New Circular Saw

[Joe Shmoe]

My cheap Circular Saw has given up the ghost, so will take the opportunity to buy something decent this time.

I have read rave reviews about plunge-saws, but not sure if I will really need one. I'm sure it would come in handy now and again, of course, but seeing as my budget is MAX £300, I doubt I could get one anyway?

I have always used Dewalt and never had any problems, but I read a couple of comments lately that said their recent stuff is nothing to write home about.

Does anyone have any good recommendations for a decent CS ?



Thanks.

 

[mbartlett99]

Plenty of nice saws under 300 on ebay, including a Mafell plunge saw that I just missed - not that I'm upset about it in any way.

 

[Mcluma]

Plenty of nice saws under 300 on ebay, including a Mafell plunge saw that I just missed - not that I'm upset about it in any way.

You mist it because my BIL just bought it last night
165 for a machine that is worth 400 - :mrgreen:

He had a steel

Now he finally can stop borrowing mine :lol:

 

[Eric The Viking]

D+M Tools have the Makita, with systainer and two 1.4m rails (and carry bag) on offer for £325 presently.

I've just succumbed...

 

[Mcluma]

the makita is a plunge saw, can you set the dept on that one, i mean fixed debt and lock it like on the mafell

 

[Eric The Viking]

I'll tell you for certain tomorrow, when it arrives, but I'm fairly certain you can.

Karl did a mini-review here

Lots of stuff on the web - some love it some hate it, but I simply can't afford Mafell or Festool - this one is a serious indulgence really. I'm justifying it on the basis of stock and time and hassle saved, compared to just a circular saw and a straightedge.

E.

 

[Mcluma]

how much watt

the mafell is 1100 (1.5HP)

 

[Eric The Viking]

I'm sure the Mafell is truly lovely.

 

[Mcluma]

I'm sure the Mafell is truly lovely.

i'm sure the makita as well

 

[Karl]

Having used the Makita for about 6 months i'm still very pleased with my purchase.

Cheers

Karl

 

[Joe Shmoe]

Tempting..... I see they have a simular deal on the Dewalt plunge (2x1.5m rails etc)

Its £50 more expensive.... is it worth it over the Makita ? What exactly is the diff ?

 

[Eric The Viking]

Dunno about comparisons, but it's arrived

Thoughtful packaging in the Systainer, with plenty of space and dedicated storage for spare blades beneath, and enough room to keep the rail joiner bars, and the fence (if I get it) at the side. I ordered the 110V version, and found it has roughly 4m of heavy rubber cable, so the transformer shouldn't be a nuisance, even ripping 8ft boards.

Yes, it has a good looking, robust depth stop, you can calibrate it at 90 and 45 degrees (it has quick settings for 45, 22.5 and obviously 90, and you can easily adjust for slack on the rails. There's also a '-1' degree reverse bevel setting (not quite sure what you use this for).

There are mixed views of the accuracy of the 'scoring' setting - plunge lock at around 2mm depth to clean-cut laminates - but it sounds very sensible. It's comes pre-adjusted for 90deg and the base is marked with the extremes of blade projection (front-back), and an accurate cut line at the front (two in fact, depending on how the saw is being used). The plunge action is smooth and not heavy.

I'm not at all impressed with the manual though: it's disorganised, unclear (small print, tiny diagrams), and missing important stuff like how to adjust for play on the rail and make the first run to trim the rubber. But the saw itself looks well made (no, I haven't owned Festool to compare it with! ).

The rail carrying bag is neat, but I'll probably put a slice of thin MDF or ply down the middle, for additional protection (rigid as well as padded), and it would have been sensible for them to have staggered the hold-down straps inside, but it will serve. I can't help feeling the corners are a bit vulnerable though - it needs some rigidity other than the track itself..

No real opportunity to play further right now, but my initial impression is good and I'm pleased.

Oh and it's 1.75 horsepower, approx.

E.

 

[OPJ]

There's also a '-1' degree reverse bevel setting (not quite sure what you use this for).

If I understand this correctly then, I think this is to 'undercut' the edge slightly so that it butts up to a surface which may not be perfectly plumb or level. A lot of jigsaws now have a similar feature. It's probably got more to do with joining boards though, as you're unlikely to find a perfectly straight wall (regardless of which direction it's headed in) in many buildings... ;-)

Good to see some more positive impressions, though. I've been wanting to buy one of these saws for ages!

Why did you go for the 110v model, just out of interest?

 

[Eric The Viking]

110V: to be honest it was an accident. I rang D+M to correct it, but then it occurred to me:

There are only two issues with 110V - lugging a transformer around and having same transformer tied to the saw by too short a piece of cable. The cable is around 4metres - more than sufficient for it not being a nuisance in use.

The other reason for sticking with it was more prosaic: If circumstances change and I have to sell it on, it's more likely to sell and/or retain its value, as it's a trade tool more than a DIY one.

The 240V one will have a slightly lighter weight cable, but other than that, I think they're identical for all practical porpoises.

(That's enough impractical porpoises, Ed.)

 

[chippy1970]

There are mixed views of the accuracy of the 'scoring' setting - plunge lock at around 2mm depth to clean-cut laminates - but it sounds very sensible.

It works well, on my Festool anyway. I usually set it to 8mm depth which scores the melamine 3mm deep first no need to run the saw backwards or anything then go full depth and cut right through. Great when fitting kitchens which is what I was doing this week. Using that method it cuts the chipboard end panels perfectly chip free every time.

 

[awkwood]

This mafell is a very good buy. They have been selling for nearly £500 with the 1.6 m guide track. This model has the spring loaded riving knife too.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAFELL-KST55S-PLU ... 4cf4c92f63

 

[mbartlett99]

Just got back from the Ally Pally show where I had a good solid play with both the Festool and the new Mafell. Festool was good but Mafell have totally stolen a march on them - that new saw is brilliant. Finish, ease of use, accuracy - very impressed. Just got to save up the coin now, ho hum.

 

[chippy1970]

Just got back from the Ally Pally show where I had a good solid play with both the Festool and the new Mafell. Festool was good but Mafell have totally stolen a march on them - that new saw is brilliant. Finish, ease of use, accuracy - very impressed. Just got to save up the coin now, ho hum.

its not new its about 2 or 3 years old now

you wait till the new Festool one comes out . I had a site visit from a Festool designer/engineer last year going through ideas for their new saw and was shown a few prototypes it will be a very nice saw.

 

[OPJ]

...for all practical porpoises.

(That's enough impractical porpoises, Ed.)

Porpoises... I know I heard that line (or one very similar) somewhere within the last week - and it's bugging me as I'm not sure where it was!! :-D

 

[Eric The Viking]

Cetacean-spotting notwithstanding, I should say, in the interests of accuracy, the Makita doesn't have a fixed depth lock. The depth setting limits the plunge, but doesn't actually lock the blade down.

Personally, I rather like it like that. It doesn't stop you trenching if you need to, and it minimises the amount of time the sharp spinning bit is exposed. That'll do for me.

I've had a bit of a play (today's been mainly about discovering an annoying setback in my SCMS braking idea ), and the Makita looks pretty good.

You lot'll laugh, but I haven't yet used it on a rail, as I want to get the cleanest cut possible on the rubber edges, and don't have a need right now (nor a suitable 1.4m piece of scrap. It's one area where the Makita manual is poor. I'll start a separate question thread, aimed at the black-and-green fraternity mainly, about this...