handheld circular saw

[Jim Becker]

Having it pointed out that Porter Cable now owns Skil; that decision is made.

To clarify, Stanley Black and Decker owns both Porter Cable (deprecated to mostly homeowner focused products) and DeWalt. Skill is owned by Chevron, a Chinese company, who bought the brand name from Bosch.

[Aaron Rosenthal]

I'm a Milwaukee "man" and still keep my corded sidewinder in my garage, like my corded Sawzall, "just in case".
I'm willing to bet you can find a real good sidewinder, quality made in Germany or Japan, on craigslist or even in an estate sale that will last you the rest of your life.
Like others here, I can't stand cheaply made tools.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I have a '70s Skil that was the pay I got for building a wooden fence for a friend. The bearings finally got bad enough, I bought a corded Makita to replace it.

As pointed out earlier, think about how you are going to use it and if you are left-handed or right-handed and buy a model that will allow you to see the blade and the cut line.

[Michael Schuch]

I love my Porter Cable 314 4.5" worm drive circular saw for most things. I only use the worm drive 77 Skill saw for really heave stuff. For pretty much everything except cutting into an existing floor or something I mostly use my track saw.

[Rich Engelhardt]

A few years ago when I was looking at saws to replace my Ryobi, I came to the conclusion that I should just go ahead and get a track saw since the next best thing was a worm drive saw.
At the time, a top shelf worm drive ran about $200 and the Festool TS55EQ ran about $500.

Over the years, I've added a cordless 5 1/2" Makita - which I dearly love since it is so handy - and a 3 1/2" 12V Makita - which is super handy for small trimming.

I still use the Ryobi for things also.

Saws are like routers and clamps - you can never have too many of them.

[Curt Harms]

I use the saw infrequently enough that it's been about a year since I gave my old one to my sister. Now I need it to cut a plywood desktop in place. For some reason, I just don't like cheap tools. It is very true that in 40 years I will be at room temperature (or colder!). I have thought about getting a track saw on a number of occasions and I still may do that the next time I have a "calling". Having it pointed out that Porter Cable now owns Skil; that decision is made. The HD near me has a Dewalt in stock that suits my purposes. I appreciate the feedback. Thank you.

Re Skil tools ownership. They were owned by Bosch and were purchased by Chervon, a Chinese company in 2017. The only thing I know about Chervon is that they made Craftsman routers at one point. I looked at one in a Sears store (that should date it somewhat) and it didn't look half bad. It had a separate collet like most routers - remember when Craftman router collets were just a threaded split motor shaft with motor fans that liked to self destruct? - and the plunge base was quite smooth.

[Ron Selzer]

"Saws are like routers and clamps - you can never have too many of them."

Sure seems to be that way!
Ron

[andrew whicker]

I like Metabo... (They are my cordless setup). Here is a corded version. The foot on these saws are really nice.

https://www.amazon.com/Metabo-HPT-C7...92102-9991531?

[Michael Drew]

Skill 77 - magnesium. I just replaced my 15yo mag77 with the updated version. It's a good saw. I also have a couple smaller saws for non-2X lumber work, but the 77 is, and always has been my go-to for framing. It's as "accurate" as I make it.... LOL

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...e?ie=UTF8&th=1

[Jerome Stanek]

I prefer a drop foot saw that the handle is always at the same angle.

[Michael Schuch]

I prefer a drop foot saw that the handle is always at the same angle.

What is a drop foot saw? Are you talking about the really old Porter Cable saws where there is no swivel and the whole bottom plate lowers? Or maybe a plunging track saw?

[Maurice Mcmurry]

What is a drop foot saw? Are you talking about the really old Porter Cable saws where there is no swivel and the whole bottom plate lowers? Or maybe a plunging track saw?

I can't speak for Jerome but I think the answer is, the whole bottom plate lowers. Skilsaw made several models that could be called a "drop foot". My daily user is that way. I don't think of it as old. I bought it in 1982.

IMG_1629.jpg IMG_1627 2.jpg

[Jim Becker]

My old B&D tailed circ saw from the 1980s is a "drop foot"...and so is the battery powered Bauer saw I use now for general utility. Tracksaws tend to be "plungers" because of their nature.

[Zachary Hoyt]

I used a Bosch 'drop foot' saw at the farm for a while. It was somewhat unsafe because the guard would stick open, and the switch was dodgy, and the shoe mechanism was so worn that it slopped around a bit when cutting and made it hard to follow a line, so I finally scrapped it. We had a DeWalt then too that was much better, and when I was getting ready to move I bought a new Makita 5007 that I am very happy with.

[Ron Selzer]

I learned on a Porter Cable 6 1/2" drop foot saw and then went on to a variety of saws, cheap to contractor grade, as I had more money to spend, and burned up saws needed replaced. Finally tried a worm drive saw and never looked back. I use side winders from time to time if I don't have one of my worm drives around. Yes, I would prefer a drop foot to a swivel, however for me the worm drive trumps all. I have multiple of 7 1/4, 8 1/4 and 10 1/4 worm drives. Want a 16 worm drive and some day will have one just because. I have no desire to go back to 6 1/2 saws.
Ro