Compound miter saw | GTAMotorcycle.com

Compound miter saw

Jampy00

Jampy00

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Gonna need to buy a compound miter saw this year.
Any features I should be looking for?
Well aware of the top brands, but any value brands I should consider?
If any member of GTAM is selling one, let me know.

Not interested in FB marketplace or Kijiji posts.

Thanks
 
If you need one for a quick project let me know. I have a 12 inch DeWalt .

I would say any of the typical top brands are a good choice. DeWalt, Milwaukee, Makita, Bosch, Rigid,
Maybe even MasterCrap for light usage.

It all depends in your budget and blade size need.

The battery ones are nice but probably unnecessary in your case. Unless you need to do some carpentry when the power is out.
 
oioioi said:
If you need one for a quick project let me know. I have a 12 inch DeWalt .

I would say any of the typical top brands are a good choice. DeWalt, Milwaukee, Makita, Bosch, Rigid,
Maybe even MasterCrap for light usage.

It all depends in your budget and blade size need.

The battery ones are nice but probably unnecessary in your case. Unless you need to do some carpentry when the power is out.
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Should have posted my needs.
10" is fine 12' would be better.
Mostly want it for shelving projects. (Nothing urgent)
120v is fine, no requirement for batteries.
 
I bought too big a miter saw said no one ever . Dewalt is my favourite , festool second but only because it costs twice the price of a Dewalt. Makita and Milwaukee are both fine . 12” gives a few options you can’t get out of a 10” saw . If you’re thinking second tier , consider King Canada , it will look like a knockoff Makita , because it may come out of the same factory . Before anybody starts “Chinese crap” , yes master craft and powerfist are crap , King is excellent for the money , always on sale someplace. I own a Dewalt 12” , two King 10” and a Festool 12” . One of those Kings is at least 18yrs old and has been through the wringer. Yes four saws because I don’t have to buy them .



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Jampy00 said:
Should have posted my needs.
10" is fine 12' would be better.
Mostly want it for shelving projects. (Nothing urgent)
120v is fine, no requirement for batteries.
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If I had you kinda space, I'd look for a Radial Arm saw. You can do the same compound miters and crosscuts -- only wider, a sliding miter will struggle crosscuting a 10" board, a radial arm will handle about 20" and your crosscuts should be more accurate on large pieces. Same goes with small pieces, mitresaws are pretty scary when you're cutting small pieces.

The upside is you can rip, dado, rabbet, and most saws have a back spindle for sanding/shaping drums, and Jacob's chucks. Lots of used ones with 220v 3hp motors -- those things will tear thru 3" of hardwood with a fresh blade.

The downside is portability, once set up, a radial arm saws need to be stationary.
 
crankcall said:
I bought too big a miter saw said no one ever . Dewalt is my favourite , festool second but only because it costs twice the price of a Dewalt. Makita and Milwaukee are both fine . 12” gives a few options you can’t get out of a 10” saw . If you’re thinking second tier , consider King Canada , it will look like a knockoff Makita , because it may come out of the same factory . Before anybody starts “Chinese crap” , yes master craft and powerfist are crap , King is excellent for the money , always on sale someplace. I own a Dewalt 12” , two King 10” and a Festool 12” . One of those Kings is at least 18yrs old and has been through the wringer. Yes four saws because I don’t have to buy them .



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I second that., almost. I have a Milly 12 which is my go to.

I also have a cheepie Ryoby 10 up north, and another Craftsman 10 I gave to my kid. They are OK and I've run them hard without fail, but they are hobby tools. I'm not sure if King has more than one version -- I cannibalized one for parts because it's identical to my Ryoby.
 
Mad Mike said:
The downside is portability, once set up, a radial arm saws need to be stationary.
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The reason I gave mine away. It was replaced by a 7" Kobalt from Lowe's and it's fine for smaller dimensional lumber.

Landscape timbers are too big for it.
 
Whatever you get, make sure it has a shadow line. I have a corded Dewalt 12" slider, and a cordless 7 1/4" Ridgid slider, both with that feature. After having that feature, anything without it is archaic.
I have no personal experience with it, but apparently the articulating arm Bosch doesn't hold up over time. The pivot points get loose.
I have had experience with Ridgid 12" sliders and they were fine, but there was a period where they suffered from blade wobble. Not sure if that has been corrected on newer ones.
 
Crosscut on a 12” Dewalt is 13 7/8” . There is a reason you have zero manufacturers making a retail radial arm saw , Delta which was the industry standard is long dead , everyone made one but the lawsuits ended them . You can get a mill level crosscut , but now we are talking a different animal. King makes about 7 models now, they change as technology changes . Ryobi is being made by the same company as Milwaukee and that has helped quality . Do not buy a current craftsmen from Lowes / Rona . Parts are impossible. @jampy , if you get truly interested and consider looking at King call Lumberville in Milton and ask for Pas.


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Mad Mike said:
If I had you kinda space, I'd look for a Radial Arm saw. You can do the same compound miters and crosscuts -- only wider, a sliding miter will struggle crosscuting a 10" board, a radial arm will handle about 20" and your crosscuts should be more accurate on large pieces. Same goes with small pieces, mitresaws are pretty scary when you're cutting small pieces.

The upside is you can rip, dado, rabbet, and most saws have a back spindle for sanding/shaping drums, and Jacob's chucks. Lots of used ones with 220v 3hp motors -- those things will tear thru 3" of hardwood with a fresh blade.

The downside is portability, once set up, a radial arm saws need to be stationary.
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There is a reason they are called ARM saws as there is a good chance you may lose one. That being said I have a radial arm saw you can have for free works well.

Sent from the future
 
I’ve got a Mastercraft or something or others here gonna put up for sale. It’s a bit dirty from being around for a while….but never actually turned on.

Let me know and I’ll dig it up.
 
For size my thoughts are I have a 10 inch table saw so I prefer not to have two sets of fine/quality or even disposable blades, so I have a 10 inch mitre saw. It is rare I need to cut something bigger than a 10" can handle but you need to size that one up for yourself (what will you cut?).

Next, will you be able to set it up and leave it (sounds like you have the space but the environment)? If not consider weight if you need to carry it around to store it, can tie into size.

Get a mitre saw stand or build a bench, don't work on the ground etc....

If you can, get one that cuts angels greater than 45°. This is the biggest limitation for me right now using it for construction.

Look at how it does dual mitres, ideally it is on both the right and left side of the blade. Not sure if any are limited this way these days but...

Battery may be of interest as you have a bigger property. IMO if you are near enough to an outlet 120v is a better option (price, it will run all day).


For what it is worth I have a Mastercraft Maximum, I use it for woodworking and construction, maybe 20 years now (at least 15??), it was what I could afford at the time. Mine still works fine but there are things like broken knobs etc. It will get upgraded when it can no longer do the job. Sits outside under a tarp now for my current project (back to weight noted above).
 
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Whatever brand you buy, don't assume it will be set up or even be able to cut accurately. We've returned a few Dewalts after checking for accuracy.
 
Scuba Steve said:
There is a reason they are called ARM saws as there is a good chance you may lose one. That being said I have a radial arm saw you can have for free works well.

Sent from the future
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I don’t know, I’ve seen more guys get their hands blown up by chop saws. The main risk in using a radial arm saw is the blade clawing, which shouldn’t be a big operator risk as the handle pushes tout hands/arm out of the way.

Anytime you’re working with a spinning blade, there is risk. Proper attention to the tasks, proper use of the saw, and proper blade maintenance mitigate a lot of risk.
 
actually @jampy , I know you asked about a compound miter saw , consider a track saw. I have the Makita , that with 2 5ft track sections will do everything a miter saw will do , as well as cut an 8Ft sheet of plywood dead nuts straight . that saw with 2 track sections will cost less than a good miter saw. I've used mine to take a 16th off a door edge in one perfect pass, cut cabinet ply on site and cross cut pine shelves. Bonus is almost no tearout on tough grain like white oak.

Please even if free, dont take a radial arm saw. I'm in commercial woodworking shops all the time, even they guys that do it for a living dont like them.
 
crankcall said:
…Please even if free, dont take a radial arm saw. I'm in commercial woodworking shops all the time, even they guys that do it for a living dont like them….
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I completely understand that in a commercial shop, it would be a relic as they will have a wide range of modern tools that render a radial arm obsolete.

I miss mine. The versatility, utility, stability are hard to match. I used mine like a shop smith, framing, cabinets, trim, shaping and sanding. I even had a scary planing attachment.

Still have the motor off the old beast in my shop.

IMG_0624.jpeg


That’s me I guess (maybe why I like riding a a 60s Triumph 250, and its sister Spitfire Mk3 )
 
I have never seen or heard of a track saw…but now I want one!

Seems like a great tool for extended cuts. Much more manageable than running a 4x8 plywood sheet on a table saw.
 
I found out about them about a decade ago helping a kitchen installer that ripped finished gables . Brilliant . Since you can set continuous track sections you can rip infinitely. Great for trimming deck boards or repairs in a hardwood floor. I think they are around $550 for the makita .


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crankcall said:
I found out about them about a decade ago helping a kitchen installer that ripped finished gables . Brilliant . Since you can set continuous track sections you can rip infinitely. Great for trimming deck boards or repairs in a hardwood floor. I think they are around $550 for the makita .


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Please refrain from introducing new tools that I might buy I was hoping to be down one radial arm saw not up a track saw after this.

Sent from the future
 
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