Which sliding compound mitre saw?

[johnjin]

Hi Gary

I bought the Bosch GCM 12SD when it was on offer from Axminster a few months ago and my words would echo what OPJ said. Dead accurate and so smooth to use in every respect from changing angles to cutting through beech and oak. The dust extraction? just forget it. But it does take up a lot of room.
I love it

Best wishes

John

 

[Steve Maskery]

I've been using my Bosch a lot today, cutting components for 14 casements. There was a lot of vacuuming up to do afterwards. But you know, the ends of the pieces were like glass.

I've had an idea about DX. I use my Hitachi on my SCMS and it's very good. The main problem is the collection of the dust at source. There is a port of a few square inches behind the line of cut which is supposed to collect the dust. I can't be a lot bigger without interfering with the slide of the arm, but I'm thinking of adding a soft collar around it. It would collect more dust without interfering with the machine. That's my theory anyway. I just need to find some suitable material.

OPJ had a dust collection hood in BW, but I haven't got room for anything so wonderful

 

[Gordon T]

hey up all,

I have the electra beckum kgs301, it is a beast, and after several years of diy work has never missed a beat. I love it

GT

 

[garywayne]

Hi all.

Going by whats been said so far, and what I remember of a previous write up, I am going for the Bosch GCM 10S.

I would like to thank you all for your time and thoughts.

 

[MooreToolsPlease]

DW707 here, has a good capacity for a machine its size, takes up very little room.
It's reasonably light for lugging in and out of the van.
One feature that i'm very pleased with, is that in 3 years i've only had to callibrate it once.
One modification I've made to it, is to replace the yellow plastic piece, for an ally one off of the variable speed model.

Matt

 

[dddd]

I have the DW712 and I have to say I love it, not sure if they were having a good day when they built it but I have been all over it with my engineers squares and it was dot on everywhere and still is 2 months later after some pretty heavy use. I use a 0.5mm propelling pencil to mark out and I can split that line right down the centre across a full skirting board with no wander at all.
I did a lot of research on this before I bought it and I did come to the conclusion that if you stick to the usual suspect Bosch, DW, Metabo, Makita etc you are really going to struggle to buy a lemon. From my experience and from what I read here they are all excellent saws so it just comes down to cost (I got mine brand new for £299 off ebay) and any brand affiliations you happen to have.
As an aside I also got the Dewalt stand as well which is superb.

 

[banjo]

Gary,
If space is an issue, (I know that some of these machines can take up load of room) try the bosch GCM8S model. It has the same build quality and accuracy of the big boys just slightly smaller. I got this after persevering with a performance pro and it was like driving a Rolls Royce after getting rid of the Austin Ambassador! (Sorry to any ambassador owners) :wink:
ccasion5:
Banjo

 

[Streepips]

Well for my two pennorth we are taking a trip down market, I only use these machines on site and find that accuracy varies a lot or a little on most machines if not set up and maintained anyway.No matter what the initial cost.
I bought a 10" Fox F32-252A from Rutlands and it proved perfectly adequate and robust, although the factory set up like most Fox machinery is not near enough and needs setting up properly before use. This one is a clone of a much costlier machine and has all the benefits without the brand or the cost.
It does not get used in the workshop its sits under a bench. I have a DeWalt DW721RAS and a Scheppach 2500 which between then will accurately cut everything except a curve
A friend of mine had a Delta which cost a lot more and was never any good no matter how it was set up or used.
I think if I had to have one for workshop use it would be a Makita

 

[OPJ]

OPJ had a dust collection hood in BW, but I haven't got room for anything so wonderful

Sorry Steve but, as much as I'd like to say this was my idea, it wasn't - mine was the Resaw Guide on the page next to it!

I was keen to try something very simillar with my saw but, I then realised that the one in British Woodworking was for a standard mitre saw WITHOUT a sliding head. If you allowed a large slot or cut our for the travel of the two runners behind the saw, you'd also letting a lot of sawdust slip away.

I'd be interested, as always, to see what you come up with though, Steve. I'm sure it'll appear in a future issue sometime...? :wink:

 

[OPJ]

What I came here to say, though, is that while my saw can be set to cut a perfect 90 degrees on the vertical access, when locked in place at 90 on the base, it doesn't cut a perfect 90 degrees to the fence - and I can't see any way to adjust this.

Any other Bosch SCMS users noticed this?

Haven't had the saw for more than a few months but, perhaps it's the price you pay with eBay some time.

 

[Steve Maskery]

I'd be interested, as always, to see what you come up with though, Steve. I'm sure it'll appear in a future issue sometime...? :wink:

Er, try the next issue of British Woodworking

when locked in place at 90 on the base, it doesn't cut a perfect 90 degrees to the fence - and I can't see any way to adjust this.

The fence is bolted down to the table. You can slacken the bolts and nudge the table over a bit, but I agree,mine is on the edge of its adjustability and is only just square - another 0.2mm would be helpful.

S

 

[garywayne]

Just to let everyone know, I have received the saw, and am very happy with it up to now.

Zeroing in was simple enough.

The only gripe I have at the mo, is, the so called table extension, (A 3" bit of ally that slides out about 2"), doesn't line up with the fence. :x No big deal though, easy to remedy. :wink:

The only other question I have is to do with blades. :?
Who make good quality blades?
What is a good toothidge for a general purpose blade?
Finally. Should the blade be a tungsten carbide toothed blade?

 

[OPJ]

The fence is bolted down to the table. You can slacken the bolts and nudge the table over a bit, but I agree,mine is on the edge of its adjustability and is only just square - another 0.2mm would be helpful.

S

Thanks Steve. I had a look at my saw earlier and can see what you mean - looks like the two bolts on either side, just behind the fence. If you're saw is very similar to mine then you also have to slide the top-half of the fence back to get to it with a socket spanner.

I'll give it a try soon - I wonder if this is why the previous owners sold it on? It's surprising what can happen when you try to fix something first! :wink:

 

[OPJ]

The only gripe I have at the mo, is, the so called table extension, (A 3" bit of ally that slides out about 2"), doesn't line up with the fence. :x No big deal though, easy to remedy. :wink:

The only other question I have is to do with blades. :?
Who make good quality blades?
What is a good toothidge for a general purpose blade?
Finally. Should the blade be a tungsten carbide toothed blade?

I agree with you on the extensions. They don't really impress me much either. And, in terms of capacity, I can only see that they were ever really designed for cutting noggings and the like on site. You'd probably be better off making your own sometime (Steve did a tidy fence a couple of years ago... :wink: ). I intend to make my own 'station' ASAP, just like Mighty Genghis is doing in the other forum.

As for blades, Freud are probably the ones to go for - you should be able to buy them from Screwfix, Toolstation and even B&Q (where they may -or may not- be discounted right now...?).

I'm very happy with the blade that came with my machine, which I think has about 60 teeth? That's about right for general purpose. Or, you could 80t or perhaps even finer for laminate/plastic cutting, etc.

 

[garywayne]

Thanks for your reply OPJ.

I am using the Bosch blade that came with the saw to build the shed. By the time I'm ready to attempt building furniture it will be knackered. So I recon I will need a new one. I think I will go for the 80 tooth.

Thanks again.

 

[OPJ]

No problem. The Bosch blade which came with your saw should, I'm quite sure, be Tungsten Carbide Tipped anyway so, you might be surprised by how much life it still has after you've finished building the shed.

If you're not sure, you can easily tell by looking at the teeth of the blade - you should see big lumps of Tungsten Carbide on the tips... :wink:

Normally, when buying any new saw (whether that be a mitre saw or bandsaw), the first recommendation would be to replace the saw blade. However, Bosch blades have had a good amount of support from forum members in the past.

 

[Steve Maskery]

I've had my saw for 18 months or so, I use the blade that came with the saw and it's still as sharp today as when I bought it. It's excellent.

No affiliation!
S

 

[OPJ]

I had a play around with those bolts securing the fence earlier and, I'm very pleased to say, my saw now cuts to an accurate 90 degrees!

You may still be right and it may still be out by something like 0.2mm but, unless I'm using this saw to cut tenon shoulders cross-grain housings then, that minor discrepancy is totally irrelevant.