do i need a sliding mitre saw?

[selly]

Hi,

I don't do any site work. I've got a good axy. table saw (well recommended everyone) and I need a mitre saw.

Doing a building up at the moment so need plenty of compound joints. But anyway how much do i need the sliding bit of the mitre saw?

for furniture making in the future ie trenching and tenons is it good enough? i have the option of buying a decent branded compound saw or a cheaper slider.

I think I want good quality but will I miss the fact that it can't slide?

Any recommendations?

 

[Scrums]

Personally I wouldn't be without my 'slider'. You didn't mention whether you had a sliding crosscut table for the table saw, if you have that's better I find for tenoning. The problem with sliding mitre saws is that (at least with the Makita) there's some 'flex' in the mechanism, so whilst it will tenon and trench, the results are variable.
I find the greatest gain with any form of mitre saw, sliding or otherwise is the ability to crosscut much longer lengths than you'd normally get on the sliding carriage of a table saw.

Chris

 

[Fecn]

Sliding mitre saw isn't much use for trenching or tennons but comes in very handy when you need to cut large planks/boards - My original 10" mitre saw didn't have enough cutting depth to do 45 degree cuts through 120mm wide decking and floor boards. My slider can do 305mm cuts.

The sliding mechanism will never be as accurate as a non-sliding one, so if you're not working on wide boards then a 12" non-sliding one might be a better choice.

 

[johnnyb]

totally agree with the accuracy issues of sliders.

 

[selly]

ok thanks so far. i'm learning here.

My axy saw is the sliding table version. like it lots. ripsaw blade.

Maybe i should look at a second hand radial arm saw?

maybe my circ. saw will do on the odd occassions i need to cross cut wide widths esp .if the mitre saw will not trench/ tenon so well?

Maybe I should tenon on the bandsaw? Trench with a better router and get a decent compund?

Maybe I just feel I need more tools than I have?

 

[wizer]

My SCMS is my fave tool in the workshop. But I do look at it sometimes and wonder if it has a place there. It's indispensable for quick cuts, decking, flooring, etc. In the furniture workshop? hmm probably not essential. I'm sure you won't miss it. If you want something to cut mitres then maybe a mid range powered mitre saw (non-slide) and a shooting board?

 

[OPJ]

If you have a decent sliding carriage for your table saw and the blade can tilt up to 45º, you can quite easily make compound cuts on the table saw.

Steve Maskery has a jig featured in the current issue of British Woodworking, which looks very good for doing cornice mouldings. But, it's not adjustable.

Is the fence on your sliding carriage adjustable to anything other than 90º?

Personally, as I don't own or have the space for a decent table saw, I'm in a position where I simply couldn't do without my 12" Bosch SCSMS. I rate it very highly.

 

[woodchip]

I have a Rexon slider and a bosch non slider, the slider is in the cupboard under the workbench, does that answer your question?

 

[George_N]

As a hobby woodworker/DIYer I have a Triton Workcentre as my table saw. I have a sliding table and crosscut sled for it and it can also convert to crosscut mode which has most of the functionallity of a SCMS. However, changing from tablesaw to crosscut mode is a pain with the dust collection kit in place so I bought a DeWalt 703 CMS when they were on offer at B&Q at the end of last year (£169). The sliders I could afford weren't of sufficient build quality or accuracy from my point of view. I have found the DW703 to be an excellent saw with large enough capacity for the type of work I do and it is readily adjustable to get spot-on cuts. If I had a regular need to make mitre cuts in 2x6" timber I would probably invest in a slider but on the rare occasions that I might need to do this I can use my Triton or make up a quick jig to use with a hand held CS.

 

[Mike.C]

Selly wrote,

Maybe I should look at a second hand radial arm saw?

IMHO unless you have time on your hands to keep resetting up a radial arm saw I would not bother with one. In my experience there settings can be knocked out easily and you can buying trouble with a secondhand one. Obviously there are good ones and when you have one of these they can be a bonus, but for some reason there are a lot of bad ones out there.

If you have the money to buy a decent slider then that would be my choice, but on the other hand I would rather buy a well made standard mitre saw then a cheaper slider, because you will regret it.

Even if you do not need that extra wide cut often, you will be glad that you have it when needed.

HTH

Cheers

Mike

 

[gidon]

I find my SCMS very useful - I rarely use my cross cutting attachment on my table saw any more. Their main advantage is capacity. They aren't so accurate for trenching - for cabinet making at least. But ok to cut quick tenons for more rough work. Biggest disadvantage is they take up lots of room. I'm not so sure about a cheap SCMS - the main thing is if it locks in cutoff mode (ie use a standard mitre saw) and that's accurate - then the sliding option is just a bonus. Rexon stuff may be worth looking at - they used to do a smaller SCMS that I looked at once and was well made. And their bigger one came out on top of a review Andy King did a while back for GWW.
Cheers
Gidon

 

[OPJ]

I take it you're talking about the DeWalt RAS's, Mike?

I totally agree with you. They're just too lightweight and don't like to cut anything larger than 2"x1" without the blade jamming in the cut!

This then knocks it out of square vertically as well as in relation to the fence! The blades also take a couple of minutes to stop after you've switched it off. With the saw I've used at work, even when you lock it off, you could still very easily shift the saw left or right just by holding it!

But, I believe you can also fit a sanding disc in place of the blade and, if it can fit a sufficiently-guarded dado blade, they can be far more accurate for trenching or tenon cutting, I guess. Wouldn't like to recommend the ripping facility though! :?

 

[Mike.C]

Hi Olly, yes it was the Dewalts I had in mind. I don't know what it is about them, but it seems that a blast of wind from opening the workshop door knocks them out. :lol:

Cheers

Mike

 

[patrickab]

I have a professional Bosch sliding compound mitre saw and it is excellent. I have recently made a 34mm thick block by block table top with 21 pieces for a butcher's block and I can honestly say that without that machine I would never have achieved it. It is truly brilliant - however it was not cheap at £300+ I have no regrets in having bought it - from DIYTOOLS.com shop in Watford. The saw is large and pretty heavy but its solid construction ensures there's no flex in the frame. The sliding mechanism is accurate to a fraction of a millimetre - I can split a careful knife knife mark in two.

 

[DaveL]

Hi Patrick,

Welcome to the forum.

you link has been caught by our spam trap, that will stop once you have a few more posts to your name, here it is:- DIYTOOLS.com

 

[woodbloke]

Wizer wrote:

In the furniture workshop? hmm probably not essential. I'm sure you won't miss it.

I agree with Wizer's comments about these things. I feel that they are probably very useful as a site tool for joiners or chippies, but they don't have a place IMHO in a furniture making workshop, I haven't got one and would never buy one. When I have seen them used they are simply to cross-cut a board, which is what I suspect most people use them for. If I need to cut a lump off something, I use my nice, trusty and very sharp Disston cross-cut saw or if I'm feeling a bit idle the hand held Bosch c/s gets dragged out - Rob

 

[BradNaylor]

Wizer wrote:

In the furniture workshop? hmm probably not essential. I'm sure you won't miss it.

I agree with Wizer's comments about these things. I feel that they are probably very useful as a site tool for joiners or chippies, but they don't have a place IMHO in a furniture making workshop, I haven't got one and would never buy one. When I have seen them used they are simply to cross-cut a board, which is what I suspect most people use them for. If I need to cut a lump off something, I use my nice, trusty and very sharp Disston cross-cut saw or if I'm feeling a bit idle the hand held Bosch c/s gets dragged out - Rob

I have to disagree, Rob.

My DeWalt SCMS is an essential tool in my furniture workshop. It gets used for all manner of tasks, from accurate mitres and other angled cuts through to simply cutting rough sawn boards to length before planing them up.

Combined with a decent fence and measuring system, it is perfect for production cross-cutting. For instance, yesterday I made 8 cabinet doors on oak for a project and cut the stiles and rails to length on the SCMS in minutes. Yes, I could have done it on the table saw but it was far more convenient to do it this way. I also had a triangular door to make - cutting the componants for this was simple on the DeWalt.

I would definitely go for a slider - having that 12" cross-cut capacity is invaluable on many occasions. But get a decent one.

Don't bother with a radial arm saw - I sold mine recently and don't miss it at all.

And forget trenching or tenoning on a SCMS. The depth stop is just not accurate enough. Use a router table instead.

Cheers
Dan

 

[woodbloke]

Dan T wrote:

My DeWalt SCMS is an essential tool in my furniture workshop. It gets used for all manner of tasks, from accurate mitres and other angled cuts through to simply cutting rough sawn boards to length before planing them up.

Combined with a decent fence and measuring system, it is perfect for production cross-cutting. For instance, yesterday I made 8 cabinet doors on oak for a project and cut the stiles and rails to length on the SCMS in minutes. Yes, I could have done it on the table saw but it was far more convenient to do it this way. I also had a triangular door to make - cutting the componants for this was simple on the DeWalt

Dan - I think in a production workshop they would certainly be more useful. As a amateur or hobbyest woodworker I couldn't justify the expense or space taken up by one, when all I would probably use it for is to cut lumps of timber at right angles. I have seen several amateur 'shops belonging to forum members and this is all they apparently use them for and in both the professional shops I worked in, a SCMS wasn't used, just a hand held c/s - Rob

 

[OPJ]

I think it perhaps depends on how competent and confident you are when it comes to using other means.

Until you actually buy one and have it sat in your workshop, you can not appreciate just how much space one of these will consume. I don't think there are many people who can have workshops big enough to happily accommodate one, among many other "more important" machines. But, there aren't many people new to woodwork who will happily cut a board to length by hand and cut it to an accurate 90º. Circular saws are great for handling sheet material but, even with a cross-cutting jig, this can become inconvenient when working with shorter lengths.

There is the option to tidy up the cut afterwards with a shooting board or mitre trimmer set at 90º. The problem here though, for the beginner, is getting that plane iron sharp enough to take fine end-grain shavings without any fuss or trouble. It's take me, personally, about three-years to get to this point.

As I said earlier on, with a decent table saw and sliding carriage, you don't really need a mitre saw and can instead spend that extra cash on a decent bandsaw.

But, to those of us who favoured the bandsaw in the fight against the TS, we find confidence in being able to call on a decent mitre saw for help when it's required. The mistake people then make is to buy a cheap piece of tat from B&Q's own range...! :roll:

 

[Anonymous]

I think I want good quality but will I miss the fact that it can't slide?

Any recommendations?

I sold my sliding mitre saw once i had the axminster table saw as there was no room for it. I bought a Dewalt 10" mitre saw (no slide) for half price at B&Q, and have never looked back. The Dewalt is stunningly accurate and cost under £150

So no, you don't need a sliding mitre saw unless you ant to mitre vry long and very wide boards