which compact forward sliding mitre saw as gift for my Dad.

[scubadoo]

Looking to treat my Dad to a CSMS as he's had a rough time with his health recently and he'd like to get into a bit of woodwork, making bird boxes, other small items, maybe some furniture and just general DIY. Looking for something accurate and simple to operate that stays in alignment - I used a rear slide Erbauer saw on a job last week and that kept going out of alignment. Good extraction and tenching facility would be good as well. I use that a lot on my Kapex. (I upgraded to a Kapex 120 from a Makita that i could never keep accurate, think it was a 1018 - I love the Kapex but my god has the price gone up!)

Space is limited so i think I have to look at forward sliding saws. The Bosch glide saw looks great but is realistically too expensive.

So what options are there?
Makita LS1019 - have read about alignment issues - is that a non-issue?
Kapex HS 60 E - is this too small and is it capable enough?
Metabo KGSV 72 Xact - don't know anything about this one.
And there is a Hyundai and a Hikoki C8FSHG both under £200 - no idea if these are any good.

Any suggestions would be appreciated

 

[clogs]

Hikoki is the new name for Hitachi......
I have also go an Evolution sliding Miter saw.....no faults with that and stay's accurate....

 

[bourbon]

Hikoki is the new name for Hitachi......
I have also go an Evolution sliding Miter saw.....no faults with that and stay's accurate....

It's rear slide though isn't it?

 

[scubadoo]

Hikoki is the new name for Hitachi......
I have also go an Evolution sliding Miter saw.....no faults with that and stay's accurate....

Yeah, I have Hikoki cordless nail guns which are great.

Maybe the Evolution mitre saw is better but the metal chop saw I have is definitely built to a price. Will have a look but I think they're all rear slide.

 

[Jameshow]

Looking to treat my Dad to a CSMS as he's had a rough time with his health recently and he'd like to get into a bit of woodwork, making bird boxes, other small items, maybe some furniture and just general DIY. Looking for something accurate and simple to operate that stays in alignment - I used a rear slide Erbauer saw on a job last week and that kept going out of alignment. Good extraction and tenching facility would be good as well. I use that a lot on my Kapex. (I upgraded to a Kapex 120 from a Makita that i could never keep accurate, think it was a 1018 - I love the Kapex but my god has the price gone up!)

Space is limited so i think I have to look at forward sliding saws. The Bosch glide saw looks great but is realistically too expensive.

So what options are there?
Makita LS1019 - have read about alignment issues - is that a non-issue?
Kapex HS 60 E - is this too small and is it capable enough?
Metabo KGSV 72 Xact - don't know anything about this one.
And there is a Hyundai and a Hikoki C8FSHG both under £200 - no idea if these are any good.

Any suggestions would be appreciated

What about DeWalt?

https://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-d...fOQtfgzzUi2rakV6dtMaAhKrEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[sams93]

I have the DWS774 and it is absolutely fine - really useful for me as it doesn't extend out at the back and in my workshop I don't have any room behind it. I prefer the shadow line of the 774 to the laser of the 773.

The dust collection is pretty rubbish though. I keep meaning to try one of the solutions other people have posted about for it.

EDIT - and it also doesn't have a trenching facility which sometimes I wish it did!! If I had the money I think i'd buy the Kapex, although realistically the price difference for the relatively minor improvements just doesnt make it worthwile to me.

 

[alex robinson]

Really interested to hear these suggestions. Don't know why all mitre saws aren't like this. I have an evolution that has been ok but a bit crude and takes up loads of space. Looking for something a lot more compact.

 

[Blister]

What is your budget for the saw ? And will it be used mobile ( Out and about ) or static in a workshop ?

This is a used Bosch gcm 12 gdl miter saw at a fair price , About 1/2 price
https://www.facebook.com/marketplac...wse_serp:c1220e1d-c714-4e1a-8521-aa670711ac1f
I have one and think it is very good.
They do become available in different UK locations.

 

[TomGW]

Another bump for the DeWalt DWS774.

 

[scubadoo]

The DeWalt DWS774 does look nice and very compact. I hadn’t realised from photos that it was actually a slider.
I really would prefer one with trenching facility though. But it’s on the list to consider. Thanks.

Budget could go up to £600/700 and it will be static in a workshop.

 

[Etaf]

i have the DWS778 - purchased before covid , so price now is very expensive
I also have a stand for it

i leave it in the box most of the time , and then get out and put to the side of the garage when doing DIY - with the car out
because it does not have slides out the back, i can out up close to the wall and still have a lot of room in front

I had to cut an Oak threshold a couple of days ago
got it out and setup it up and everything was still Square to the fence - the blade was 90 i have a digital angle for checking that and a square
and the run out - sliding bit was square to the fence
so did easy to setup and cut the oak threshold

I dont have space to have it setup all the time

I have dome a lot of work with the saw , laminate flooring , loads of MDF cupboards ,, 2x MDF windows seats and draws , shelves etc etc etc

its now quite expensive , as i say i purchased pre covid , i paid around £399 for it from FFX - june 2019
I also got the heavy duty stand for it as well

I love the shadow cut setup - brilliant

Does not have trenching , but i use a circular saw to do that ..

My son-in-law has the evolution and pretty happy with it

I do have 60T and 80T blades for it

 

[Spectric]

The Bosch glide is the one but as you said a tad expensive, so for me the Makita LS1219 would be the next choice but again maybe to expensive so the LS1019 would be a good choice and not had any issues with Makita products to date.

 

[scubadoo]

Had lunch with my Dad today and I had a look at his workshop. Where it’s going to sit, the workbench is 53cm deep so would need something that would fit on that. I know I can look at the listed dimensions but it’s hard to know what they are measuring between on the front to back.

 

[Jameshow]

I think I may have had a another son just saying, do get in touch.....

 

[Sachakins]

Never seen trenching facility on any forward slide bar saws yet.

 

[sams93]

Never seen trenching facility on any forward slide bar saws yet.

The kapex has it doesn’t it

 

[Calum Bettison]

Just thought I’d share my experience having used several MSs.

The dewalt ones seem generally good. I have a 250mm flex volt one, stays reasonably accurate and as it’s battery powered it’s super handy for taking to the timber supplier for cutting down bigger lengths to fit in the van. Not something that I considered at the time of buying but was a revelation when I realised how handy this would be!

Mitre saws are notoriously difficult to get any kind of decent dust extraction on but the dewalt does an ok job. It has a rubber flap which seems to scoop dust into its dust port quite well.

The only real down side is that due to it’s forward rail design, it doesn’t have a depth stop and can’t be used for trenching. But like @Etaf said you can use a circular saw or any number of other tools to do that.

I’m generally a fan of makita tools, being an owner of their jigsaws, routers, sanders etc; their design always seems logical and solid. But their mitre saws must come from a different design department.

I’ve had experience with several models, all of them being shoddy. In the current workshop I’m part of we use a big 305mm one and it’s impossible to get it to cut square. The adjustment in the fence doesn’t have enough travel to accommodate how out of square the mitre mechanism is. So at max adjustment it still cuts wonky. So I only ever use it to rough cut lengths.

In the past I’ve bought a smaller makita model with horizontally oriented sliders, and their bearings have bust within weeks of owning them. I sent them back twice but it happened again. It seems by design the horizontally arranged sliders allow too much leverage on the bearings so they get knackered very easily. So eventually I just got my money back and bought the dewalt.

I’ve heard others online also having trouble with makita mitre saws and their fences. There might be plenty of happy folk with makita mitre saws but this is just my experience.

I’ve never used a Festool mitre saw (apparently we’re getting one in the workshop soon! ) but I can only imagine their design and build quality matches the price tag they come with

Hope this helps and doesn’t just sound like me makita-bashing!

 

[scubadoo]

Hope this helps and doesn’t just sound like me makita-bashing!

Thanks for the advice. That was pretty much my experience with the Makita that i used to have. Could never get it to cut square and stay square. Moving to a Kapex was a massive improvement.

 

[scubadoo]

The kapex has it doesn’t it

Yes, it works really well.

 

[JKM]

Looking to treat my Dad to a CSMS ~~
Kapex HS 60 E - is this too small and is it capable enough?

I am new to woodworking so the KS60 is the only saw I have owned, I am amazed by how smooth and powerful it is. I have mainly been cutting carcasing, ply and studwork timber so far but the cuts are absolutely perfect and incredibly smooth. I made a set of sofa legs last weekend and they cut so well I didn't even need to sand them.

I can only compare it to saws friends have owned, which are usually older and the ks60 is streets ahead of anything I have seen come out of a chopsaw before, that could just be down to the blade still being fairly new though

The dust extraction is absolutely superb. I often see in videos or on here that people have rigged up elaborate dust extraction hood or cabinets around their saws, there is absolutely no need with this. I use it with a CTL-SYS and when doing standard 90 degree crosscutting I don't need any additional extraction or cleanup. In wood that's at max capacity that may well be different though.

Had lunch with my Dad today and I had a look at his workshop. Where it’s going to sit, the workbench is 53cm deep so would need something that would fit on that.

I just popped down to the garage to measure my Kapex KS60.

All measurements from the most rearmost point (the cable housing)

At 90 degrees
to edge of foot, 44cm
to edge of (optional) extender foot 46cm

60cm to stabiliser, 70 to end of mitre adjustment knob

Same measurements when the saw is at 45 degrees,
45,47, 52,58
It's not essential that the stabiliser is on the bench, especially if the saw is bolted down from underneath (I'm pretty sure some knobs are provided to secure it to an mft from below) unless you are trying to use the maximum cut width. If you are only cutting wide boards occasionally, maybe extend the worktop with a piece of 22mm MDF or similar to suit.
and the extension feet are not really needed, I think I just assumed it was a bit more stable so I fitted mine, though I don't think it now aligns with the mft-sys I bought after (or vice versa) so I need to check on that)

it is worth noting though that
Vacuum port is a long way back, so depending on the flexibility of the hose a bit more if a gap may be advisable but a right angled hose connector (if such a thing exists) would solve this completely

If you need any other measurements or any info, let me know, happy to try and help or do a walkthrough

Never seen trenching facility on any forward slide bar saws yet.

The kapex has it doesn’t it

Yes, it works really well.

As I understand it, the KS60 has this too, though I have never used it. It may be a bit more fiddly than the 120 and to be honest it's probably time to me to RTFM as I haven't a clue where to start. Shame YouTube seems to be almost always 120 reviews, never the 60 as a good video would help.