# Circular Saw Adjustable ?????



## Evil Scotsman (May 30, 2008)

Hola,

You guys will have a good laugh at my expense for this one! Are handheld circular saws adjustable for depth? I was just watching some vids on Utube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH5dW-QcgeI&feature=related) and the guy mentioned that he adjusted the blade to reach just under the bottom part of the board. I had NO IDEA :blink: that you could adjust the saw blade. Is this true or did I miss under stand? If so how would you go about it? 

Thanks Again


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## mdlbldrmatt135 (Dec 6, 2006)

Both I've had have been....... look toward the backside of the saw under the motor housing......... there should be some kind of Lever or nut 

You'll see an arched shape coming off the baseplate in the link below..........
http://mdm.boschwebservices.com/MDMCache/t10/0000000/r00753v-1.pdf


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## Terry Beeson (May 29, 2008)

I've not seen one that was NOT adjustable depth.... Different ones use different mechanisms for locking, but you should see some sort of locking mechanism (wing nut, lever nut, knob, etc.) at the rear of the base plate that will look pretty obvious. Loosening this will allow the base plate to drop or raise as it will be hinged at the front of the saw. This in turn adjusts the depth of the blade/cut. Raising the base plate will make it deeper, lowering it will make it shallower. Basically, you should adjust to where the tips of the blade will go through the piece to be cut by about 1/4 inch or so... depending on the blade... but 1/4 in is a good rule of thumb for me... 

By the way, this is the same for a table saw in case you didn't know you could adjust the blade height on them...


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## Evil Scotsman (May 30, 2008)

Terry Beeson said:


> at the rear of the base plate that will look pretty obvious. Loosening this will allow the base plate to drop or raise as it will be hinged at the front of the saw. This in turn adjusts the depth of the blade/cut. Raising the base plate will make it deeper, lowering it will make it shallower. Basically, you should adjust to where the tips of the blade will go through the piece to be cut by about 1/4 inch or so... depending on the blade... but 1/4 in is a good rule of thumb for me...
> 
> By the way, this is the same for a table saw in case you didn't know you could adjust the blade height on them...


DUH! (on my part):icon_redface: I wasn't even THINKING about the table part of the saw. (or as my father would say, That's RIGHT YOU WEREN'T THINKING!) Sorry for the dumb question.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

As said the adjustment is usually on the backside of the blade guard. On one of my saws (7 1/4" SkilSaw), it will adjust from 0 to 2 1/4". The bevel adjustment is on the front of the saw frame.

A word about the actual video. If anyone noticed, the first rip made to the masonite, he had the cord dangling on the back edge of the material. That's a good way to get hung up (literally) during the cut. On the cut sizing the masonite to the blade where he cut from the left, it didn't show his movement down the length of the cut. Having the procedure all planned out from start to where you finish may prevent a disaster. 

And last, when he cut on the sawhorses, he didn't state that a spacer should be under both sides of the cut so you don't cut into the sawhorses.

Other than those things, the video was OK...I guess.


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## edp (May 25, 2007)

cabinetman said:


> And last, when he cut on the sawhorses, he didn't state that a spacer should be under both sides of the cut so you don't cut into the sawhorses.


 
I attach sacrificial strips of mdf to my sawhorses with double sided tape. Individual spacers are a real challenge for someone as awkward as I am.

Ed


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## pianoman (Jan 16, 2008)

There`s a loose nut behind the saw!


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## Davet (Nov 16, 2007)

Snip by Evil Evil Scotsman:
............................................................................................
DUH! (on my part):icon_redface: I wasn't even THINKING about the table part of the saw. (or as my father would say, That's RIGHT YOU WEREN'T THINKING!) Sorry for the dumb question. 
...........................................................................................

*Nah.. Not so dum Evil*.
We all have been there in the beginning :yes:, so don't sweat it.

That's why we are here, to help each other when needed. :thumbsup:

Now ...if you cut your fingers ....we will thinks thats dum!
ALWAYS BE MINDFULL WHERE YOUR HANDS ARE !!!
AND WHAT IS UNDER AND AROUND YOUR BLADE DURING THE CUT !!!
Sorry, to be such a nag!

Dave


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## fungku (Jul 3, 2008)

cabinetman said:


> And last, when he cut on the sawhorses, he didn't state that a spacer should be under both sides of the cut so you don't cut into the sawhorses.


You can see the 2x4s he screws to the top of his stands near the end of the video. I think he is assuming the people watching have at least used these tools before and aren't complete goofs :bangin:

but then again, it's not safe to assume much, and common sense isn't really all that common.


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## Gerry KIERNAN (Apr 20, 2007)

Don't worry Evil. There is no such thing as a dumb question. The only thing dumb is someone who doesn't ask.

Gerry


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Okay, my circular saw is actually a hand-me-down from my grandfather and is 40 years old, roughly. I don't know if it has a height adjustment but I do have a bevel adjustment for cutting on angles, so I assume there's a height adjustment too. I never even realized you should do this with a circular saw, though it makes complete sense now that I read about it.

As for table saws, I was taught to adjust height so that three teeth of your blade always clear the top edge of what you're cutting.


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