Hitachi C10FSB 10″ Sliding CM Saw
I can buy this newer design Hitachi 10″ sliding CMS new for $375 shipped. This is pretty tempting.
What do you think of this saw? What are the new features over the FS model?
Is this a good saw for accurate cabinetry? Or are the CMS’s in general not as accurate as a good jig (sliding carriage) on a good table saw?
The cutting capacity of all sliding CMS’s seems rather limited. For example, this C10FSB has an advertised capacity of 12.5″. But doesn’t this include most of the radius of the blade. Any runout or toe-in out of parallel would be duplicated on the last 3″ or so of the work for a 12″ cut, it seems. But then again most of the time one needs to cut no wider than 8-9″ work.
In a TS jig setup, the runout or slight out of parallel (toe in or out) of the blade is not directly duplicated onto any part the work, since the work travels pass both ends of the blade. Any slight out of tune on a TS setup would affect only the smoothness of the cut, I tend to think.
I have a good old contractor table saw that I can set up for cross cut only. This saw has a 1/64″ or so depression at the center in the cast iron table, but should not affect the smooth operation of the carriage.
Tempted and indecisve.
A used 10″ Craftsman radial arm saw can be had for about $250 often. This is another factor.
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I had two bad experiences with CMS, not slider though.
One was with a PC 12 inch CMS. PC should have been good, but the round turn table was very much higher than the fixed ends of the table, may be by as much as 1/16th inch. I returned the saw.
The other one is my current Delta ten inch CMS. The round table is also higher than the ends, but only by about 1/64 inch.
For the Delta, which I can't return, I think I am going to add a couple of playing cards on the fixed end to raise the level, and then add a sheet of 3/4 MDF board as the table. I would need to get longer metric bolts to attach the fence. Raising the table will inhibit the cutting of 4x4, but I am a weekend cabinetmaker, not a carpenter. This would also increase the width of cut of thin boards. But I don't know if this would interfere with accuracy. What is your opinion?
Would owners of the Hitachi slider C10FS, FSB or FSH, please check to see if the round part of the table is level with the fixed part of the table. I'd be grateful if you would and tell me.
Thanks
I need to decide in about ten days.
This Hitachi saw has generally very good review. may be the PC 12 inch CMS was known to be a lemon.
Edited 12/5/2005 9:59 pm ET by woodenfish3
Edited 12/5/2005 10:00 pm ET by woodenfish3
Edited 12/5/2005 10:02 pm ET by woodenfish3
The Hitachi's and Makitas seem to lead the SCMS pack, with Bosch close behind.
From everything I have read over the years, I honestly think you can chose any one of the three -- based on price and the features you like.
Personally, I have owned the Makita 1013 for years. RecentIy, I wanted a second saw for job site work, to replace an ancient Hitachi 8 1/2" (the first ever SCMS). Bought the Hitachi 10", but returned it. Good quality cuts, but there were just some features I didn't like, so I bought a second Makita.
I took that old Hitachi to a job just today (because it is so small and light), and again was reminded of how much I like that saw for plain jane cross cutting.
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"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
"Good quality cuts, but there were just some features"
Would you tell me what features you don't like?
I know the C10FS has only one ball bearing guide rod, like all SCMS except the Makita, which has ball bearings on both guide rods.
No info on the C10FSB.
I bought the hitachi C10 "something" -- the one with the laser, but without the digital controls. I liked the laser -- a lot.The handle was pitched high, and on my set up (a Trojan work stand), my wrist started to hurt after about a dozen cuts. This wouldn't be a problem if the saw was on a lower surface. On the Makita, the angle scale is on the right side of the saw (beneath the board you are cutting); with the Hitachi, and every othr saw (I think), the scale is right in front of you -- which presumably makes the most sense. However, every time you have to adjust the angle, you must reach down there and blow the scale off in order to see it. With the Makita, the board keeps the sawdust off the scale. There were a couple of other very minor things which I can't remember at the moment. For me, they were very small irritants, and certainly not major flaws. The Hitachi is a high quality saw, and as I said, I really like the laser. ********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
Edited 12/6/2005 8:41 pm by nikkiwood
My main interest, if I could say so, is large wooden aquarium and aquarium stands and canopies.
I need to miter long narrow pieces for the base and top. My next project would be about 8 feet long. In the tablesaw and a jig it would unwieldy. .
In the opinion of the experienced, would the Hitachi SCMS cut miter so accurately that excellent miter joints can be made without brushing with the table saw?
If the miter cut is that accurate, I'd certainly get the Hitachi 10CSFB.
Even my cheap Delta or Ryobi RAS can cut accurately, but only in a permanent setup. In other words, I fuss with it for a long time by trial and error and then make everything super tight. My RAS cuts straigth cross cut well dead on, period, and does nothing else.
Could the Hitachi be quickly realigned and cut a different angle accurately? This is the question: are the stops at -45, 90, 45 bevel and miter so well placed that one can switch back and forth and still be accurate? This is the real question.
Bevels are less unwieldy than miter even for long works. The TS with wings and extension table, and with a jig, can handle that.
Fish
another thing you might consider is putting a 45 degree cutter on a router and doing your miters with that.
Not trying to talk you out of a tool, just a suggestion.
In general except for very narrow work, doesn't that do bevel but not miter?
What is the best way to miter cut at the end of a 3 inches wide 8 feet long board?
Buy yourself a mitre saw stand ---- or build one. There must be a dozen commercially available, and plans for same show up regularlly in books and mags.********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
I thought you were mitering wider boards.
For three inches I'd use the miter saw.
Doug
Yours is a deceptively difficult question to answer. It depends on the accuracy you need. For most of us, a SCMS is perfectly adequate. The detents are dead on, and therefore repeatable.However, if you don't need the cross cut capacity of a SCMS, you might want to consider a straight CMS. The conventional wisdom is that they are more accurate, simply because there is one less mechanical element to fuss over (the sliding rails). Not all, but many of the top trim carps will use such a machine for their high end work -- especially crown moldings, where paint won't cover up a less than perfect mitre. In my own collection, I have an ancient Delta cast iron chop saw. It weighs a ton (even though it was meant to be "portable'), angles to the right and left, but does not bevel at all. Ordinarily, I use the makita 1013, but when I am feeling really fussy, I grunt a lot, and drag this antique to the job. BTW, one of the many reasons I always liked the Makita was its ability to lock at a half degree off the detent -- at 45 1/2 degrees, for instance. Before that saw came out (maybe 10 years ago), other saws weren't so good in that regard. Hope this helps.********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
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