Do I need a plunge saw AND a circular saw?

[chiokli]

I bought the Parkside plunge saw a few weeks ago and after some futzing with parallelism, angles and grub screws, seem to have it set up now. I already had a Makita circular saw but wonder if I still need it as the box takes up some space in the shed.

Apart from the slight extra capacity of the circular saw, is there any reason to keep it that the plunge saw wouldn't accomplish?

 

[Brandlin]

When i got my plunge saw i turned my old circular saw into a makeshift table saw. I doubt i would use it otherwise.

 

[Sideways]

I'd expect the Makita to be a much higher quality saw than a Parkside so more durable. Maybe keep it for the heavier rough cutting / outdoor jobs and the tracksaw for jobs where that matters ?
I'm poor at culling tools if they fill a specific role so I have a 150cm Perles saw that I can use single handed - ideal for floorboards, a tracksaw and a big Metabo electronic that will eat thick hardwoods that would beat my tracksaw. Do I need all three, no, but the two old saws are worth more to me than I'd get if I sold them.

 

[Woody2Shoes]

Answer: It depends!

Most plunge saws don't have a riving knife, they're mostly intended for making nice clean straight cuts in (well-behaved) sheet materials.

A circular saw will usually have a riving knife and will be better suited to more roughty-toughty stuff like sawing up chunks of constructional timber (I've just been using mine for ripping green oak beams in half - the riving knife is definitely an important safety feature in this case). The timber being of a size where it's preferable to take the tool to the workpiece, rather than the other way round (in which case a table saw is an option).

So - they are different beasts. Cheers, W2S

 

[owen]

I've got both, very very rarely do I use the circular saw, and then it's mostly used for cutting floorboards. It's probably worth selling the makita on, then if you ever find yourself needing one just get a cheapy circular saw.

 

[chiokli]

A lack of riving knife would be a concern on solid woods, though the blade does pop back up on the plunge saw if it does kick back, so it has a different safety mechanism.

Quality is a subjective matter on technically different tools. I think the key point highlighted here is purpose. I was using the circular saw because that's what I had. I feel passing it on down the line or adapting it to a different purpose (metal cutting maybe) is the answer here.

Thanks all!

 

[Doug71]

If you think you will need to make any cuts with the plunge saw off the track keep the circular saw, plunge saws are really awkward to use when not on the track.