Hi All
I'm looking for ideas for a good quality circular saw. I'm just getting started with woodworking, and aren't looking for the top of the line--but something good, with the right features, that'll last for awhile. I'm likely to buy a new one, but will also peruse Ebay to see whats there as well.
Also, what features/amps/size/etc do you feel are necessary? Until I purchase a table saw, this'll be it for now.
Lastly...best brand recommendations? All advice is appreciated!
Thanx, Dave
Screw the features, shop for brands. There aren't many features on one saw rather than another, but there is a variation in manufacturer quality.
I won;t suggest brands, as you're American and I'm not familiar with the locals. But the mid-range Skil Legend / Classic is a good saw for that size range, and the thumb lift for the guard is neat.
Like all saws, they're only a motor to turn the blade. Look seriously at blade quality, because that's what really matters. A selection of blades is important if this is your only saw; rip, crosscut and plywood.
-- Congrats to STBL on his elevation from TLA to ETLA
You will not go wrong with the Porter Cable or the Dewalt. I have a 10 year old Porter Cable that is great. There is no detectable end play or run out in the blade. The weak points in such saws can be the bearings (avoid one with bushings) and obviously the motor. Don't pay much attention to the advertised horsepower, but look at the rated amps. IIRC, the PC is an 11 amp machine. Hitachi has been putting out some of the highest amp rated tools recently. I have a Hitachi bayonet saw (sawzall) that is a 13 amp too;. It has been a good tool. I would not be afraid of their circular saw.
Do NOT "screw the features"!! Take them into account & take them seriously.
Look for a good heavy base plate (shoe). Look for a decent amp rating on the motor. Look to see how the machine feels in you hand(s). Look to see where the dust shoots out from. Look at everything, for that matter -- including price! Is a left blade more comfortable to you than a right blade? Does that even matter?
I recently found a Hitachi C7SB2 saw at Lowes that met all my essential requirements and just happened to fall right on the price line sweet point.
Despite that butt-ugly pseudo-fluorescent green Hitachi uses, I bought the saw to replace my old department-store-class Skil. The Hitachi is a keeper (and was a fair buy at $85).
Dave-
How much $$ are you willing to spend? (that's the first question everyone will ask)
Honestly, when I was first married I bought a $50 Craftsman special (7
1/4") on sale for $35. It worked great through six years of intermittent use and about 110' of fence building. Then it started making a sorta "grindy-grindy noise". (oh, and the sparks started getting very visible through the motor housing..)Ryobi makes a nice $50 saw that I considered, but I oped to buy a PorterCable 743K for about $120. At that price point, you pretty much have your choice of very good saws that should last a looong time and be very satisfying to use. (Porter Cable, Milwaulkie (sp?), Makita, Dewalt - take your pick) The only thing I would change about mine is the blade-height lever is placed between the motor and blade housing, and it's awkward/hard to flip it up to change the depth of cut.
Don't make your decision based on 12 vs 13 amps. 7.25" is the "standard" size. Weight may be a concern (holding a 15lb vs 10lb saw overhead to snip off fence posts did make a difference) =^)
Good luck!
-Aaron
for heavy duty use the skil77 has been the choice of pros for a long time. I saw in a catalog last night that bosch has an offering in the worm drive saw market now. it looks good, as far as one could tell from looking at a picture in a catalog.... and bosch is asking two hunnert clamz for it, so I guess they want us to think it is good.
anybody here used one of these yet? Bridger
Most people I know don't use a circular saw for finished work. My advice is to buy a cheap one; Skil, some store-brand, whatever. Here in Canada you can get one for $20-$30 if you watch for a sale. That'll save you enough to get a couple of decent blades. Get at least one blade with a high tooth-count. By the time you have this saw worn out, you'll know exactly what you want in a saw and it will be much easier to just go out and buy it (except for the paying part, because really good is usually really expensive). I don't think a circular saw will ever really replace a table saw. Good luck.
Ed
Got any good way to judge the bearing quality from outside the box ?
-- Congrats to STBL on his elevation from TLA to ETLA
I agree that in general, the circular saw will never replace the table saw. However, it does have the capability as witnessed by many Festool owners.
-Doug
Hi, Andy.
One very useful feature is a dynamic brake- wouldn't be without it. Well-balanced motor with good torque characteristic from start (don't jump about) to full load is also a very good thing (TM M. Stewart.)
You really want to try before buy, if possible.
Some (notice I said _some_) of the Skil saws sold here in the USofA are purely disposable PsOS. Need more than brand to go by. (Like, model and today's price.)
Regards, John
You can find good and bad circle saws for about the same money. One of the models that keeps showing up on top, and is reasonably priced is the Porter Cable 743. I have a review of it with photos and stuff at the link below.
Makita makes a good circular saw, I think the model number is 5007FK. I've owned this saw for 3 years, and have been very happy with it. It has plenty of power, the adjustemnets for depth and bevel angle are very easy, and to me the visibility to the front tip of the blade is a little better on this saw than some the others in this class. It comes with a good quality blade as well, and an edge guide, at least when I bought mine it did.
Top of the line in circular saws generally means a worm drive saw like the Skil model 77 or Makita hypoid saws. Those saws are high torque, but heavier to handle. If you're cutting framing lumber all day long, you might consider one of those, but for plywood, or 3/4" material, they may be overkill.
Other brands I'd look at...? Milwaukee, Bosch, Dewalt, Porter Cable... they all make good tools. I would stay away from anything at the low end like B&D, Craftsman, Ryobi, Rigid.
Also, consider a long edge guide like a clamp-n-guide to go with your circular saw. I think you'll find it very useful to make straight and accurate cuts.
snipped-for-privacy@newwoodworker.com (Tom Hintz) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@posting.google.com:
I keep wishing for a quiet one, because I'm tired of putting on earplugs :-)
ken
Consider buying a used Skil77 worm drive. They can be had for
35-50 bucks at most used tool/pawn shops. The blade is on the left so you can see your cut line. "Sidewinders" (non-worm drive saws) are noted for their propensity to kick back in your face should they bind up--I personally think they are the most dangerous of all hand-held power tools we use. Worm drives are mostly heavy--13+ pounds--but this is sometimes an advantage when it's in a heavy cut, such as full-depth cutting on a 6x6 post. Don't get me wrong, one of my saws is an 8 1/4" Super Sawcat-a sidewinder-with a 40 tooth blade. If buying used, plug 'er in and listen to it run---shouldn't be any growling noises, rumbling noises, etc.. I worked construction for years--never wore out a worm-drive. An occaisional brush change and changing lube in the gearcase is all that's really needed/ Roger
I've got a Skil. The Festool system is a whole 'nuther matter.
My old thirty-dollar department-store Skil has gone through abuse and misuse from day one eight years ago. I've dropped it. I've cut down concrete columns with it. I've butchered lumber and sheet goods with it. I hate that saw. The damned thing won't die. I really do hate it, I do my best to kill it. It will _not_ die!
Who cares about what type of bearings are in it? (They certainly can't be of any importance when the damn saw keeps on working in spite of every effort to kill it!)
Yeah, I've got one of those.
A contractor gave me for free (he was going to dump it in the trash) one of those cheap little benchtop table saws. I put a diamond masonary blade in it and used it to cut paving stones for my driveway (cast cement about 3 inches thick). It's a big driveway, about 70 feet long. The herringbone pattern I did required a block to be cut along each edge on almost every row. That's a lot of cement to be cut, and it made a huge mess of abrasive dust.
I was done up with respirator, face mask, and hearing protectors, but the poor saw just sucked in all that dust and kept going. I expect by now the bearings are total trash, but the saw wouldn't die.
Are there advantages to left vs right blade saws? I'm right-handed if that matters.
Well, as with chain saws, the "theory" has been that you don't wnt the cut in front of your body, so that if something does jump you're not the first thing in the way. Having had off-cuts go whizzing by my head, I will vouch that this applies to table saws, too.
snipped-for-privacy@draco.acs.uci.edu
The Skil 77 is a great saw - remember when we used to call any hand-held circular saw a "Skilsaw"?
We have a couple of 25 - 30 year old 8 1/4" B&D Super Sawcats that just won't die (and various framers *have* tried to kill them over the years), but B&D seems to no longer makes commercial/professional lines, that's Dewalt's province (Dewalt and B&D have been the same company since the
1950's). I have a circa 1990 Super Sawcat that uses the same parts as the current Dewalt 8 1/4" circular saw, but I don't think it's built as well as the old ones. Heck, if the saw never wears out, they can't sell you a new one ....HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.