# Sliding Miter Saw Advice



## himmelhok (Mar 5, 2012)

Hey all,
Looking for some advice on a sliding miter saw. I'm not completely new to woodworking, but I would consider myself a beginner. I would like to buy a nice miter saw with some decent crosscut range. I've been looking at the Makita 1216L and the Milwaukee 6955-20. I've heard some disadvantages from the Milwaukee though- one side of the fence doesn't completely move and it doesn't come with a clamp (which I may or may not use). The Makita for some reason although looks like a decent saw has had some mixed reviews. As I was looking, I also found a Dewalt DWS780. Does anyone own either of these saws? Just looking for some good advice. Its been a little overwhelming looking for saws, so anything would help!

By the way- this is my first post in the forums so be nice!


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

That Dewalt is no where close to the same class as the Makita, unless Makita is making a lesser product now. Bosch, DW708 Dewalt, Hatichi, Makita and of course the Festool are all good tools, I don't know much about a Milwaukee so I can't say there.


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## sawdustfactory (Jan 30, 2011)

I have the makita and it's a great saw. No issues for me.


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## tcleve4911 (Dec 16, 2006)

I have a 10" and 12" Makita. 
They're both workhorses and I love the smoothness of operation.


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## bob sacamano (Jan 24, 2012)

i have the dewalt - no problems since i got it 8 years ago


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## himmelhok (Mar 5, 2012)

Thank you for the feedback! I'm leaning towards the Makita at the moment. I've heard some bad reviews from the Dewalt DW718, so I'm steering clear of that, but the pricepoint of other Dewalt saws are tempting. Will keep you posted. If anyone else has other imput, I'd love to hear it


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## sawdustfactory (Jan 30, 2011)

Just search miter saws on here and you'll find a few threads where all this has been hashed over before.:yes:


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## Ozrob (Apr 21, 2008)

Hi Himmelhok,
Welcome to the forums. Hope you get lots of good advice and are able to offer some as well.
Have a look at this thread, it goes through Mitre saws fairly well.

Regards,

Rob


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## mveach (Jul 3, 2010)

jiju1943 said:


> That Dewalt is no where close to the same class as the Makita, unless Makita is making a lesser product now. Bosch, DW708 Dewalt, Hatichi, Makita and of course the Festool are all good tools, I don't know much about a Milwaukee so I can't say there.


Not sure where the DW718 is picking up the bad rap. Mine does a fine job. I actually red some very positive reviews before I bought it.


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## Lostinwoods (Mar 1, 2012)

Check out the dewalt 10" slider. It's got amazing capacity and you can add their LED light to it. Cheaper and 5 lbs lighter than the 12". Go to dewalt's web site and get the manual and compare capacity to the 12" and the other brand's capacity. I don't have one yet but it's on my wish list. I once had a dewalt 12" non-slider and loved being able to accurately cut up to a 4x4 with it. But I can use my table saw blades with the 10"scms. The cross cut capacity is only about 1/2" shy of the 12" they seem to have done a nice job with this saw and it gets pretty good reviews.


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## Lostinwoods (Mar 1, 2012)

Relooked them up for myself, and copied them.
Crown up to 6.25"

From the manual:

Dw717
CAPACITY OF CUT*
51º miter right,*60º miter left*
48º bevel left and right
*0º miter
**Max. Height 3.5" (89 mm) Result Width 11.9" (302 mm)
**Max. Width 12.6" (320 mm) Result Height 3.0" (76 mm)

45º miter
**Max. Height 3.5" (89 mm) Result Width 8.4" (213 mm)
**Max. Width 8.9" (226 mm) Result Height 3.0" (76 mm)

45º bevel - Left *
**Max. Height 2.3" (58 mm) Result Width 11.9" (302 mm)
**Max. Width 12.6" (320 mm) Result Height 2.0" (50 mm)

45º bevel - Right *Max. Height 1.2" (30 mm) Result Width 11.9" (302 mm) Max. Width 12.6" (320 mm) Result Height 0.9" (22 mm)
*

NOTE: Your saw is capable of cutting the following once a special setup procedure is followed (see Special Cuts).*
0º miter height 1.5 (38 mm) width 15.4 (391 mm)*
45º miter height 1.5 (38 mm) width 11.3 (287 mm)*


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

mveach said:


> Not sure where the DW718 is picking up the bad rap. Mine does a fine job. I actually red some very positive reviews before I bought it.


I'm not trying to knock anyone's choice of tools, but take a look and see where the DW718 is made and where the others are made. I looked at some DW718s and they just had too much sideways play for me. I don't know if all the DW718 are the same or not, I just know about the ones I checked and where they are made now days.


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## dwendt1978 (Mar 13, 2010)

I have the Ridgid 12" slider and couldn't be happier. Gets great reviews. Only problem that I have with it, is the thing is a dang tank. Have to bring it through doorways like a couch. Flip it this way, twist it that way, angle it this way. 

My top 2 choices would be the Ridgid or Makita. Can't go wrong with either. :thumbsup:


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## BassBlaster (Nov 21, 2010)

I dont have any personally experience but in doing some research, it seems no matter what brand you buy and how much money you spend, sliders have accuracy problems. 12" more so than the 10" models. They may be fine for rough carpentry but I'm not sure they really have a place in fine woodworking where accuracy is critical.
I was looking to buy a 10" slider a year ago or so but after researching, I decided to keep my old CMS for chopping stuff to rough size but build a crosscut sled for accuracy. This assumes you have a table saw and if not, you should be looking for one long before shopping for a chop saw.


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## Taylormade (Feb 3, 2011)

I have the Milwaukee and love it. As stated above, any and all sliders have more moving parts, and therefore more room for error when compared to non sliding saws. Also true is a 12" blade will flex more than a 10" blade. 

As for the Milwaukee, yes only one side of the fence slides, but the other is easily removed when necessary. The fences are nice and tall as well. I like the digital read out, but I'm an techno guy, so I like things like that. I've never found it underpowered and it's been rather accurate... at least for the things I've used it for.


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## himmelhok (Mar 5, 2012)

BassBlaster said:


> I dont have any personally experience but in doing some research, it seems no matter what brand you buy and how much money you spend, sliders have accuracy problems. 12" more so than the 10" models. They may be fine for rough carpentry but I'm not sure they really have a place in fine woodworking where accuracy is critical.
> I was looking to buy a 10" slider a year ago or so but after researching, I decided to keep my old CMS for chopping stuff to rough size but build a crosscut sled for accuracy. This assumes you have a table saw and if not, you should be looking for one long before shopping for a chop saw.


I have a table saw but it isn't a very big one- not big enough to do any crosscuts for a project that I'm working on anyway. For the money that I could put into a miter saw, I could see me just getting a bigger table saw that would be able to handle my projects, but there are a couple disadvantages to that- cost (which in the long run would be worth it, but right now I'm not sure if I can afford it) and accuracy. Correct me if I'm wrong (and I believe I've read it elsewhere in these forums) but crosscuts on a table saw, unless you get a good miter gauge, are not as accurate. And even if you have a good miter gauge you could have some play with the fence. I am a rookie though, so I would like to know what you guys do and what would you advise? Do most of you use table saws for crosscuts and rips?


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## dwendt1978 (Mar 13, 2010)

I have the Ridgid R4512 table saw as well as the Ridgid 12" sliding miter saw. My R4512 has a very accurate miter gauge and my miter slot grooves are dead on the money to the blade. I've found myself using the tablesaw more and more for cross cuts. A properly tuned table saw is far superior. IMO.


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## woodworkerhobbyist (Jan 1, 2014)

In my opinion the Milwaukee 6955-20 Miter Saw is a great miter. I bought it from Amazon.com after reading the reviews.


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## rrich (Jun 24, 2009)

A few cents here.

All saws in a store are set up by store personnel. Are the saws completely set up? YGIAGAM. Are the saws correctly set up? YGIAGAM. Are the saws at a woodworking show set up by a manufacturer's rep? Your Guess Is As Good As Mine.

I have a 12" DW-708. It is a GREAT SCMS. The only problem is that it requires more depth on the bench than current saws. (42") If you can find one on CraigsList I would go for it.

I was looking for an articulated arm to replace my 708. The Bosch seemed great. I looked at one at The Woodworking Show and it was pathetic, the arm moved a good 1/4 in each direction when fully extended. At Woodworking In America the same model was perfect. 

I've played with other SCMS at HD and Lowes. (Reference the second paragraph) The DeWalt seemed to be the one that was set up the best in the stores. I was never impressed with a Bosch and nothing in either the Makita or Milwaukee seemed to jump out at me. I keep coming back to $800 to shorten the bench to 36"; do I really need that?


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## Kitchenator (Jan 3, 2014)

I'm glad I read this thread. I'm casually thinking of a new slider. Years ago I thought the dewalts were the balls. I have a 12" dewalt miter saw (non slider) I bought ten or twelve years ago and to this day I cut crown with it do all kinds of trim cut framing lumber sometimes...ect. It's in and out of my van every day and its fallen 3' out of my tool rack more than once and it's still a pleasure to use and my work is consistent. I haven't had to shop for a chop saw in a while but when in doubt I'd open my wallet and go for the bosch. Then again...now that I've read all your comments I may do some more research. 800 dollars would be too pricey for a pos


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## vdotmatrix (Jul 28, 2014)

I recently purchased the Dewalt DWS780 12" sliding mitre saw. I am an avid wood worker and I love this saw. I bought it new on EBAY from Bishops Tools supply out of Florida a month ago for around $500. free shipping, no tax.....very very very nice for the money.


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## Trav (May 30, 2011)

vdotmatrix said:


> I recently purchased the Dewalt DWS780 12" sliding mitre saw. I am an avid wood worker and I love this saw. I bought it new on EBAY from Bishops Tools supply out of Florida a month ago for around $500. free shipping, no tax.....very very very nice for the money.


This is a good saw and right now my local Home Depot has a stack of them in the front isle for $399.00. Not sure if this sale is everywhere but worth a look. For what it's worth when I bought mine I paid almost $700.00 but it came with a "free" stand.


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