woodworking Neanderthal seeks Mitre Saw recommendatioin

[johnny]

House trained Neanderthal looking to build timber cave seeks your recommendations on a cheap Mitre Saw .

This is basically to make cutting all the studs, rafters noggins and Shiplap quicker and easier. Largest section I'm likely to use would be 75x47 for the rafters (pent roof) all the rest would be CLS 63x38mm .

I quite liked the look of the MAkita MLS100 compound mitre saw but at £150 its a bit pricey for just cutting a bit of studwork methinks.

Are there any more reasonably priced saws that would be up to the job and save a few pennies or should I be thinking of spending more and getting a sliding mitre saw as an investment ?
EDIT
apologies I see that I've posted this on the wrong board ...doh! perhaps someone could move it to power tools

 

[jimi43]

Personally, within reason....I have been of the opinion that for work where the result does not have to be absolutely precise and the tool isn't used day in day out then the cheaper Chinese brands available in the big DIY stores and some large supermarkets are perfectly useable.

I have the B&Q one and it has built a bench and my observatory without flinching.

The accuracy is more than adequate for that sort of work.

However...and it's a big however...the blades are absolute rubbish!

You need to take the stock blade off and spend some money on a decent one..I think the Freud Diablo range are excellent for the money and have one both on my compound mitre and my table saws.

Jimi

 

[johnny]

thanks Jimi
This is primarily to build a shed//workshop and so accuracy isn't an issue really as you say.
I looked at some of the cheap jobbies in B&Q and I notice most do not have an vertical mitre option just the horizonal
I'll have another look around tomorrow as I think I have seen a Makita CMS somewhere for under £150 which isn't too bad .

 

[gregmcateer]

I hear the Evolution? range at Screwfix is pretty good for this sort of thing (and more).

They often have deals on and quite often have them on display at their outlets.

 

[johnny]

yes I saw the Evolution range at B&Q they look quite good ,albeit a bit crude in places but they are not a lot cheaper than the Makita .
I already have a couple of Makita drills and jigsaws so I guess it makes sense to spend a few quid and get the makita I suppose . besides they will all match on the shelf in my shed ha ha ha :lol:

 

[memzey]

My personal rule of thumb is that I will only buy at the cheap and cheerful end of the range for non precision tools. To my mind a mitre saw is a precision tool as I expect the angles it cuts at and the mitres I will produce with them to be bob on. For this reason I went down the Makita route and purchased their LS1018 which I have found to be outstanding and a real joy to use (although I know this is outside your stated budget I'm merely establishing the principal). For something rougher like a recip saw I've gone Macalister in the past and it has served me well enough for the money I spent.

 

[johnny]

thank you memzey for your recommendation however this is for rough carcassing work ...building a shed . :wink:
Its not so much the accuracy I need,( although that is welcome of course ,) its more about cutting hundreds of pieces of timber in a few days with a few mitred cuts to the 3"x2" rafters and pent roof studs etc and cutting over 750 mts of shiplap :shock:

I like the look of the slide saw but its not essential for the sort of work I'll be needing this saw for . You have to draw the line somewhere on a budget :roll:

 

[jimi43]

I have the 250mm PP (old B&Q) but the Evolution ones are very good indeed too.

You have to do all the adjustments you would normally expect to have to do on any brand and some aspects of the saw are of a poorer quality but generally speaking, if you are doing basic construction work then you are fine.

A good blade is important however and this will pay you back in spades.

EXAMPLE ON FLEABAY

All the construction and stud work for my observatory control room were done on that cheap saw and a hardpoint Irvin saw.

There were a few other ancient handtools used but basically...the cheap compound mitre was the workhorse...even cutting the plastic bits.

Oh...and you need a dog!! :mrgreen:

Jimi

 

[johnny]

thats brilliant Jimi ...did you design it yourself ?

I'm curious what roof covering you used. I've looked at using everything including pvc pond liner lol but it all works out ridiculously expensive.

ps I haven't got a dog .....will a fat cat do instead ?

 

[jimi43]

thats brilliant Jimi ...did you design it yourself ?

I'm curious what roof covering you used. I've looked at using everything including pvc pond liner lol but it all works out ridiculously expensive.

ps I haven't got a dog .....will a fat cat do instead ?

HI Johnny

Thanks mate.

Yes...the "design" was on the back of a "*** packet"....but basically there were a number of issues I had to address.

The control room has got to be super dry so I wanted to put a lot of effort into the roof and as a consequence, if you are looking for an inexpensive solution then you need to seek other solutions.

The roofing was the three part "EASY SEAL" WICKES system which comprises a bitumastic paint you put on the substrate OSB....a bonding underlay felt....

...and finally...a top felt...

I forget exactly how much it cost but there was not much change out of half a grand. :shock:

That and the fact that the walls, floor and roof are lined with CELOTEX....

...were the lion's share of the costs. The actual wooden frame costs were minimal by comparison.

The "EASY" bit of the "EASY SEAL" system needs to be the most incorrect description ever!

You have to paint the liquid bitumen on and let it "dry"...which it doesn't! Then you have to lift a huge sheet of underlay onto it whilst standing on it at which point you realise your rubber soled boots have now welded themselves to the roof! If you touch down the underlay ANYWHERE it sticks permanently! Getting it on where you want it is a cross between luck and miracle! :mrgreen:

They sell the different layers in different length rolls...one is 6m long and the other 8m long. This is clearly a clever plan to ensure you need the maximum amount of rolls to do the job! :twisted:

I fooled them by using the offcuts to line the dome exterior floor and the "air lock" roof! 8)

But these are special requirements because of the gear that the building houses....

That's the control room with the convex overhanging roof...and this is the actual dome:

The dome has to be ambient and as cold as possible to prevent heat affecting the imaging of deep space objects and the control room has to be warm to stop me freezing to death!

There is also a "day" bed for ALFIE!!!

If you need any advice on your plans then please PM me and I will try to help mate.

Jimi

 

[johnny]

gordonbennet :shock: its like Cape Canaveral! very very impressive .
i'll have to show my new neighbour who is also into Astronomy . He's currently making do with a 16x12 foot wendy house shed :mrgreen:

It sounds expensive but when you look at the current prices of flimsy rubbish sheds these days I reckon you did very well to keep that under a grand.

I am just building a simple workshop shed 4.2 mts x 3mts with a pent roof and thats going to cost about £750 ! :shock:
i checked the price of wood at my local timber yard and their prices have risen 400% since 2012 ! absolutely crazy. I reckon we should chop down some of those forests in Scotland . (hammer)

 

[jimi43]

Cheers Johnny...it took a bit longer than I had planned (over a year!) because of my health but we got there in the end.

I say the roof is expensive but it's dry as a bone and I think it was a good investment and the Celotex is worth its weight in gold (more actually cos it's feather light!)....because you are toasty in there at -10 deg outside and very little heat...mostly from the PC!!

Good foundation, good insulation, good roof and if necessary...good guttering and basically you will have a workshop you want to go to every day of the year.

Jimi

 

[johnny]

yes thats the thing isn't it. I repaired my sheds last year but because they were too small to start with I haven't been able to do anything in them the past year.
I might as well as thrown the money away to be honest.
I had planned on restoring a scooter and restoring the woodwork from my campervan but have done neither!. Then the roof blew off in the gales.

This time I'm making sure that I will have enough space. I'm basing it on our conservatory which is 3050x4000 . Having an existing space makes it easier to visualise how you will use it and what will fit.

I am terrified of spiders so it will have to be 100% spider proof or I'll not use it so I'm going to have to line it out and silicon seal every tiny gap .

Yesterday I brought one of my cycle frames in from the shed to protect it and out came a huge spider .! ..nearly wet meself

 

[jimi43]

Get yourself some of thatIKO building membrane

I took ages getting the cladding on and all that time no rain entered nor no beastie! It virtually seals the whole building and the cladding (I used cheap PVC) will just then be for cosmetic purposes...it's great stuff and super cheap for what it does. Highly recommended and really handy when you need to waterproof the building before you clad it and it inevitably rains!

That PVC cladding also from Fleabay is worth considering as well...assuming you don't mind a white building. It is really easy to put up...far easier than wood and again...adds to the waterproofing and beastie proofing!

Cheers

Jimi

 

[johnny]

thats an excellent idea about using the building membrane. I was going to staple some thin DPM around the studwork before cladding it .

I like the pvc cladding solution but my shed is on the boundaries of two neighbours with listed buildings and is going to be huge so I don't want to p*** them off if I can help it . :mrgreen:

I have had a huge 24 foot x 18foot plastic tarpaulin over the existing sheds all winter and it has kept the inside dry . It only cost £19 ! I'm hoping to rig it up so that I can cover the shed whilst work progresses when it rains. At the moment we have helicopters going over the house from Westlands day and night and I swear they are using my shed roof tarpaulin as a navigation aid lol