"value" Mitre saw - waste of money?

Maximillion

fancy one of these. Just for domestic use, bit of decking later in the year etc.

are the sub 50 quid ones good value or just s**te? will I get stung for blades? cheaper/better alternatives? pitfalls?

waddyareckon?

shockingmoment

They are pretty poor, but if all you're doing is decking it should be fine. Dont expect the blade to last too long, and expect to pay £30+ for a decent blade (depending on size).

Regardless of how sharp the blade is, it will always slice through fingers before you've even felt the pain - the first cut won't hurt at all! so be careful out there!
I've got 1 of these and its great (£240)
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/DEWALT-DW707-GB-230V-CROSSCUT-MITRE-SAW-216MM_W0QQitemZ160078326490QQihZ006QQcategoryZ106000QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Maximillion

shockingmoment wrote:

I've got 1 of these and its great (£240)
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/DEWALT-DW707-GB-230V-CROSSCUT-MITRE-SAW-216MM_W0QQitemZ160078326490QQihZ006QQcategoryZ106000QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

yes very nice - It's a little past my budget unfortuately, cor 30 quid for a blade! ouch.

rygon

Does it have to be motorised??? If your not going to use it that often get a manual one (ive heard Nobex are a good make). If you are planning to cut a lot of pieces in a short space of time you can always hire one.

Happy_frank

I've borrowed a £600+ dewalt one from a friend before, and since brought myself a £40 ryobi one from b&q, yes the dewalt had a bigger cutting capacity and a slide action, but otherwise they both cut wood just fine. I wouldn't expect mine to outlast the dewalt, but I'm only using it for DIY round the house, not every day.
Save your money and buy the best cheap one you can find.

dubwarrior2

If its just for decking and "rough" work then buy yourself the cheaper one.
However, if you will be doing a lot of detailed work, invest the money and get a decent sliding saw.
I had a £50 B&Q model a while back and found that it was powerful enough to cut through most things but never ever cut a truly square cut and mitres never matched up. I have since invested in a 2000w Erbauer model from Screwfix for £150 and it is awesome. Very powerful for the price and accurate cutting.
I know they say that "Only a poor craftsman blames his tools" but that is not always true.

rygon

yes but a good craftsman buys better tools knowing the cheaper tools wont do the job

savingallthetime01

try silverline tools you get a 3 year warranty on all power tools and they are really cheap i have one i got through work and i cannot fault it

ajbaker

I was fortunate to get a clearance offer from Homebase. Paid £30 for a PBX (own brand I believe) that was previously priced at £120. ScrewFix seem to offer the same saw under a different brand for about £90.

I have just finished the skirting and architraves in my bedroom in oak with it. Having not used one before I cannot say how it compared to more expensive models, but I can say it was good enough. Not incredibly accurate but good enough to produce long, clean cuts in oak at compound angles. The end result is a room that looks really good.

You certainly dont need accuracy for decking so would recommend you find something in the £90 - £150 price range. Great for decking and also for any future uses you may have. If you are going to use it very often however, of course go for something more expensive and accurate. Alternatively the manual saws are very accurate - just hard work (and almost as expensive!)