Laser beam for miter saw. Good idea?

[Don Morris]

I have a couple projects coming up in the near future which will require heavy use of my Hitachi C10 Miter saw. I'm very happy with the saw and the only thing I miss on it is perhaps is a laser beam. I've seen them at the woodworking shows and the woodworking show is coming to this area in a little over a month. Any of you guys out there with them have opinions on their helpfulness? I hate wasting time nibbling on the edge of the wood only to find I need to take another 32nd off or I took a 32nd too much off. Those add on laser beams look like they might save me a lot of time over the long haul. And...it's another tool, sort of. Thanks for any input.

Don M.

[Jim Bell]

Don I have a DW708 12" compound miter slider. Tried 2 after market lasers and immediately returned both. Based on my experience I'll never bother with it again. Perhaps someone here can be of more help, the saws being different and all. Good luck to you,


Jim

[Walt Pater]

I have not found laser guides to be of any use for anything other than rough cuts. You'll still do the nibblin' and cursin'. You'll have better luck making a sacrificial base & fence, and lining up your piece with the kerf marks on it. You'll then get the added perks of a zero-clearance base, to boot.

[Dev Emch]

Wouldn't touch a laser with a 10 foot pole!

The problem is that the laser is actually rather wide and hard to tram into position. Also, you learn the quicks of each blade and sometimes "aim" the blade from left on some cuts and from the right on other cuts. A saw kerf is really a massive amount of space and its no fun to be off by this much or even half this much. Aim on the set of your blade and you will be happy.

[Steven Shelby]

I hate to be so disagreeable, but... I have a Delta 12" with twin lasers and it has changed my life! I absolutely can't imagine not having it in my shop. With apologies to Walt, I no longer find myself nibblin' and cursin'. My cuts are always accurate the first time. I've had it for a year and haven't needed to adjust the lasers... and that includes moving it from the old shop to the new house (and you know how movers can be with tossing stuff around). The twin, side by side lasers create an accurate preview of the kerf... no more guessing. I absolutely would recommend it. Especially if your project is going to require heavy duty use, I think you'll find that it goes a bunch quicker with the laser.

[JayStPeter]

I have the Delta twin laser saw. I found it real useful when cutting long boards for my deck. For accurate furniture making cuts, I turn it off as it makes it more difficult to get the blade on my line. The most useful thing with a MS is a stop block of some sort. A screw in the stop block for fine adjustment allows the small adjustments without the cursing.

Jay

[Brett Baldwin]

IMHO your money would be better spent on building yourself an extension wing(s) with an adjustable stop block fence. That way you can be sure to get exactly the same length on repeat cuts. It eliminates the guesswork of where the kerf will be.

[Greg Heppeard]

I have the Porter Cable twin laser and love it. I haven't heard too many positives about the after market lasers. I have also built an extension on both sides and have a stop with built in tape. For quick one or two cuts, I use the laser, for multiple cuts I use the stop.

[Jeff Sudmeier]

I absolutely love my laser, but I wish I could turn it off at times! I love it for cuts that need to be accurate to the 1/16th or 1/32nd. Any more precison than that and I need to use the old fashioned way :)

[John Miliunas]

Twin laser Delta 12" here. Don't believe I'd consider another CMS or SCMS without the same setup! "On" when I need it but, leave it "off" for quick cuts.:) From what I've seen, the aftermarket "add-on" ones are not accurate and may not be worth consideration. My $00.02...:) :cool:

[Larry Fox]

I have the Delta 12" with the twin laser and I agree with Jay that it is great for rough cuts but for the really fine cuts a stop-block does the trick better. For me, it has two additional benfits;

1) Before I leave the shop at night I make sure everything is unplugged (I have two small kids). The laser has reminded me on several ocassions that the saw was plugged in.
2) It helps you keep your fingers out of the way of the blade.

[Dave Tinley]

I have the Hitachi 10" scms with the laser and really love it.It is probally the most used machine in the shop.
In fact I bought a Hitchi 10"cms (non slider) at a pawn shop to tote to job sites for cutting trim. Using it makes me miss th laser scms. Once I set the fences, squared the blade and added extension, it is dead on accurate.
I cant say anything about the aftermarket models but my Hitachi is fantastic.

Dave

[Ellen Benkin]

I have the PC 10" compound double laser and I'll never go back to a no-laser saw again. I've set the adjustment to fit my thin kerf blade and every cut I make is right on. I've heard really bad things about the after market lasers, but this one is great. It has an on-oiff switch so using the laser is separate from using the saw. I can set up the cut, turn off the laser, and make the cut. It's one of those great products that does exactly what it promises to do with no additional bells and whistles to get in the way.

[Jim Becker]

If the laser system is built in to the tool, such as the PC/Delta versions or the Hitachi, I wouldn't avoid the machine, but I'd not touch an "add on" laser with a ten foot piece of balsa wood... ;) For safely reasons, I want the laser to work when the blade is NOT turning under power. My preference is also for the beam to span the blade so you have accurate lines on both sides of the blade without switching something.

[Scott Loven]

I am going to hold off until they come out with the wood cutting laser. Think of it, you will never need to buy a blade again!
Scott

[John Miliunas]

I am going to hold off until they come out with the wood cutting laser. Think of it, you will never need to buy a blade again!
Scott

Yeah, and then they'll give you a metal pointer to line it up with!:D :D :cool:

[Steven Shelby]

If the laser system is built in to the tool, such as the PC/Delta versions or the Hitachi, I wouldn't avoid the machine, but I'd not touch an "add on" laser with a ten foot piece of balsa wood... ;) For safely reasons, I want the laser to work when the blade is NOT turning under power. My preference is also for the beam to span the blade so you have accurate lines on both sides of the blade without switching something.

Jim,
I not only agree with your points, but I think the new look (Russian hat and shades combo) is truly stylish!

[JayStPeter]

If the laser system is built in to the tool, such as the PC/Delta versions or the Hitachi, I wouldn't avoid the machine, but I'd not touch an "add on" laser with a ten foot piece of balsa wood... ;) For safely reasons, I want the laser to work when the blade is NOT turning under power. My preference is also for the beam to span the blade so you have accurate lines on both sides of the blade without switching something.

Well, I suspect you won't be buying the Delta/PC twin-laser anytime soon. I have the same complaints with mine as you do with your current saw. I'd much rather have a laserless saw than this one.

I wouldn't bother with a laser that only works with the blade spinning. Aside from the obvious safety issue, my main (if not only) use for the laser is getting long heavy pieces of wood positioned close to the cut line. Usually I'm using two hands to push and shove the wood against the fence, so having to reach up and turn on the saw to see the line would make it a waste. Once I get in position for starting the saw, I turn off the laser and make my fine adjustments using the blade edge.

The add on LaserKerf laser actually looks like a reasonable implementation for an aftermarket laser. The downside is external brackets and wiring as well as bettery power. The new DW saws have an optional laser, seems like a smart way to go.

Jay

[Don Morris]

Wow guys, THANKS for the input! Have to rethink about an add-on laser for my Hitachi. Consensus seems to be the built-ins are OK but the add-ons may not be what I want. I've done enough nibbling on the edges of wood to know how to do that so I guess it won't kill me to continue nibbling. The Hitachi is such a good performer I can't see getting rid of it just to get a laser. Unless...I go on ebay with it and see what I can get for it. Who knows...now there's a thought...a new Hitachi or ??? WITH laser. Thanks again to all for the input.

Don M

[JayStPeter]

Jim,
I not only agree with your points, but I think the new look (Russian hat and shades combo) is truly stylish!

Every time I see that avatar I think of theme music from '70s shows like Starsky and Hutch or Shaft ...

waka waka deer neer ..

:D :D ;)