What 12" Sliding Compound Miter Saw?

[Pat]

Pete, Thanks for the comment on Bosch. Sorry to hear about your DW. Based on my recent investigations, I am not at all surprised that you had trouble. I'm sure there are folks out there who are lucky and or careful or don't use their tools long and hard and are satisfied with their DW stuff. Now I wonder how long till my other DW fails and is more expensive to fix than buy new.

In the big scheme of things, I am told by a politically savvy friend, buying stuff from China is a GOOD thing. They will become ever more dependent on us as customers to maintain their cash flow/ballance of trade and less likely to want to rock the boat of political stability/world peace. So, NOTE to all potential do gooders: Buy DeWalt and other Chinese goods and participate in one of the first large international politico-economic behavior modification experiments of the century. Don't worry about exporting American jobs or the long term economics of throw away tools or even scarce landfill reserves.

//SOAPBOX MODE OFF//

Have a nice day,

Pat

[Pat]

Fred, When the chop saw motor "flames" you are looking for another saw. Since starting my enquiry into the Chinese DeWalt tools yet another user has given me input. My concrete sub has the DW807 (I think) the $200 at Lowe's geared down and more expensive and rugged than the direct drive cheapies version. It died last week while cutting rebar. As is typical, the armature needs to be replaced. He found that the armature costs within $20 of the cost of the same saw, new and complete.

I am on my second Ryobi direct drive chop saw. I knocked the first one off of a barrel onto concrete (it broke the frame and would have cost more to fix than replace.) The second is still working fine and I have a new geared down Chinese DeWalt DW807 from Lowe's which replaces the prevous DW807 which lasted a few hours. I am not real confident that it will be running at my estate sale when the time comes.

One of the repair shops that I chatted with had a Ryobi chopsaw like mine but with bad armature. They gave it to me so I could put it together with my broken one and make a running saw.

Pat

[pault]

I know this thread is a bit stale, but if anyone is still looking at 12" sliders, I just picked up a Bosch 4412. You can read the press release here:

Bosch 4412

The guy at woodworkers warehouse said that, given the front controls for miter settings, and the fact that features like a hold-down clamp were included, he thought the Bosch was a better value. He also thought it was a better made saw. Since some of the features included on the Bosch were options on the DeWalt, the $100 difference in price doesn't seem out of line, apples for apples.

I have only used it a bit, since it was "rationalized" as part of the pole barn bill of materials. As in, "Honey we can save lots of money if I build the barn myself. Of course, I'll need the proper tools first, like a compound sliding miter saw, a framing nailer, and a portable compressor." [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

Now that is what I call a shopping spree. What a fun day that was [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[EJB]

>>it was "rationalized" as part of the pole barn bill of materials

Isn't it amazing how many nice toys you can pickup when you decide to do the work yourself (and not feel guilty about!).

I am finishing up a big screened in porch, I probably saved myself about 15-20K on labor, and "only" spent about 3 grand on tools. Nice part is I get to keep and re-use all the tools for the many, many projects still on the list [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[em14]

Steve,
Based on the tool reviews I read I have decided to get a the Mikita12" Compound Miter. It seems to always come out on top ... I maybe reading the wrong reviews but I like what I have seen with all the Makita Tools that I have used. Just my 2 cents. Oh! I plan to get it in a couple of months ....
Leo

[MDSteve]

Guys

Thanks for the help. I picked up the Dewalt for 2 reasons, one it was cheaper than the others I looked at. I am not going to use it every day or even every week of my life. It will get used every 6 months to a year depending on the projects my wife has me do. The second reason is that I would of had to special order some of the other saws.

So far it has worked great for the new bathroom and trim/crown in the living room.

Steve

[JohnMiller3]

Sliding Compound Miter Comparisons

Saw Spec’s

[pault]

I couldn't find a date on this review. Bosch has a new compound slider 12" that has a host of new features ( and a higher price tag). Check it out. Here is the press release
and here are the 4412 saw details

I think it still lacks the dual ball bearing design the Makita has, but lots of other goodies.

[egon]

Some years ago Makita made a double bevel 10 inch sliding miter saw that I was told was better than the present one.

Out of my price range and I came home with a 10 inch Delta sidekick. I like the stand and portabiltity but other things could be improved on. I'm fully satisfied with it.

Egon

[fivestring]

Which one, John??? [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img]