Replies

1. 
   forestgirl | Jun 16, 2003 09:56am | #1

   "Does it really matter?"  Yes, it does.  I'll leave it to others who have a better saw than mine to provide tool reviews, but I can tell you from experience that a whimpy circular saw with a less-than-steady arbor, or poor balance and ergonomics, is frustrating to use, inefficient and less safe than a more powerful and better-built saw.

   The other thing that really matters is the quality of the blade that you use.  Plentiful power plus a well-made, sharp blade is a combination that is much less likely to kick back, stall or any other nasty thing.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl   ;-)

2. 
   bjpearce | Jun 16, 2003 03:09pm | #2

   I too use a cheepie circular saw, and some times its gives me lots of truble, the arbor has a fair bit of slack, that translates to about 2 mm side to side movement at the 'teeth' of the blade..... the cut surface always needs to be refinished.

   The base is not flat, and the angle adjustment is prone to movement.

   Also the loose arbor makes the saw needlessly noisy.

   The saw has, however, been reliable.

   You will get what you pay for.

   Ben.

3. 
   ian | Jun 16, 2003 03:33pm | #3

   I'm leaning both ways.  I've got a Skil to which I've added a good blade and it works fine.  I also have a 10in table saw and a 10in SCMS.  Of the three, the SCMS is the most useful, with the TS a close second.  The Skil is useful for cutting large panels, but I'm not happy cutting mdf with it or the TS - too much dust, that takes forever to get out of the air.  With ply or mdf I try and get my supplier to break it down to the size I want.  If I had a lot of mdf to cut, I'd look at getting a Festo plunge cut saw with the dust extraction connection and a set of cutting guides. 

4. 
   ToolDoc | Jun 16, 2003 04:20pm | #4

   are all low cost circular saws the same?  No there is a diffrence in each, look at the amp ratings, the HP listed, the feel & balance of the tool,& the over all look & construction of the tool..& remember this old saying : "You only get what you pay for" IMHO the Skil is a better saw than the B&D..if your only going to use the saw for DIY work a cheepie is ok,but if your going to do more serious woodworking then think about buying a better saw from one of the major power tool mfgs. like Milwaukee,Dewalt, Skil/Bosch,Hitachi,Makita,or Porter-Cable.. What ever saw you do buy make sure you use a good brand blade on it Don't make the mistake of puttin a cheapie on it..

   Just my 2 cents worth..      ToolDoc

5. 
   BG | Jun 16, 2003 04:48pm | #5

   Asennad,

   I had a craftsman for about 25 years that was plenty powerful but when the base got twisted somehow it became a nightmare to cut straight.  I bought an old Skill that has a heavy thick base for $10 bucks.  It has a knob on the front for raising and lowering the depth of cut...the whole base slides up and down.  Put a Freud blade on it and it cuts beautifully...and as clean as the table saw.

   With all the trades going to cordless, there are some great deals out there for tools with tails.

6. 
   RANGERP75R | Jun 16, 2003 05:51pm | #6

   ASENNAD

      Agree with others. I cut a lot of MDF, which as Ian stated creates mucho dust. I bought a PC circular cause it has a dust pipe I can hook to a small 6 gallon Shop-Vac. NO dust, "m-lady".

      Run-out and power (amps) are important. If you just gonna use it once every moon eclipse, you probaly can go cheap. Anything other than that, I would spend the extra $50 or $60 and get a more accurate and better built saw.

   sarge..jt

1. 
   Senna | Jun 16, 2003 07:06pm | #8

   Is there any way of judging run out before you buy a saw? Wiggle the saw blade back and forth and feel for slop?

   Edited 6/16/2003 5:37:58 PM ET by ASENNAD

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Jun 17, 2003 04:28am | #9

   ASENNAD

      You hit the nail on the head. There are measuring tools to do it for the TS, etc., but if you can wiggle it excessivley you got too much run-out and should be avoided. If you ever buy a Drill Press, that should be the first thing you do when checking it. Grab the chuck and check for play or wiggle. If you get a lot, move right on to the next candidate.

   Good Luck....

   sarge..jt

1. 
   Senna | Jun 17, 2003 05:43am | #11

   Well I went to Sears and Home Depot today. Looked at many different saws.

   I have to say the Black and Decker feels the most solid of the low end bunch - and is the cheapest I saw. It has the widest and most solid base over the Skil,Ryobi and Craftsman. It is only 11 amps but the cost of stepping up to higher amps seems excessive. And I was told that for soft plywood and MDF that shouldn't be a problem.

   I would have brought it home if not for the fact they were sold out after Father's Day.

   The only noticable blade wobble I felt was on a $150 DeWalt.

1. 
   RANGERP75R | Jun 17, 2003 07:51pm | #12

   ASENNAD

      I have an old 12 amp Shop-Mate circular. I was my first table-saw mounted under a piece of ply with a rectangular slot for the blade to stick through. Did everything I wanted it to do for 3 years and it was already over 12 years olds then. That was around 1972-75. It still works like a charm even though I retired it when I bought the 15 amp PC.

   Good Luck...

   sarge..jt

2. 
   Senna | Jun 17, 2003 08:22pm | #13

   I was thinking last night ...if only I could mount my 15 amp 3.0 hp 10" chop saw motor and blade on a table I'd be rockin'.

   Edited 6/17/2003 1:23:23 PM ET by ASENNAD

3. 
   RANGERP75R | Jun 18, 2003 02:31am | #14

   ASENNAD

      Don't get me started. I promised I would quit modifying. ha..ha..         Yeah, right.................

   sarge..jt

7. 
   JohnWW | Jun 16, 2003 07:01pm | #7

   If I were going to go out today and buy a circular saw primarily for cutting panel stock I'd buy a Porter-Cable Saw Boss, Model #345. 

   Thi saw has a left hand mounted blade which makes it much easier to follow a line or a guide and a built in dust port that is quite effective. As an accessory you can get a dust bag or hose to hook it up to a shop vac. The saw only uses a 6 inch blade but it can still cut through a 2x stock and is very easy to handle.  At a $140.00 this is a professional tool that should last a lifetime.  A tool as basic and useful as a circular saw is worth investing some money in.

   John W.

8. 
   Manchild | Jun 17, 2003 05:16am | #10

   Run the saw also. Some supposedly good saws make way to much racket in the ears!