New Miter Saw

[Jim Becker]

Somebody's got to say it...........Radial arm saw.

Someone did earlier in the thread.

[Ray Newman]

I have a BOSCH 12" Glide Saw. Very happy with it and so far no problems at all. Was accurate right out of the box.

If There was room in my shop, I would definitely have a 10" Radial Arms Saw or a Delta 12" turret Radial Arm.

[Doug Colombo]

I have a BOSCH 12" Glide Saw. Very happy with it and so far no problems at all. Was accurate right out of the box.

If There was room in my shop, I would definitely have a 10" Radial Arms Saw or a Delta 12" turret Radial Arm.

+1 on the Bosch - I have had one for a few years and LOVE IT !

[David Sochar]

CTD. A 12" blade, but an effective 10" saw. Solid cast iron, with no plastic on the entire machine. A 1/2HP Baldor motor sits on top, with a 1" axle in nice visible bearings for the pivot. The whole rotates in a well machined disc for up to 50 degrees left or right. Not really portable as they are about 80 lbs.

Use the CTD blades because they are superior to any other blade I have tried.

You will to find a good deal on a used one. Otherwise, you are over budget.

[Thomas Pender]

In the irony department I have been considering buying a sliding miter saw. Mostly I would use it to break heavy stuff down rather than attempt to use my table saw or even my old Festool which cannot cut through thick stock for legs, etc. I also would like to cut 45 degree angles for frames and for some finish carpentry. (Cross cut sled on my SS PCS works, but it requires some fussing.). It came down to the Dewalt 779, 780, the expensive Makita LS1219L, the slightly less expensive Bosch GCM12SD, etc. I carefully read the reviews and then I found this thread, which I think nails it for saws that do not use the the traditional glide system - they do not seem to be as accurate. (Read some nasty ratings on accuracy about one of the expensive saws as well.). Bottom line, I am going to buy the 779 or the 780. Will be good for breaking stuff down, fixing our decks, etc. (Will also buy the stand.). I thank all of you for useful comments which made it easy for me to figure out what to do and to answer the question asked, but I do believe the option of a 12” blade is critical for cutting bigger stuff.

[Ronald Blue]

Since it was mentioned....

cedarrapids.craigslist.org/tls/d/newhall-radial-arm-saw/7375031652.html
milwaukee.craigslist.org/tls/d/brookfield-de-walt-radial-arm-saw-with/7372532244.html

[Steve Rozmiarek]

In the irony department I have been considering buying a sliding miter saw. Mostly I would use it to break heavy stuff down rather than attempt to use my table saw or even my old Festool which cannot cut through thick stock for legs, etc. I also would like to cut 45 degree angles for frames and for some finish carpentry. (Cross cut sled on my SS PCS works, but it requires some fussing.). It came down to the Dewalt 779, 780, the expensive Makita LS1219L, the slightly less expensive Bosch GCM12SD, etc. I carefully read the reviews and then I found this thread, which I think nails it for saws that do not use the the traditional glide system - they do not seem to be as accurate. (Read some nasty ratings on accuracy about one of the expensive saws as well.). Bottom line, I am going to buy the 779 or the 780. Will be good for breaking stuff down, fixing our decks, etc. (Will also buy the stand.). I thank all of you for useful comments which made it easy for me to figure out what to do and to answer the question asked, but I do believe the option of a 12” blade is critical for cutting bigger stuff.

Quality built traditional linear bearing are SCMS have far more bearing surface than a glide system. In my experience most saw issues come from moving them, not from actual use, and a good linear bearing saw resists that damage better. We use these saws every day, heavily. I have tried three different Makita series, three dewalts, a milwaukee, and a couple hitachi and metabos. Our crews are good at breaking things, and the most common breakdown we see is transport damage. Second is stuff falling off the saws, like extra clamps, sliding fence sections, dust chutes, fasteners for detent systems, etc. A bunch of this is transport related. I have replaced brushes, switches, cords and misc screw in saws that were worth repairing. In my experience, I have never seen a damaged or misaligned linear bearing or rod in any of our saws of any brand. I have however seen another local contractor destroy a glide they were using for trim carpentry while moving it after only a week or two of having it.

We're talking torture test stuff here compared to how these saws will be used in most woodshops, so honestly pretty much any decent saw will be fine in that environment. For us though, the Makitas and the Dewalts are what I keep buying because they hold up the best and cause the least drama. I personally prefer Makita for my personal saw as they are a little more refined, and I prefer to send a Dewalt on the rough jobs because it's built a little tougher.

[Jim Becker]

Steve makes a really good point relative to maintaining accuracy...while I'm sure there are exceptions, a big challenge with keeping things dialed in comes from moving them around. If the tool is stationary and one is not beating on it with material and via transportation, there is less risk of it going out on you. But there is still risk... The greater your need for precision with this particular tool, the more care you need to put into selecting it. For general utility including cutting down lumber, you'll almost ever notice any minor anomalies. But if you're doing work like exact miters and crosscuts for final fitting, crown and other complicated angles, etc...you need a tool that gets accurate and stays accurate no matter what. I'd be on the fence with this if I were buying today. "Normally" I don't depend upon the miter saw for precise work. In my temporary shop, I must for functional reasons and the tool is on a mobile stand that I must move just outside the door to use for some cuts due to space. So there's the "bumpy bump" from moving the stand over the threshold (in both directions) every time I need to use the machine. Fun.

[Mike Stelts]

I'm also happy with the Bosch 12". Forgot how long I've had it, but since shortly after it was introduced..

[Alan Lightstone]

I've had several instances, of late, that my Kapex moved out of square. The saw never gets moved, it is fixed to a cabinet with nice permanent wings on it (Fastcap Best Fence). Not checking it for square each time before cutting is my fault.

That being said, I'm thinking of upgrading, though I would hate to not be able to use those wings.

So I'm pretty +/- about the Kapex lately. Looking for an upgrade, and I figure I could get a good price selling the Kapex.

[John TenEyck]

Somebody's got to say it...........Radial arm saw.

You weren't the first, Rich, and you won't be the last. A RAS does more, better, than any miter saw ever will. If you don't need portability, and have the space, a Dewalt GWI or larger might be your ideal machine.

FWIW, I have a Bosch 12" DCMS. It's been a good saw after I tuned it. Out of the box it was awful despite the rave reviews. And it weighs 64 lbs, so portability is only for the young, of which I no longer am a member.

And whoever said the Makita blade is great is spot on.

John

[John TenEyck]

IMO it is a huge mistake to use a miter saw, RAS, whatever saw to break down rough stock if you also plan to use it for precision work. The odds are high that a piece of wood that has some warp will jamb as you cut it and that pretty much guarantees the alignment goes off. The best machine I've found for breaking down rough stock is my jigsaw. No worry of kickback, alignment is a non-issue, and it's no big deal if I ruin a blade. With a coarse cutting blade it goes through anything without complaint.

John

[Mike Burke]

Some Great insights, information and suggestions. It's good to hear some real world experience with some of these miter saws. Steve makes some really good points , thanks for sharing your experience with the most popular miter saws. John you make a great suggestion about breaking down rough lumber...I have been using my Jig saw lately to cut rough stuff to length also. Makes sense to keep the miter saw for the precision cuts. After all that's the main reason for having one and keeping it accurate.

I did find a replacement part for my Delta old 34-080 so I am going to attempt to fix it up for now and really consider what I am going to spend my $$ on.

I have been looking at the Makita 10" slider the last couple days...Looks like a good saw for my use.

Thanks everyone for all the reply's. Good information !

[Brian Holcombe]

IMO it is a huge mistake to use a miter saw, RAS, whatever saw to break down rough stock if you also plan to use it for precision work. The odds are high that a piece of wood that has some warp will jamb as you cut it and that pretty much guarantees the alignment goes off. The best machine I've found for breaking down rough stock is my jigsaw. No worry of kickback, alignment is a non-issue, and it's no big deal if I ruin a blade. With a coarse cutting blade it goes through anything without complaint.

John

I put air clamps on mine, never moves when cutting heavy rough stock.

[Adam Herman]

Somebody's got to say it...........Radial arm saw.

haha. i plan on this in the new building when ever that gets done. something nice with a 12in + blade.

just need the space for it.