Which electric saw / saws and accessories will I need ?

property.advert

I'm going to be working with wood on a couple of projects and though I'm comfortable with what is required, I'm not sure whether I can get away with just one type of electric saw for all the jobs I have to do.

The first job is decking, both joists of 4" x 2" and boards of 130mm x 30mm.

The second job is stud walling with similar wood but more cutting.

If I go for a chop saw / mitre saw I'll need some sort of base come table with extending supports, which costs. A table saw allows longer lengths to be cut. A circular saw is the most mobile and can sort of do the job but it relies on my steadiness of hand.

At the end of the day, cost is an issue and I don't envisage much use after these jobs are completed.

The for any of these, what sort of blade do I want ?

diable

Skill saw will do most of that.

garethgas

Personally, I'd opt for either a chop saw or a decent sized circular saw.
Decking is quite heafty stuff to cut repeatedly so you'd need to look at the power of the thing.
A chop saw on the floor outside will only be about 2 inches off the floor so you'll only need to put a few pieces of scrap underneath the length of wood to support it.
It will also cut perfect 45 or 30 angles for you should you need it.
A circular saw, as you rightly pointed out is a lot more mobile though.
It will also cut any width you want whereas the chop saw can only take a given width on its base.
Whilst either type of saw will do the job, I'd be inclined to go for the chop saw.
I hope this helps you decide

PS make sure you use the expensive blades, they should last the whole project wheras the cheap ones burn out in no time.

Gloomendoom

For what you want to do the chop saw will be the most useful. You don't need a table, just put it on the floor and, as has been suggested, use scrap to support the overhanging ends.

ormus

you can buy workmate type benches for peanuts now.
try wickes etc.

phill99

Chop saw. This will give a much better cut that will be straight or angled as requred. You will struggle cutting angles with a circular saw.

Hiring a sliding chop saw may be the best option as these can cut a very wide board.

keystone

Yes - I was going to suggest hiring a sliding compound mitre saw if you have little use for it afterwards but Phill beat me to it.

Cheers

property.advert

Thanks for the replies.

I was originally going down the road of the sliding compound mitre saw but was hesitant on where to put it and how to support it. Putting it on the floor makes perfect sense and saves the money for a work table, though I may buy one anyway.

What about a blade though ? I guess most come with one but I want one to cut wood without chopping it to pieces.

leveller2911

Chop saw on the floor and I would suggest one of these too........http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-axminster-adjustable-bench-roller-prod206814/?searchfor=100052

Makes it much easier to pull the timber across the chop saw to the exact cutting line.

If you go down the chop saw on a bench make sure someone else is holding the other end of the timber ,most important.

A few years back I went to finish off a job where the guy used a chop saw on a workmate, he didn't clamp it down,it slipped and cut through 4 fingers of his right hand(he was left handed which didn't help as all chop saws and tools in general are for R/H people.......It took his work mate 4 hours to clean the walls down.....

The only downside to working on the floor is back ache and knees

Skill saw/power saw blades tend to have few teeth whereas chop saw/sliding compound saws tend to have more so you get more control and a neater cut