Simple mitre saw for shed shelving etc.

[Nick_]

I’m going to be making some very basic shelves and staging in a shed, mostly with 4x2 / 2x2 and some planks.

Because I’m a bit time poor, and my joints are not what they used to be. I’m considering a mitre saw to speed things along. The Evolution r255sms is £153 at Screwfix, which seemed to fit the bill pretty well. There is also the r210cms for £75 that would probably do this job just fine, but the r255 feels like it will probably be more useful in the longer term.

I’ve been looking in eBay to see if I used higher quality saw comes up for similar money, but I don’t see anything.

Any alternative worth looking at or any reason to completely avoid these two?

 

[Sachakins]

I recently got a dewalt dws773 and it's been very good.
I got it to replace my large 10" SIP mitre saw, which is a good saw, but was really to big for my small workshop and a bit to heavy for me to lift now after a few heart problems. So I'll be selling it on shortly on here.
The dewalt is lighter, smaller blade and smaller cut capacity, but suits my needs now, also being a front sliding saw, don't need the rear space the SIP needs. The only downside of the dewalt is you can't set a depth stop to do trench cuts, but I don't really do that type of cuts anymore, so it's OK for me.

 

[alex robinson]

I’m going to be making some very basic shelves and staging in a shed, mostly with 4x2 / 2x2 and some planks.

Because I’m a bit time poor, and my joints are not what they used to be. I’m considering a mitre saw to speed things along. The Evolution r255sms is £153 at Screwfix, which seemed to fit the bill pretty well. There is also the r210cms for £75 that would probably do this job just fine, but the r255 feels like it will probably be more useful in the longer term.

I’ve been looking in eBay to see if I used higher quality saw comes up for similar money, but I don’t see anything.

Any alternative worth looking at or any reason to completely avoid these two?

I used to have an Evolution r255 db and it was surprisingly good. Not especially accurate even before I treated it quite harshly, but very capable. I appreciated being able to bevel both sides as space was a bit tight in my small workshop, but that costs a bit extra. The rear projection drove me nuts, but there isn't a lot of choice for front sliders. I think there is a Hyundai and Hikokki at about that price point, but they don't have as many features as the Evolution. Dust extraction is rubbish too.

The multi material blade that came with it was a bit rubbish and very expensive for replacements. Saxon blades do a range of very cheap and much better wood only blades. I know some people get concerned that the blade speed is a bit slower than for pure wood saws to allow it to be used on metals. I found it fine, especially with a nicer blade.

Overall more expensive ones are nicer, but I would thoroughly recommend it - a lot of saw for the money. My ones final job before being pensioned off for firewood was all the framing and cladding for a big outbuilding and it did great.

 

[Nick_]

It does sound good. Double Bevel might be nice, but with the current offer it’s the difference between £155 and £210, so probably not a goer for something a may never use. Dust extraction is the only thing holding me back at the moments the offer runs until the end of the month so I have some time to decide. 15kg is quite heavy too, but probably won’t mover it much.

The dewalt will be better build quality, but for home DIY, may not be needed, plus the smaller capacity may limit some things.

 

[TRITON]

Dust extraction

Mitre saw

 

[alex robinson]

It does sound good. Double Bevel might be nice, but with the current offer it’s the difference between £155 and £210, so probably not a goer for something a may never use. Dust extraction is the only thing holding me back at the moments the offer runs until the end of the month so I have some time to decide. 15kg is quite heavy too, but probably won’t mover it much.

The dewalt will be better build quality, but for home DIY, may not be needed, plus the smaller capacity may limit some things.

Don't hold back on the basis of dust extraction. A vac attached takes some of it, and the rest can just be swept up later. I think sliding mitre saws have a reputation for being pretty terrible unless you spend loads.

 

[Nick_]

Don't hold back on the basis of dust extraction. A vac attached takes some of it, and the rest can just be swept up later. I think sliding mitre saws have a reputation for being pretty terrible unless you spend loads.

Thanks. I’ll not worry too much about dust extraction then.

 

[Nick_]

Dust extraction

Mitre saw

It was just that every review of this mitre saw brings up how bag the dust extraction is. I’d have nothing to compare it against

 

[Sachakins]

Mitre saws are ALL notorious for carp dust extraction, no matter which brand you buy.
There is a whole cottage industry on YouTube of people trying many ways to solve it, so don't let dust extraction, or lack of, put you off.

This is my diy favorite for a couple of quid

 

[TRITON]

A passive air cleaner will do loads to help keep the air clean. Nature of the beast and all that you just cant prevent a lot of ultra-fine dust going airborne, so at least with an air cleaner you've a chance to get rid of a lot of it.
Even with Festool being the best of the lot ,its the ultra fine stuff that will permeate the workshop air around you. It shows up more visually when you've got the sun streaming in. An air cleaner sitting there doing its thing is in the long run, and where health is concerned, going to earn its crust.

 

[fleyh]

Hello @Nick_

If you are firmly set on buying a mitre saw then ignore the rest of my message, but if your goal is to finish your project with minimal expense then read on.

If you have a circular saw, you could make yourself a Circular Saw Crosscutting Jig for cutting shed shelves and 2x4s.
I made one of those myself and used it for many projects before investing in a proper mitre saw.
I still use it occasionally with my cordless circular saw when the weather is good.
This design could be adapted for use with a jigsaw, if one does not own a circular saw.



If you prefer to buy rather than build then look for Kreg Crosscut Station, it is about £60.
e.g. https://ffx.co.uk/products/kreg-kreg-kma4100-int-crosscut-station-263787

 

[Etaf]

be careful looking at 2nd hand, some SMS are used very heavily for trade use - and I saw one before i got the dewalt 778 and it was clearly well used, even though they tried to say it was light use in the advert , back in 2018 when i got mine.