You get what you pay for.that said I have one and for the past 5 years it works well for rough cutting (no cabinet or furniture grades cuts)lumber.the blade was replaced with a forest chopmaster(I know,blade cost more than the saw)and works ok but the arbor has a slight wobble to it.did alright on my deck and some exterior molding.But I have a bosch and the difference is dramatic( yugo vs maybach) hopes this helps
Of course I have a Craftsman Miter saw which doesn't cut square when in the zero position... and I can't figure out any way to adjust it. But I didn't notice it when I was using it to cut deck boards, by the time I noticed it, it was too late to return.
I have the DeWalt DW703 10" non sliding miter saw and it ran me about 200 bucks as I recall. It cuts well and square, no wobble. Its a good miter saw, I'd buy it again.
I do furniture grade cross cutting on my table saw with a Jointech SmartMiter sled. That gives me perfection at any angle every time.
It all depends on what you are planning to do. If you are thinking about woodworking/furniture making or construction work. If you are aiming for woodworking I don't know that anyone needs a miter saw. I'd save my pennys and get a good table saw and the Jointech SmartMiter for cross cuts and miters.
If you plan on construction and you plan on cross cutting/miter cutting stock wider than 6" a 10" miter saw wont do. You would have to get a 12" miter saw. A slider of course increases the width of stock you can cross cut even more.
If you do opt for a 12" slider type miter saw, take a look at the one Bosch makes, it ususally beats the DeWalt in side by side tests in the magazines and online. And I belive the Bosch is about 50 - 60 bucks cheaper on Amazon.
Hope this helps,
RRRangerPaul
"Not everything that can be counted counts; and not everything that counts can be counted." Albert Einstein
I have the DeWalt 12" chop saw and it has served me exceedingly well. This saw has a high back fence which really comes in handy for installing crown moldings. I do not recommend Chicago power tools.
Exactly, but that is how HF can buy and sell so cheap. They buy cheaply made stuff. Good saws don't have wobble. The tolerances on cheap tools is much greater that on quality tools. I'd bet that anyone going into surgery would not want the doctor to bring out a toolkit from Harbor Freight.
I just check back on my post to find all these replies. Thank you all for your help. After reading you posts, I think I am going to opt for a name brand as I am doing inside trim work mostly with it, and I don't want poor cuts (that is what I am dealing with now as I am using a 10 year old Makita 10" non-compound miter).
I am going to get a 12", but should I go for the big-bucks and get the sliding compound 12", and if so why?
The slider gives you more capacity for wider cuts. I could not justify it myself, but maybe you can. I've read that they are not as accurate because of the mechanism, but I don't have personal experience with it. FWIW, I have a DeWalt. The stock 80T blade after being resharpened by Ridge Carbide is very good. No reason to step up to anything else.
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