Wood worker question

hwcurtice · May 10, 2010

Hello y'all.

I want to get a mitre saw. What would you get?i want to be able to cut fencing material to door trim with it, with corners. It has to last even though it may not be used a for a few months in between fun tasks.

No lame mitre box saw. I have one and it just ain't cuttin' it, y'know what I mean?

So, brand, size, stuff like that.

Thanks!

ain'tstuckjustresting · May 10, 2010

I bought a recond. Ryobi compound mitresaw at one of those cummins tool sales about 6yrs ago. It has worked great. I cut trim for my whole house. Used it for fencing and cut about 200 2X4's. I think I paid $89.

pokey · May 10, 2010

Dewalt. and if your planning on cutting anything more than 6" wide then get one with a slide. Also you will be a lot happier if you work with it much to get one that is belt driven. Their much quieter saws.

unclestripey · May 10, 2010

I've got a Bosch 12" slider, I love it, beats the hell outa the Dewalt 12" slider I had before. I had a Dewalt 6-7 years ago that I liked, but they have since ruined the design. When looking at a saw the bottom of the blade oughta be able to score a piece of lumber all the way back to the fence, the newer Dewalts won't.

zukkev · May 10, 2010

I'm no woodworker, but I'm not a fan of Dewalt power tools.
I'm with Unc on the Bosch unit....Also have a bunch of contractor buddies, and they all seem to be switching from Dewalt to Bosch (or Milwakee) for their power tools in general.

Duck Dodgers · May 10, 2010

I've been using my Hitachi 10" dual compound slider (belt drive) for years and am very happy with it. Half my tools are Hitachi and half are DeWalt. So....I'd vote for DeWalt also. Bottom line thought is get the dual compound. It makes life a lot easier.

zukkev · May 10, 2010

Yes....Hitachi is also very nice!

pokey · May 10, 2010

zukkev said:
Yes....Hitachi is also very nice!

Now see thats funny :haha: I wont buy anything hitachi makes. When they came onto the cordless market 25 or so years ago they put out some real crappy tools but they were cheaper than the makita stuff on the market so everyone was buying them. Come to find out the customer service and warrentys were a huge pain in the ass to deal with. So every carpenter/ contractor I know/knew switched back to makita. Then Makita changed its designs and they went to crap as well

Dewalt came out with a decent tool at a decent price and I have been buying them for several years now. The tools I use the hardest (sawzall, drills, holehawgs) I spent the extra and get the milwalkie. Only real problem with the better tools is their like eye candy to theifs. The dewalt stuff dosent seem to attract as much attention because the market is full of the stuff. The two Dewalt chop saws that I have are both a few years old, see heavy work and have held up great :cheer: Dosent mean that the newer ones are any good though. Damn mfgs change things all the time to save ten cents a unit:booo:

zukkev · May 10, 2010

pokey said:
Now see thats funny :haha: I wont buy anything hitachi makes. When they came onto the cordless market 25 or so years ago they put out some real crappy tools but they were cheaper than the makita stuff on the market so everyone was buying them. Come to find out the customer service and warrentys were a huge pain in the ass to deal with. So every carpenter/ contractor I know/knew switched back to makita. Then Makita changed its designs and they went to crap as well Dewalt came out with a decent tool at a decent price and I have been buying them for several years now. The tools I use the hardest (sawzall, drills, holehawgs) I spent the extra and get the milwalkie. Only real problem with the better tools is their like eye candy to theifs. The dewalt stuff dosent seem to attract as much attention because the market is full of the stuff. The two Dewalt chop saws that I have are both a few years old, see heavy work and have held up great :cheer: Dosent mean that the newer ones are any good though. Damn mfgs change things all the time to save ten cents a unit:booo:

Yup...pretty much hit the nail on the head, their cordless stuff sucks IMO...Their corded stuff seems nice....Yes, as of late Dewalt's stuff has gone to hell so I'm told. And X2 on the manufacturers going to the lowest bidder for their tools:booo:... All I can say is do all the research you can, and find the best product for the money you have to spend....:awesomework:

maxx · May 10, 2010

Bosch/Milwaukee/Hitachi

Get a 12", you'll be frustrated with a 10". As said, if you can pony up for a slider and a belt driven. Belt driven saws usually will cut thicker material as well because there isn't a bi motor hanging off the side of the blade, just a small pulley

2slow4you · May 10, 2010

IMO as a Tool salesman for the past 3 years, You cannot go wrong with Hitachi or Dewalt. But some things to think about, Hitachi has a 5 year limited warranty vs. Dewalt 1 year. The slide on Hitachi's is much smoother then delwalts. Hitachi's fence is about 2" higher... The only drawback I have seen from hitachi is their handle design it has a pistol grip vs the flat handle. I could see in everyday useage, that could be a PITA (or wrist) :redneck:. Take it as you will, for the money, this is one of the products were I would go with Hitachi. :awesomework:

tomota · May 10, 2010

I run a 10" Dewalt everyday. I have had the 12" Dewalt slider and also the Makita 12" slider, both nice saws but they are huge, heavy and co not cut as true as the 10" in my experience. If you only plan on cutting trim and 1x stock and the occasional 2x4 or 4x4 get a 10" but if you plan on cutting larger get a 10" or 12" slider.
I would stay away from the Rigid 12" chop saws as 3 guys at our shop got them last year on sale and they all have had the arbor and main bearing go out.

hwcurtice · May 10, 2010

I don't suppose someone has one I could borrow for a couple hours that is close to Sultan?

Yes, I do plan on buying one soon, but this deck needs done sooner....

Duck Dodgers · May 11, 2010

2slow4you said:
The only drawback I have seen from hitachi is their handle design it has a pistol grip vs the flat handle. I could see in everyday useage, that could be a PITA (or wrist) :redneck:. Take it as you will, for the money, this is one of the products were I would go with Hitachi. :awesomework:

x2 on the handle. It is a PIA especially if you are making a cut on a small piece of stock that requires you to contort your hold a bit.

That is my only complaint with this saw.

zukkev · May 11, 2010

Duck Dodgers said:
x2 on the handle. It is a PIA especially if you are making a cut on a small piece of stock that requires you to contort your hold a bit.

That is my only complaint with this saw.

I got a welder---we could fix that!:haha:

nowires · May 11, 2010

Dewalt all the way for the chop saw. Mine is 10 years old and just as tight

I am not going to knock another brand but for what I do it works good and is accorite
I have had the others

64FJ40 · May 11, 2010

hwcurtice said:
I don't suppose someone has one I could borrow for a couple hours that is close to Sultan?

Yes, I do plan on buying one soon, but this deck needs done sooner....

What size are the deck boards you're cutting?

I have a little one (8.25" blade) you can borrow for as long as you need it. I got the smaller one because the small blade doesn't have any deflection at speed. It's perfect for hardwood flooring and decking as long as you're using 4" boards.

In retrospect, a bigger blade would have been much more useful in the long run, so if you're going to buy one, get a 10".

Glenn · May 11, 2010

DeWalt is owned by Black & Decker.

hwcurtice · May 11, 2010

64FJ40 said:
What size are the deck boards you're cutting?

I have a little one (8.25" blade) you can borrow for as long as you need it. I got the smaller one because the small blade doesn't have any deflection at speed. It's perfect for hardwood flooring and decking as long as you're using 4" boards.

In retrospect, a bigger blade would have been much more useful in the long run, so if you're going to buy one, get a 10".

Just the 5/4 cedar decking.

2slow4you · May 11, 2010

Glenn said:
DeWalt is owned by Black & Decker.

A purchase that was done almost 7 years ago.

They also own Porter-Cable, Delta, DeVilbiss Air Power, Oldham Saw, and FLEX. Not to mention they have contractual agreements with Hitachi. :awesomework: