Miter Saws: DW715 vs. Bosch 4212L

[Jeff Cord]

I'm on the market for a miter saw for moulding work (including crown) as well as general purpose rough cutting work.

At the moment I'm comparing these two saws and am curious about real-world opinions.

The Bosch is more expensive and seems to get good reviews and it also has a laser. How good does the laser really work as I've read varying opinions of the laser in places like Amazon.

The DW is less expensive until you add the laser but instead of being part of the saw it's an add-on. I've also read varying reviews of the laser as well.

Any information is appreciated.
Jeff

[dave rollins]

Jeff
My first miter saw was I believe the predecessor to the Dw715 in that mine would not take the new laser attachment. I liked the saw other than it was hard to line up on your cut marks. When the PC 3802L miter saw came out I sold the Dewalt and purchased it. I really, really, really like the laser and after you have it adjusted it is very accurate. So far the only downside to this saw is that when I took it onto a volunteer project the laser was left on overnight and it burned out. BUMMER. From what the repair shop has told me it will cost around $100 to repair if it is indeed the laser. I don't know if any of the new saws have a timer on the laser for auto shut-off but it sure would be a nice feature. Only recently have I purchased a Bosch but it is a 12" slider so I can't be of any help with it.
If you are interested in a slider you can search for the thread a few days back and it will tell you how to get the 12" slider, a Freud 96 tooth blade,and a free Bosch Colt router for $519.99. One thing to keep in mind on whatever you choose is that if you are going to be moving it around much, pay attention to how much each of them weigh!! Hope this helps
Dave

[Matthew Voss]

Look for a Dewalt 706 - predecessor to the 716. Belt drive so the motor housing is set back giving the saw a 6" base capacity and 6-5/8" crown capacity. This is double bevel and has a tall fence - also, not too heavy @ 40lbs. There isn't much you can't cut with this saw:

http://www.tylertool.com/dewdwrec12co.html

Oh and, forget the laser. They're too wide and obscure pencil marks. Get a sharp # 2-1/2 pencil and learn to cut to the line.

[willie sobat]

I own the Bosch. I love it. The laser is a little wide and only helps on the left side of the blade.

[Mark Warren]

just bought the dewalt 716 and it cuts like butter & is very accurate, I also mounted it on the ryobi msuv. very nice & mobile

[Wade Lippman]

Look for a Dewalt 706 - predecessor to the 716. Belt drive so the motor housing is set back giving the saw a 6" base capacity and 6-5/8" crown capacity. This is double bevel and has a tall fence - also, not too heavy @ 40lbs. There isn't much you can't cut with this saw:

http://www.tylertool.com/dewdwrec12co.html

Oh and, forget the laser. They're too wide and obscure pencil marks. Get a sharp # 2-1/2 pencil and learn to cut to the line.

I agree with you on the lasers; I had them on an old CMS and a RAS and they are pretty useless. They just hint at the sawline.

Are you recommending the DW706 only for the price, or is there another reason?
I just got a DW716 today. It was $100 more than the reconditioned DW706, but included a good Freud blade, so they were really about same price.
I would be reluctant to buy a reconditioned CMS unless I could return it locally; who know what it has been through.

[Chuck Burns]

I agree with Wade; the laser is virtually useless. I've got a Bosch 5212 and love it. I put the laser to give it a try but took it off. Cut to the pencil line.

[Curt Harms]

I'm not a professional, I don't play one on TV and I haven't stayed at a Holiday Inn Express lately:o. I got the Delta CMS on clearance at one of the borgs. I find the laser handy, it'll shine down the front of a piece as well as on top, is split-the-pencil-line accurate and puts out a double line to show both sides of the blade. It would be nice to have an auto-off feature and the Delta/Porter Cable saws have had issues with power supplies I know. It seems like the power supply should run thru the main power switch so it's only powered up when needed.

I haven't heard much good about the "washer" laser installations or after market setups. Somebody who uses a CMS a lot probably doesn't need laser guides, but it's helpful to hobbyist me.

HTH

Curt

[Mike Watts]

I just pushed the order button on amazon for the DW716 since they had a good price and had a free $99 freud blade along with 20% off an accessory. I had borrowed the DW715 saw from a friend to put up some large crown and really liked it.
Mike


I'm on the market for a miter saw for moulding work (including crown) as well as general purpose rough cutting work.

At the moment I'm comparing these two saws and am curious about real-world opinions.

The Bosch is more expensive and seems to get good reviews and it also has a laser. How good does the laser really work as I've read varying opinions of the laser in places like Amazon.

The DW is less expensive until you add the laser but instead of being part of the saw it's an add-on. I've also read varying reviews of the laser as well.

Any information is appreciated.
Jeff

[Ted Baca]

I tried the Irwin laser mounted on my DW708 and took it back. It shines the line about an 1/8" from the cutline. Even the instructions make a point that you must account for the 1/8". Didn't make sense to me. But I am now considering selling my DW708 and buying the Bosch. I like all the upfront controls and wanted the laser as a bonus. When you guys mention the laser is too wide, do you refer to the width of the broadcast line? Or do you mean it is to wide and floods the mark on the board making it difficult to decern the cut edge? Or does it leave a sharp edge of light on the cutline?

[willie sobat]

On my Bosch the line is not so wide that it is the problem. It is about as wide as a pencil line. The problem I have with it is that it is not exactly on the cut line. It is about 1/32 to the right. If I am using the laser, I will mark a pencil line on the stock, then feed it from left to right with the blade spinning. As the pencil line comes fully under the laser the red light of the laser seems to disappear. If it is slightly off to either side again it is plainly obvious. This would be awsome if it were on the cutline. So I only use it for rough cuts.

[Pete Clifford]

I have a similar Bosch in a 10" SCMS, and like it a lot. Unlike others, I find the laser to be useful to quickly set the saw up to make angled cuts on moldings i.e. align the laser with your cut line. My door frames are not 90 degrees to the floor, so this was helpful to get a perfect baseboard fit. You can do the same thing with a sliding T-bevel, but this is faster.

[Ted Baca]

Kinda disappointing that even Bosch doesn't have the Laser on the cut line. Does anyone make a saw that does? I think Porter Cable was the first to use the laser, I had always assumed that it was on the cutline, maybe I was wrong.

[Randal Stevenson]

Kinda disappointing that even Bosch doesn't have the Laser on the cut line. Does anyone make a saw that does? I think Porter Cable was the first to use the laser, I had always assumed that it was on the cutline, maybe I was wrong.

While I am not sure who had the laser first (between Delta and Porter Cable), the only laser I have EVER seen anything good written about, was the old double laser setup. It shined a laser on either side of the blade.

[Matt Lentzner]

I have the 12" Bosch. IMO the worst thing about the laser is that it only turns on when the blade is spinning. IMO that is unsafe. I don't want to be adjusting the wood one handed under a spinning blade.

It's on the saw, but I don't really use it. It sort of serves as a "sanity" check just before I start cutting. A couple of time the work has shifted a little after I lined it up. The laser showed me I was off.

To line up my cut I bring the saw blade down with the saw not running and line up my cut. The saw has a safety on the on trigger so it is not going to start up on me by accident. This seems to be pretty fast and accurate without worring about whether the laser is lined up or not.

Overall, I like the saw, but it is a beast. Ever though it rarely leaves my shop I bought a delta miter saw stand for it. I was eventually going to hurt myself picking it up and carrying it around. It is not only heavy, but very awkward.