigid than magnesium would lower cost and could raise rigidity. I know of no slider that doesn't flex. Omga, of course, doesn't. Upcut saws are precise and have good dust collection but are limited on width and only do 90 degree cuts. No hobby shop would buy one or even dedicate the space as its too single purpose.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I know of no slider that doesn't flexThat's been my experience also.

I have a really cool Marlin Cowboy II in .357 Magnum. I can push some rock em sock em boogie down the road handloads through it, but, try as I might, I can't make it a .35 Remington.

A SCMS is the same. Try as it might, a SCMS can't ever be as rigid as a RAS.

Even the lofty priced Kapex, @ full extension, has a pronounced back and forth wobble.

[Bill Stephenson]

Have a Dewalt 12 inch non slider for 10 years and have not wished for a slider. For wider 90 deg.cuts I use my table saw with a sled. The Dewalt is dead on and has been reliable. I opted for the non-slider due to the inherent slop in a slider and the added cost. Never felt the need for anything else.

[Glenn Clabo]

When I moved from a house and full shop I got rid of most of my tools. I kept a Griz Bandsaw, a DeWalt Slider, and Ez Smart guide rails in storage. I now live in a house wth a large honey do list...and still am having trouble deciding why I need a table saw. I'm not into production or have the need for speed. If I really need more precision than the slider...I'll build a miter box like the one I used when I was a finish and cabinet guy. The slider gives me all the extra depth I need. I'm thinking a worksite table saw would be more than sufficient IF I every feel the want is overwhelming.

[William C Rogers]

I have a 12" Milwaukee slider and I am darn happy with it. I also have a 12" Ridgid non slider. I use the Milwaukee for 90% of my cuts. I have not had any issue with accuracy in angles or anything else. The Ridgid is fine also but I definitely prefer the slider.

[Rich Riddle]

I use a Makita LS0714 sliding miter saw on worksite jobs. It's a very small saw but can cut up to 12" wide. Love it. For working in the shop on real things, I go with the sliding table saw. It's more accurate.

323830

[David Kumm]

Even though I have sliding table saws, my old Hitachi 10" SCMS still gets lots of use. Seems to be stiff enough for the amount of miter work I need but mainly useful for crosscutting rough. I don't use lasers so I like being able to mark the board anywhere and still be able to drop the teeth on the mark to verify location. I prefer a 10" heavy plate blade to minimize deflection for that last three or four half kerf cuts as I timidly sneak up on the fit. Wide boards do need some finess as the SCMS can beat you do death if you try to force the cut. Dave

[BOB OLINGER]

Thanks to everyone for their answers. Given the many responses, I'm just going to keep my Dewalt 12" non slider. For what it's worth, I also have an old Riobi 10" (like 15+ yrs ago), not on a stand, that I've found very portable to move around to get closer to jobs when simple cross cuts are needed.

[Bill McNiel]

FWIW-I have the Dewalt 12" SCMS, a 10" chop saw, a 10" CMS, a slider extension for my Unisaw and a MFT set-up. Which saw/technique I use depends on the type, size and end use of the material. The slider is primarily used for rough sizing of material and onsite finish work or deck construction. It has more than earned its keep over the last five years.

I too have not yet experienced a slider that does not have some amount of wobble but then again I am not using it in situations where thousands are significant to the finished product.

[Martin Wasner]

I use a Makita LS0714 sliding miter saw on worksite jobs. It's a very small saw but can cut up to 12" wide. Love it. For working in the shop on real things, I go with the sliding table saw. It's more accurate.

323830


I've got that same little guy for an install saw as well. Love the fact it weighs almost nothing. I do wish it had soft start and the ability to bevel both sides though. I get confused cutting crown with only one bevel angle, but once I'm in the groove and my brain warms up I do fine. I bought it mostly for the weight. It get's broken out once in a while in the shop, but pretty rare.

Have you ever tried putting a skil saw blade in it? I've noticed that with the tiny blade it goes from sharp to dull very quickly, Even though its a bit smaller a 7-1/4" blade would probably be a cheap, good, disposable blade for it. Forrest is the only aftermarket blade that I've seen, and while good, it doesn't take much and it's dull.