For those wanting a bit more capacity than the recent Aldi offering and not having an aversion to lower cost power tools, B&Q have a 250mm MacAllister 1800W Double Bevel Slide Compound Mitre Saw at £119, reduced from £169.
Summary:
250mm blade, 30mm arbour Max cut 280 x 80mm, with predictable reductions for mitres & bevels.Seems reasonably chunky but not tried out in anger.
Not had a problem with it yet. The angled dials are slightly out, so for a straight cut you need to set it at around 2 degrees, but that is soon sorted with a few test cuts when you first try it. It is a rather harsh motor, and quite noisy. With the supplied blade it gives pretty decent clean cuts.I keep meaning to buy a good quality blade, but have never got round to doing it, though I should do really, as a good blade would make it better I'd think. Overall very good value. Alan.
So for an extra £69 we get a slightly bigger depth/width cut.
Weird. :-)
In article , George writes
If you need to ask what the extra 2 inches is for then . . .
And a "prestigious" brand name. ;-)
JCB is the logo on my electric planer doesn't mean JCB made it. ;-)
If that's the one I played with in the store the other day it seemed to not be terribly rigid. Of course the display one could have had something loose - but it just seemed springy, somehow.
My PP one cuts 12" - and that's the minimum I'll except. I put up a lot of shelves. ;-)
I don't regard JCB as a prestigious brand name for anything except full-size construction plant made in JCB's own factories.
I wondered what were the origins of "MacAllister". Is it a well established and respected brand that I just happen never to have heard of, or is it just another meaningless brand name that got made up in a
15 minute meeting of spotty young advertising executives?
Dunno? the MacAllister I know is makers of Agricultural machinary.
You got it in one. B&Q had two ranges of own label power tools. IIRC they were Performance Power (light grey) & Performance Pro same livery as MacAllister.
Performance Pro is now called MacAllister
Complete s**te IME both ranges.
A MacAllister circular saw nearly had my bloody hand off it was so badly made.
Thanks Dave - warnings duly noted!
As I recall someone saying:
"For many its a question of a £50 or not having one at all"
;-)
It's difficult to see how said product, purchased from a grocer's could in some way be more satisfactory or better made than one at three times the price.
Perhaps the Didldi marketing experts, seeing the comment in the instructions "This product may remove your nuts", saw it as an opportunity also to increase their sales of party snacks. :-)
a) circular saws are amongst the most dangerous power tools. Far more dangerous than SCMS IMO.
b) MacAllister is promoted as a top brand and isn't especially cheap, in the same price range as green Bosch, Skill, Ryobi, B&D etc. - all cheapish tools that work properly.
I returned my 'distress purchased' MacAllister & bought a Makita for a little more.
Perhaps I've missed the groceries sold at B&Q. Which isle are they on?
A chop saw - or sliding variety - is about the safest type of circular saw you'll find. Very difficult to do anything stupid with it if you observe the most basic safety rules.
Wonder where the 'a' went?
The Isle of Dogs, probably. :-)
In that it's a hand held tool, perhaps. However, a SCMS with sticking mechanisms, flimsy guards etc. is able to quite nasty things.
This was one of my points. The advertising and marketing promotion is not a good indicator of product quality. It is why I look at issues such as service and spares backup. These indicate a commitment on the part of the manufacturer to a product and product type.
I mark down heavily products offered with a three year warranty but where the execution of the warranty is only replacement and there is no proper spares and service. Any marketing fool can do this. It is simply playing the numbers game on product returns and throwing a small drop in margin at a sales objection.
Exactly, and this is the most important point. When it comes to product quality and especially safety what is the point of low price?
Here we have been debating a difference of £3-400 or so in relation to proper and safe products vs. £50 supermarket special offers.
I think you made the point that for some people this is about having a product or not. Fair enough. I wonder what most people would say if asked what 1-3 fingers was worth to them.
This is the point. In that context, a properly manufactured and supported product is only a little more.
Unless the guard sticks or breaks.......
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