Thanks to everyone for their input. Home Depot was glad to take their
saw back, and I picked up a dewalt jigsaw that finished the job easily.

jm


Goedjn wrote:
On Tue, 01 Aug 2006 10:56:37 -0400, Phil Munro
wrote:

In addition to what others have said, occasionally wood will warp when
cut in a direction which tightens it at the trailing edge of the cut.
This "clamping" effect can cause a problem like yours. Or, if you are
trying to do a curved (jig saw) cut, that will burn the wood, too.
But I would go with a new blade, a carbide one. I use a carbide blade
for all my work; normal rip or cross-cut blades do not last on anything
but light weight cutting. --Phil

wrote:

Hello all,

As an intermediate DIY'r, I am surprised to be having
trouble with my new circular saw. I am attempting to cut through 1''
stair noses, but my brand new Skill 7 1/4'' saw can barely cut through
the wood and smokes excessivly. I finally used a jig saw to finish the

cut and noticed that the wood was black from burning.

Any thoughts? I've never experienced this with my 18v Ryobi cordless
saw, and I use it pretty hard. This saw even smoked while cutting a
1'' bamboo stair tread, which the Ryobi cut effortlessly.

Thanks in advance,

Joe