A good sliding miter saw?

I have yet to find one that will stand up to the riggers of being worked every day. Next on the list to give it my best to turn into a quivering pile of junk is the Kapex.
So far the Makita has taking the longest to wear out but wear out it does.
 
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I have a dewalt dual bevel 12" slider. It has had a lot of use and has even done a number of hardy plank gable ends on some houses. hardy plank is like cutting thin pieces of concrete.

so far i would say it is a well built machine after 5 years of use. I have been told by 2 different people that makita has a little better accuracy but I cant say for sure if it does or if that accuracy will hold up over time.

I would get the 12". if your getting a slider its not that much more money to go 12" instead of 10". If you plan on moving it around much then maybe the 10 is lighter.

You may want to look a few used ones. Mine was actually used when I bought it but it had hardly been used at all so it was like new.

One last thing. I have met two floor guys that had short use of their rigid compound miters. both of them purchased a rigid in a pinch and used them as long as they lasted. both had motor problems. no idea if thats indicative of all rigid or if it was
a short lived problem that was letter corrected with upgrades in the design. i think both of these were at least 4 years back
 
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dewalt,hitachi,makita all have there place, as for size depends on what your doing with one if you need more depth of cut then go with a 12 but if not then stay at ten for more accuracy.
 
I have yet to find one that will stand up to the riggers of being worked every day. Next on the list to give it my best to turn into a quivering pile of junk is the Kapex.
So far the Makita has taking the longest to wear out but wear out it does.

Someday, I will replace my venerable Hitachi chop saw, but I will wait until you test the Festool.
 
Someday, I will replace my venerable Hitachi chop saw, but I will wait until you test the Festool.

I have been stewing over the price of one of them for sometime now. But I tell ya as fast as I use up the 600 dollar range ones I have decided to give one a shot and see if it can stand the test of time and travel. So I'll let ya know when I pull the trigger and we can both see how long it stays in my good graces.
 
I have ~4 year old makita 12" slider and its been good to me. I keep hearing about slop in the dewalt 12" slider (not in the non slider) but have no direct experience, enough people mentioned it that there is either something to it or a pretty well organized disinformation campaign :blah:.

Bosch has the new one that doesn't take as much room behind it that looks pretty cool: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I10K3N-UCnY although I haven't actually seen one or talked to anyone who has used it yet.

One thing I wish I'd gotten earlier is the Rigid miter saw stand, the large wheels make it easy to roll and it folds up pretty well (as good as you could hope for). Having the extensions and the stand at a usable height is a real back saver. I have the AC9944 model, looks like there is another (newer?) one (AC9945) with more protrusions that might not fold up as well.. not sure.
 
Sorry, my Dewalt is 8/1/2" not 10". Still the best saw I ever had and it's cutting capabilities fit 98% of what I need.

That being said the Bosch is one sweet tool. If I had the cash I would probably invest in one. Just for the fact it can sit flat against a wall and probably has much better dust collection.
 
I specifically chose a 12 inch non-sliding DeWalt, since there is less to go out of alignment, and it does 98% of the cross cuts I want. I was ready to pull the trigger on a new one when a used one came available from a reputable owner. I couldn't ask for more.
 
My original preference back about 3 or 4 years ago was the Makita. I wanted it for the 15 amp motor and the larger table. I ended up with a deal on a Hitachi that I couldn't pass up. (210.00 and a free fixed base router as a rebate. One of my better deals!) It has a smaller motor (13 amp), smaller table, better warranty. (5 yr P&L) So far it has done everything I've asked it to, albeit all rough framing type work. I have a new Infinity blade for it that I refuse to use on pine. Looks to be a great blade for a SCMS. Looks like the newer Makita has gone to a smaller table than the older one. I don't think you can go too wrong with any of the ones mentioned. I did try the DeWalt in the store, but everytime I pulled down on the saw, I cut my thumb. I know it's how I hold the handle, but it was the natural way for me to grab it. The retracting blade shroud caught it everytime. Jim.
 
I specifically chose a 12 inch non-sliding DeWalt, since there is less to go out of alignment, and it does 98% of the cross cuts I want. I was ready to pull the trigger on a new one when a used one came available from a reputable owner. I couldn't ask for more.

That's a good point, when I was shopping I needed the extra couple of inches, but if you're already looking at a 10" slider most of the 12" non sliders have very competitive cutting capacity (and maybe a smidge more for tall cuts against the fence). The obvious downside is that 12" blades are more expensive..

The one other thing to look for that at least the Makita (and I believe ?most? other sliders?) has that I really like is a depth stop. I never realized how ridiculously useful that would be until I had it (it wasn't even on my criteria list). I use it fairly often for cutting half laps or other similar non-through cuts (just zip zip zip and then knock out the waste quick cleanup with a chisel - just remember only cut on the push stroke, say no to lazy!).
 
Well a friend of mine had a bday coming and his wife bought him the new Bosch. I got to try it out and boy its sweet as honey. Chuck check it out. Bosch is a good brand in my view in power tools. This unit has some rave reviews from pros like you Chuck.

I got a 12 inch Dewalt slider but honestly i would not get a slider if i knew then what i know now.
I still struggle with keeping it. For a hobby shop if you not doing a lot of long moulding cutting. Then i dont see why getting familiar with your table saw and sled and using your table saw for cross cuts is not adequate.
Since i joined this forum and got more knowledge on using the table saw, along with some nice aids, i seldom use my Dewalt. Its handy for housework though.
To overcome the width issue with the slidef i have amoble cart wip with fold down wings and Kreg rail and stop kit . This way i can rotate it fully to one side and push it out the way.

Best of luck with your choice. Think carefully about what you really need.

Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk
 
I'm with Stu. I have two Hitachi's also. The ten inch is inline with the RAS. The original 8 1/2" is on a Rigid fold up table. Its the traveling saw or the second angle cut.
 
I'm with Stu. I have two Hitachi's also. The ten inch is inline with the RAS. The original 8 1/2" is on a Rigid fold up table. Its the traveling saw or the second angle cut.

It is so very nice to be in such fine company!!:thumb:

I have a 6 1/2" unit I don't think they sell in the US, and I have the old 8" unit, my 8" is also my jobsite saw!
 
Well a friend of mine had a bday coming and his wife bought him the new Bosch. I got to try it out and boy its sweet as honey. Chuck check it out. Bosch is a good brand in my view in power tools. This unit has some rave reviews from pros like you Chuck.
Well Rob I have yet to own one but from what I have seen of the saw and in the real work world the Bosh is off my list of investments.:thumb:
Oh and one other thing is that never ever buy because of the brand name. Take into condensation but do not rely on them to make every tool the best. While they may know drills inside and out does not mean the guy in table saw design has a clue on how to make them work.
There is not a tool made that you can not find a good review on, it's a matter of who the reviewer is working for.:thumb::thumb:
I have a nice big Hitachi that got and still gets great reviews and in the first year or so I was delighted with it. How ever I will not make that same purchases again.
 
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the design of the new bosch is a good choice for those with a very small space, where every inch counts.
I dont think quality of the bosch would be an issue for a hobbyist.
I had a 99 dollar ryobi mitre that I ran more than any professional would use over a 3 year period, and the thing still works great today.(I gave it to my son)
 
You just might Allen:thumb:
But keep in mind that providing none of them break and all of them fit on the first go it takes 648 cuts on the front of the garage just to get to the top of the doors. Not counting trim.:thumb::rofl::rofl::rofl: That's before lunch.:thumb::rofl::rofl::rofl:
 

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