Power Saws Reviews

Be prepared to invest some time practicing with this saw. The first thing I'd recommend is remove the blade Makita gives you and buy a good diamond 4 or 6-tooth blade. Cutting speed increased and dust/chips were greatly reduced. Tried cutting with and without a vacuum hose attached. If you can set up a tight cutting area/station, the hose may work for you. When it came to ripping a plank, it took two people (one person babysat the hose). The saw is heavy and not user friendly with a hose attached. We eventually put the wind to the back of the cut-man and went without the hose. I'd say the saw picks up 60-70% of the dust w/o the hose; slightly better with the vac. Cuts are clean and quite effortless. Rated to cut up to 5 planks...we tried up to 3 with no problems. If you have to watch the cut line, say on a rip, expect chips and dust coming right up into your face...recommend a face shield vs regular safety glasses. A dust mask was used on calm wind days. This saw won't be your saving grace but it will nicely compliment Snapper or Kett shears.

Not a bad saw, not the best either. It's a perfect tool for basic projects around the house. If you are a homeowner looking for one saw to have this is it, if you are a pro or are looking for a saw you will be using a lot spend some money and get something with a little more power and a lot less noise.

As I review the features of the Makita corded riprocating saw, I see the necessary power of a plugged-in tool. This is not one of the tools that can afford to run out of power as cordless tools often do at a crucial point in their use. The quick change (without tools) of the blade for a sharper, coarser or finer blade is very satisfying for working unencumbered or away from
the tool's own tool box. Variable speeds are important because in the beginning of a cut, the precise place that the saw begins that cut determines where the cut will saw through. I use a reciprocating saw to dismantle old barns, getting the precious barn wood off without damage. Nails sawn through release the wood without damage and make the tedious job of un-siding so much quicker that I offer this tip to everyone. /s/ Alan D. Johns

I purchased this miter saw to use for general stick framing carpentry and for simple small-trim trim carpentry. I move all my tools via truck to a different job site each day, so portability was important to me. Previously I was using a Bosch 3915 (stolen) which was a great saw in all respects, but it was large, heavy and feature laden; and best suited as an in-shop woodworking saw or for extensive on-site finish carpentry jobs.

The Makita LS1040F is small and light; and it has plenty of power. It was accurate out of the box and in my experience it stays accurate with heavy use. It comes with a decent 40T carbide Makita blade suitable for framing work. It is quite spartan and toy-like compared to a higher end Bosch. It has a relatively small platform and it will just barely cut 2x6 nominal lumber at a 90 degree miter angle. The plastic kerf plate and miter angle indicator stand out as cheap plastic parts. The dust bag gets in the way because it is positioned too low and too horizontal. I haven't really used the florescent light, although it might be useful if you were sawing lumber in a dark hallway somewhere. The light seems to be of decent quality and design, but I'm not sure if it is worth the extra $20. I very much appreciate the built-in carrying handle at the top of the saw. For the money this is an very good lightweight, portable, accurate compound miter saw.

I've used these McCullogh saws before and this one works just as well. Great saw at a great price. I just bought a second one to send to my son in Costa Rica. Guess that tells you that I trust the product.

Because I'm in the market for a nicer quality portable table saw, I just compared them side by side in a store. The brands include DeWalt, Bosch, Porter Cable and Metabo. All portable table saws make compromises when compared to a full sized table saw. Yet, for the higher end/quality portables, I think that it is fair to expect something that is a little closer to a full sized floor model than the less expensive models. All brands had nice solid fences (locked on far end to reduce movement). All had extending tables to increase cut width.

The Metabo excelled in that it had a significantly deeper table than the others. This would be a great asset for ripping longer boards and large sheet material. The Metabo also seemed be a little more solidly built than the others: motor mounting was very good, tilt adjustment was better than the plastic gear system in the Porter Cable, etc.

All of the above mentioned saws had standard miter gauge tracks (Unlike the smaller miter gauge tracks found on most other portable saws made - Makita, etc. - you can use a wide variety of commericially available jigs.). Porter Cable and Metabo both (Not DeWalt or Bosch) use a 'T' slotted miter gauge track. This allows you to much more easily cross-cut wood that is wider than the table top allows (the miter gauge holds in the slot even when the angle adjustment part of gauge is not resting on the table surface). However (AND THIS IS A VERY BIG HOWEVER), the Metabo miter gauge slot has not been sized properly. Of all the above mentioned higher end portable saws, the track on the Metabo saw is FAR looser than it is for the other brands. Both the DeWalt and Bosch saws have some moderate slop (probably too much also) in the miter gauge track (Porter Cable is best in this category), yet when precision is required for jigs or cross-cuts requiring the miter gauge track, the loose tollerance of the Metabo track is not acceptable. The fact that the bottom of the miter track is crowned (I believe that DeWalt and Bosch are also) further worsens performance. I can only presume that there was a metric to English (centimeters to inches) error made when sizing the miter gauge track.

My bias is that I like to buy American tools; second choice is European (Obviously, I'm getting more disappointed by the year. Yet, I want to disclose my biases so that you can judge the rest of my review in that light). The Bosch, DeWalt and Porter Cable saws are made in Taiwan. I thought that in view that the Metabo saw is so expensive for a portable ($600 to $650; compared to approximately $500, $500 and $400, respectively, for the others), it might be made in Europe (Metabo is a European based company). No, the saw is not more expensive because of the higher salaries that they have to pay the employees that are working in Europe. The saw is made in China.

In summary, the Metabo is definitely worth a strong consideration. It is a nice saw. Because of the Metabo's deep table, basic physics tells me that it will rip boards and sheet material easier and more accurately than any of the other saws mentioned. However, seriously think about purchasing either a full sized floor saw or one of the other saws mentioned if you plan to use the miter gauge slot for precision cross-cut or jig based cutting. Obviously, my review is based solely on the construction and features of each saw. If you have an opportunity to try each saw before purchasing it, that would be the best way to evaluate them. I think that there is going to be a different best saw for each individual depending on their intended use. Personally, I am planning on purchasing the Porter Cable saw. It seems to have the higher quality portable saw features (larger table, solid fence, extending table for large cut capacity, full sized miter gauge slot) at a less expensive price.

I actually bought this in error but it turns out to be a good purchase. Works great on aluminum, copper and brass.

This case is expensive, but it is difficult to find a case the right size for a worm or hypoid saw. It has a nice hook that catches the front of the saw plate, and felt padded risers that hold the saw. I wanted a case that wasn't too bulky, unlike most plastic cases. The only thing that I do not like about the case is that it is about 6" longer than the length of the saw, which is nice for extra blades, accessories, etc., however because of this the saw's center of gravity is offset from the axis of the carrying handle, making the case out-of-balance in you hand.

Long lasting, you'll lose this before it wears out, order two.

How many times have you ever wanted that perfectly straight cut on your sheet of plywood? You pull out your circular saw and saw horses measure it, then with either a chalk snap line or your straight edge and clamps, you line up and go at it only to miss cut it? Or you get your table saw all lined up and as your pushing the plywood through it pulls away from the fence and your cut is off? With this you just set your plywood on the rack set the saw to the desired measurement and cut by pushing the wood through on the rollers with ease. This saw system cuts both crosscut and rip cuts with little to no effort. The only draw back to the panel saw is its size, it takes alot of room on a wall, which we all know is scarce. I have mounted my to the out side wall next to my garage behind my fence. I know if I put it so all my neighbors could see it, I wouldn't have a chace to use it, it cuts great. Every Home Depot and Lowes I ever went in has one, in fact I bought my panel saw from Home Base before they went out of business and now I get neighbors and friends calling to make cuts for them. I used to be the guy who everyone called to borrow his truck, now everyone has a truck and I hope everyone buys a panel saw so my phone can be left for Telemarketers to call during dinner.