I have a Delta 12" miter saw. A friend told me that there are now laser light adapters that can be attached onto saws that will pinpoint where the cut is going to be made. Can anyone tell me where to get one? Thanks
Dale
Just about any hardware, or sears, or big box store has them, but do yourself a favor and forget it. While they look cool, they need constant attention, adjusting, alignment, and ultimately replacement. Get comfortable with the tool you use, learn where it will cut and how best to use it safely. Then you won't need a little red light telling you how and where to cut.
Dave
I have a PC unit with dual lasers - 8 months of constant use - no alignment, deadly accurate on both side of the cut and would never be without them again.
John
David Babcock wrote:
On Thu 25 Dec 2003 06:06:39p, "David Babcock" wrote in news:jYKGb.649438$HS4.4666251@attbi_s01:
That's pretty much what I got when I went looking some time back. There were a few reviews that said they liked 'em once they got used to the fact that they didn't get exactly what they expected, but most people said the line was too dim and too hard to keep accurate. I *did* hear that the saws with built-in lasers from the factory were a lot better.
Dan
On Thu 25 Dec 2003 06:13:55p, John848 wrote in news:G9LGb.35111$ snipped-for-privacy@read1.cgocable.net:
John, is that add-on or factory? I'm hoping the saw came with the lasers just so I don't have to eat my own words. :-)
Dan
There are lasers that sell for around $39 and then those like mine which sell for around $130. Mine is bolted to the shaft the blade is mounted on and has a centrifugal clutch which starts it operating somewhere after 800 RPM. This laser produces a line in any direction, not just a dot. It never needs adjustment because it sits next to your blade and you would have to have a loose blade in order for it to be out of adjustment. Although I am at a loss of the companies name I think it is something like Laserline. This unit works when the blade is spinning and rotates with the edge if the blade it is putting the line against. There is no adjustment. Any ot the other posters who say not to get one are using a small laser pin light that attaches to the blade guard and can come loose and out of adjustment with the vibration of the saw. This $39 unit is a gimmick that doesn't work.
-- Woody
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Probably the Delta 36-255L or the PC 3802L which are identical. They both have a BRIGHT, adjustable twin laser system that works very well. You can set them up to mark accurately with any blade kerf or style and the line they produce wraps the edge of the board. They are mounted securely in the blade guard, adjustable through small openings with an allen wrench.
There is an aftermarket add-on unit which mounts to the back of the fence, sort of a PITA to work around, but accurate. Does not wrap the line around the board, and as I recall, pretty pricey.
Then there are the blade mounted lasers, which do not accurately mark the line, they are 1/8" or so off and do not wrap the board's edge. Typically mark ONE SIDE of the cut, not both. Failures are commonplace. Mostly a marketing add-on to lure in customers with a fancy new gimmick. Replaces the arbor washer on the nut side of the blade , therefore not adjustable, and not accurate. Spinning batteries and such at 35000 RPM apparently does them no good... They are available from the aftermarket should you just HAVE to get one.
FWIW,,
Greg G.
Personally I don't understand why you would want to try to align a laser light to a mark on the workpiece under a spinning carbide toothed blade. I find it much easier and safer to align blade to mark with blade stationary.
I think any laser that required the blade to be spinning is a gimmick. I put the wood in place. I bring the blade down to the line and adjust the wood if needed. This is very easy to do when the blade is stopped; damned if I want to do it under power. When the blade moves, I want my hands firmly in place away from it, not trying to adjust a board an 1/8" to line up with the light.
Considering how accurate it is to line up the blade and how little time it takes, I'd say all lasers are gimmick. OK for framing a new outhouse, not for fine detail. Ed
I have one like yours, and you have to take it with a grain of salt. It is only accurate with thin wood and when the saw is fully up. As soon as you start to lower the saw it loses meaning. I wouldn't have paid $130 for it, but for $50 (about the difference between what I paid and what similar unlasered saws cost) it is a nice feature.
I just read a review of miter saws in some woodworking magazine. They said it was only good as a rough guide, and recommended the ones that can be adjusted. But if you use it right it seems pretty accurate.
OK, how do you align a compound miter? You have a trim board that has to be cut at a 32 degree angle to match another board (like 2-45 degree angles) But the board also has to set at a 20 degree angle from the upright wall and there needs to be a 15 degree angle which points the trim board toward the floor.
Can you set this with your system, I can with my laser.
Mine never needs an adjustment. When you start the saw and the laser light comes on, the line is on the line which you drew. When you line these up, the blade will cut on the waste side of the line and be exactly the length you wanted for your good piece. If you got your laser from Laserline it will have guarantee on it. But if you got it somewhere else, can't say how well it works
Woody, When you say Laserline, are you referring to a company called that? I DAGS and the only Laserline I'm finding deals in cd's, dvd's and such. I need to get a couple more for another saw I've got that don't have one, and one for SIL. I've got one that came with my saw originally and I love it!
On Fri 26 Dec 2003 08:23:49p, "Jerry Gilreath" wrote in news:V26Hb.487694$275.1386065@attbi_s53:
Laserkerf, maybe?
I remember Woody said he couldn't remember the name off the top of his head, just that it was something like Laserline. But this one is about 80 bucks, so unless they dropped their prices after they sold Woody his...
So, like the male golfer said to the lady golfer when they were both looking for their golf balls in a pasture and he checked under a cow's tail and found a ball tucked in there and realizing it wasn't his, lifting the tail and pointing to the ball, "Hey, does this look like yours?"
I honestly don't know and I've not tried it. Instructions are in the manual though and an accessory clamp is available. .
I do know, however, that I'm not going to be setting up a compound cut with the blade spinning. IMO, it is moronic to offer a laser that only works with the blade under power.
I just bought my CMS last July. The first time I used it I made a coupe of simple rules. Left hand hold the work and will be back from the blade. The blade will be lowered to the cut line to see where it will cut, (adjust if needed) then raised. Without moving my left hand, I will pull the trigger and make the cut. I follow the same procedure even if I'm cutting up some scraps for kindling. I know there are at least 6 inches or more of space between flesh and carbide. Ed
Mine came on my Ryobi saw. It has no adjustment. The line goes on the good side of the pencil line when it is all the way up. As you come down is moves to the left and becomes meaningless.
Are you saying yours stays in the same place the whole time?!?! That is not possible. Since the light is offset from the blade and angled in, it has to move out as you move the blade down. "Or so it seems to me".
That would be factory installed.
John
Dan wrote:
Ed, mine are adjusted for one main purpose - to do fine details. They allow me to make one cut - not several while trying to nudge up to the final cut. Saves a lot of wood and time.
John
Edw>> This unit works when the blade is spinning
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