What's a good 10" no frills CMS?

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,
I'm in the looking stages for a 10" CMS.
I'm willing to trade off frills -lasers and other "do-dad's" for accuracy, dependability and general overall quality construction.
I't going to be semi-stationary - mounted in/on a shop built station I'm going to construct.

I'm going 10" instead of 12" due to cost and availibility of blades.

[Charles Wiggins]

ShopMaster (MS250). Definitely no frills. I'm pretty happy with it, except that I discovered that I couldn't cut 4" baseboard molding standing up. It has just enough depth to accommodate a '4 by' (3 1/2" or so). It's proven to be pretty accurate. I think I paid about $100 at the Borg.

If I had it to do again, I'd have gotten by the Neander way and saved up for a 12" SCMS.

[Justin McCurdy]

Try the Makita (LS1013) or Bosch (1915) without all of the lights/lasers. That being said, if you want to spend less, Sears frequently has a Craftsman on sale for under $200. My dad loves his.

[Ken Belisle]

.........gets my vote. 90 to 45 miter to 90 to 45 bevel to 90 and all are dead on accurate. will cut a 4 x 12 in a single pass at 90. I've had mine since they came out and would buy another in a heart-beat.

[glenn bradley]

I received a DW703 as a housewarming gift. I figured I'd upgrade somewhere down the road. Haven't felt the need yet. Very solid reliable little CMS.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=63720&d=1177997823

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=39951&d=1149293260

[Jamie Buxton]

I had a 10" CMS, and sold it to get a 10" SCMS. The simple CMS was good for only the simplest things -- for instance it crosscut lots of 2 1/4" boards to floor my living room. However, it quickly ran out of capacity for anything much more ambitious. Miter cuts on wider stock rapidly exposed its shortcomings.

[Jason Beam]

I received a DW703 as a housewarming gift. I figured I'd upgrade somewhere down the road. Haven't felt the need yet. Very solid reliable little CMS.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=63720&d=1177997823

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=39951&d=1149293260

Same here. I haven't found a reason to upgrade yet. I occasionally crosscut things wider than 6" but not in lengths that would exceed the limits of my crosscut sled on my table saw. Usually for the wide stuff, i'll slice a rough cut with my circ saw and then trim it square on my crosscut sled. I don't often build many things that require wide 6' long boards so this limitation isn't a major factor for me. My 14" deep bookcase was one exception, but that was 3 years ago and I haven't really needed a similar cut since.

[Stan Welborn]

I also have the DW705 though I'm about to put it on CL for sale. Great saw but I got a slider just for the added width. If everything you do is within it's capacity, I'd recommended it as a good buy. At least mine has been a good saw.

[Eric Gustafson]

I have a 10" Craftsman CMS I used to build a gambrel shed. It worked great. I later bought a Makita LS1013 SCMS for additional width capacity. If a CMS is all you need, you can have my Craftsman. You pay shipping. PM me if interested.

[Jim Podsedly]

I have a Bosch 4212L 12 inch and it is one of the best CMS's i have had. I moved up to a 12 inch from a 10 inch and have not looked back. At first i thought the laser would be hokey but in reality it has really turned out to be an asset.

It is on sale for under $400 now on amazon.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,

Eric thank you for your generous offer.
I'm going to pass though.
I had a very bad experience with the Craftsman 10" CMS I bought last year - which is why I'm looking again.

[Jim Kountz]

Dont overlook the Hitachi. A contractor buddy of mine just got one and its a really nice saw for the money I thought. Havent read any reviews or anything on them but I did make a few cuts with it on his jobsite the other day.

[Mike Henderson]

I have a Bosch 4212L 12 inch and it is one of the best CMS's i have had. I moved up to a 12 inch from a 10 inch and have not looked back. At first i thought the laser would be hokey but in reality it has really turned out to be an asset.

It is on sale for under $400 now on amazon.
I have the Bosch 4212L also and have been very satisfied with it. Regarding the difference in cost between the 10" and 12" blades, you just don't go through blades that fast to make the blade size that much of a decision factor.

I had a 10" prior to the Bosch and upgraded to get more cut - not thickness, but width. Where I have the Bosch mounted I didn't have room behind the station for a slider.

Oh, with the $25 rebate, the Bosch is now about $350 at Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-4212L-12-Inch-Compound-Tracking/dp/B0007LQQ0U/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1194666588&sr=8-1).

Mike

[Bob Smalser]

I find the Bosch 12" Slider able to replace the radial arm saw for cutoff work in addition to compound miter work. For me it was well worth the extra cost:

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-5412L-12-Inch-Bevel-Tracking/dp/B0007LQPUQ/ref=sr_1_1/103-8281242-6281457?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1194667919&sr=1-1

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HK6Z916WL._AA280_.jpg

[Wade Lippman]

I have the Bosch 4212L also and have been very satisfied with it. Regarding the difference in cost between the 10" and 12" blades, you just don't go through blades that fast to make the blade size that much of a decision factor.

I had a 10" prior to the Bosch and upgraded to get more cut - not thickness, but width. Where I have the Bosch mounted I didn't have room behind the station for a slider.

Oh, with the $25 rebate, the Bosch is now about $350 at Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-4212L-12-Inch-Compound-Tracking/dp/B0007LQQ0U/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1194666588&sr=8-1).

Mike

I am looking for a 12" CMS and was about to buy the DW716. It is the same price, but includes a free Freud blade.
Hey, it's not much, but it is a good blade.
Why the Bosch rather than the Dewalt?

[Mike Henderson]

I am looking for a 12" CMS and was about to buy the DW716. It is the same price, but includes a free Freud blade.
Hey, it's not much, but it is a good blade.
Why the Bosch rather than the Dewalt?
I looked at the deWalt at a tool store (don't remember the model but it was a 12" dual bevel) and did not think it was as well made as the Bosch. I've used the Bosch in my shop and have been pleased with it, but I've never used the 12" DeWalt in real applications to compare it.

You need to look at the two and make your own decision. But I wouldn't let the cost of a blade be the deciding factor - you're going to own the saw for a long time. They all come with a blade but it's generally not the best blade - I got a Forrest Chopmaster for mine.

Mike

[Bert Johansen]

Yes, I agree that the blade makes all the difference. I purchased a very simple Black & Decker saw a number of years ago for less than $100, and added the Forrest Chopmaster. Makes exceptional cuts, and the B&D is easy to tune for dead-accurate miters. Not fancy, but very sturdy and it gets the job done. I also have the Eurekazone EZ Guide system, and use it for virtually all sheet goods machining. Although I, too, have considered an up-grade, so far I don't see the need.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,
First off thanks for all the good advice!
For better or worse, a big yellow box arrived last evening via UPS with a DeWalt 703 inside. ($189.00 shipped from Amazon).

I went 10" instead of 12" because - as I mentioned - the blades. I already have a good assortment of 10" blades and to duplicate them in 12" would have cost too much. (sorry - I should have mentioned that in the earlier post).

I also have a 10" Ryobi which is my "job site" saw, so again, I wanted to keep some continuity and not have to duplicate blades.