New Dewalt Flex volt Circular saw

Drew Watson

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2,070
Location
Salt Spring Island, BC Canada
Just picked up the new flex volt 60 volt circular saw yesterday. I have been waiting for this one to arrive as I got a screaming good deal on it. Its a bit heavier than I expected but all the controls are exactly like my old Sawcat. No cord to drag around though. It has a light which in my opinion is a waste of time. All and all it looks and feels pretty good. It has an auto brake and comes with a wrench that hides under the handle. I was a little disappointed that it didn't come with the rip gauge or the locking wing nut for said gauge ( not that I have ever used them but guess those are extra). Came with a new 7-1/4 blade as well.

The battery is what I am most interested in as it goes from 20 - 60 volts ( actually 18-58 ish volts) Was ripping 18 ft cedar yesterday with it and it acts just like my 120 volt saw. No hesitation at all. Tried cutting some wet wood too and it didn't slow it down at all. I didn't have much heavy use for it yet but it seems to have dropped one bar on the battery pack. I didn't get the ultra quick charger pack that comes with it as I have 5 chargers already so it will charge slower which isn't really a bad thing. will see once its dead as to how long it takes to charge on the regular charger. Will let you know how it holds up in the coming days.

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I will put it through as possible in normal operation. If you are looking for someone to attempt to wreck the machine to satisfy people's interest of how much punishment it will take you might want to look at you tube posts where they provide the machine to destroy. I value my tools and take very good care of them. I am more interested in the battery and how long the charge lasts. It is tough though as there are two applications to deal with. 20 volt tools and 60 volt tools. Like comparing apples to oranges in my opinion. I will share what I find as I learn about it. One thing I am curious about is the quick charge system compared to the standard 20 volt charger. The quick charge requires a fan to cool the unit off due to the heat generated. That concerns me.
 
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What I don't know is how you tend to use a circular saw. Do you use it closer to a fine woodworking tool (cut up plywood, trim where you have no access to electricity, etc), or construction (wet lumber, deconstruction before construction, etc). Normal operation for one person, may not be normal for another.
I am wondering about battery life, and those conditions could vary enough, that I wish I knew real world results, or had access to try one, before spending that kind of money.
 
This saw is more for rough framing. I would never consider it for fine finishing. The previous 20 volt system is set up like a worm drive saw with the blade facing to the left of the machine traditional saws face the right. So far i have been ripping plywood 1/2, 5/8th and 3/4 along with wet pressure treated lumber and plywood. Just as a corded saw it powers through with not a sign of slowing down. I have not had to cut wet lumber yet as its still tinder dry here, but a few of the 2x4, 2x6, 2x8 and 2x10 spruce and fir have been damp again no sign of it bogging down the saw. I have not had the chance yet to use it to cut stair stringers but that will happen I am sure soon enough. The beauty of the cordless tool is the ability and freedom to be cordless. I am not dependent on dragging around heavy cords on a job site such as up and down a ladder or scaffolding, through rafters or under a crawl space. How they handle in rainy situations I don't know yet as i have only had it a day. The impact driver and drill or drywall screw gun hook onto my belt so no chance of dropping them. One 20 volt battery pack ( now the 20/60 volt battery pack) can power the Drill, impact driver, recip-saw, Jig saw, circular saws ( 20 volt and now 60 flex volt) , oscillating saw, drywall screw gun and the 16 gauge finish nailer that I have. I also have a battery garden hedge trimmer and string trimmer for dry summer conditions where gas is not an option and this new system works with those tools as well. The new flex Volt system allows me to expand my existing tools to include the new line that Dewalt is coming out with including a table saw ( two battery packs) that can have a plug in adapter. The new 9 amp battery will be out next spring they say. The 20 volt system replaced my existing 18volt drill and impact driver. How do they compare? the 20 volt system lasts a long time. the packs have an LED 3 bar power display at the push of a button you can see how much charge you have left and maybe if you want to change the battery out before continuing on rather than like the 18 volt it just dies at the 20% mark in the middle of a cut no warning. The old old 18 volts ( Non lithium battery) gradually ran out and you could tell you were needing a new battery. This new 20/60 volt has been on the saw and recip saw for a good part of the day and am finally down to one bar. Dewalt has a package of 2 batteries a charger saw for approx $400 Canadian. Our hardware store broke the kits down so I just got the battery and saw at a very good low introductory price that I promised not to mention (the only reason I bought it). I have lots of 20 volt chargers but again how long they take to charge a fully dead 20/60 volt battery has yet to be seen. The new chargers are fan cooled because of such rapid charging and that concerns me a little. I still agree that on specific tools like the table saw or miter saw or router ( yes I heard they have a cordless one of those) what job site will I not have power to the site that I would require battery packs to run those tools. Even the jig saw I was skeptical about but being cordless is amazing and the charge seems to last a long time. I need to get this saw onto a job site with me where I am framing all day to really put it to the test. I have been a carpenter for close to 30 yrs so it will get put through a good run one day soon.
 
Not sure why this thread got closed, but I suspect it was by accident. I'll reopen it now.

Sounds like a beast of a saw, Drew. :thumb:
 
I have been off the tools for a few days bringing in the winter wood. So have not had anything to update as of yet on the tool or the battery. From what I have seen so far I am impressed. If anyone has used a dewalt or Black and Decker Sawcat before the controls are the same. The new 9 amp battery will be out next spring. I will post more when I get more time with the tool.
 
Ok out in the shop and trying to kill the battery off. A good 20 minute flat out run on the 60 volt circular saw to finally Kill it off yet still a good 5 minutes left on a 20 volt tool after it stopped on the 60 volt tool. Very impressed. Now tossed it on the regular charger to see how long this will take to charge.
 
1 1/2 hr to get a full charge on the older 20 volt charger. 1 hr on the new fan cooled quick charger. I'm impressed. As it had 3 full bars showing at just over an hr and was just waiting for the charger to stop flashing.
 
I spent some time today cutting up fir, oak and spruce scaps with the new saw. 2×4 , 2×6 & 2×10. Ripping and crosscut. Tried to slow this saw down. I can say this saw is amazing for a battery powered saw. Didn't slow it down at all. Performed just like a plug in saw. No hesitation at all. I do like the trigger lock as it is right at thumb reach. The light is useless ( but expected that) and that is about the only bad thing I can find about this saw. I'm very impressed and looking forward to the release of the 9 amp battery pack next spring.
 
Thanks for the review. I can see this being quite useful for a lot of things (especially for a relatives place in the country), but also useful with a straight edge, to cut plywood in more manageable pieces, at the borg, rather then having them do it. (get to pick the blade, etc)
 
Thanks for the review. I can see this being quite useful for a lot of things (especially for a relatives place in the country), but also useful with a straight edge, to cut plywood in more manageable pieces, at the borg, rather then having them do it. (get to pick the blade, etc)

Actually, I tried this years ago and was not permitted to cut anything on borg property. They said it was a liability issue. I had a Makita battery powered saw that worked well for that, but they sent employees running and told me 'no dice. Can't cut it here.'

FWIW.
 
Actually, I tried this years ago and was not permitted to cut anything on borg property. They said it was a liability issue. I had a Makita battery powered saw that worked well for that, but they sent employees running and told me 'no dice. Can't cut it here.'

FWIW.

I've done is numerous times - both here in Ohio, and in Southern California. Never been a problem.
 
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