On Thu, 13 Nov 2003 17:06:18 -0800, "PeterM" wrote:

I have a chance to buy a 12" sliding DeWalt Miter Saw with a rollaway
table with wheels etc for 350.- I'm just wondering if I need the sliding
feature or not.......Any help will be appreciated


I've had a 12" Dewalt SCMS (DW 708) for about three or four years.
Before that I used an 8-1/2" Hitachi SCMS (C8FB2). Before that I
used a 10" Makita Chop Saw. Before that I used a Stanley 5" Human
Powered Mitre(sic) Box (358-A).

Properly set up they are all accurate but the SCMS has the edge on
capacity. I do a fair amount of tallish baseboards and larger size
crown moldings and the extra capacity is a great advantage in these
situations. This is particularly true for the largest crown moldings,
as they may be cut lying down on the SCMS.

The crosscut capacity of the SCMS is much greater than the CMS. I can
rough cut a little over 20" in width on my Dewalt, by lifting the
board and the blade (do not try this at home).

It is important to use a quality blade (do not use thin kerf blades)
and to allow the blade to come up to full speed before bringing it
into contact with the wood. Deciding where to start the cut depends
on what you need to accomplish.

On pre-finished, wide flat work, or crown molding, where it must be
cut with the good side up, I usually enter the piece slowly, back at
the fence and pull towards me. Sometimes I will merely do a light
scoring cut this way and then make the full depth cut on the push
stroke. When the piece can be cut good side down I cut on the push.
On smaller pieces of trim, that could be cut as you would with a chop
saw, I push the blade into the cut, except in instances where a
pre-finished top edge would make it better to cut as with a chop saw.

On both of the SCMS types that I have used, a good feature is the
depth stop. I find this to be very useful in making dentil moldings,
scoring the line for some dado and rabbets, and for the relief cuts
that must be made to bend curved baseboards and such. To have this
work properly you must pack out the fence so that the full diameter of
the blade enters the piece all along the cut. (a two inch rip to pack
out the fence on the DW708)

To come back to the consideration of accuracy; I've found the SCMS
models that I've used to be plenty accurate for most trim work. I
also get good square crosscuts when cutting 12" wide stock for
bookcases. For very fine work, as in small moldings and small stock
sizes, as might be used in jewelry boxes, etc., I use the SCMS to get
me close and then finish up with a Lion Miter Trimmer.

A Dewalt DW708 goes for around $600 new and the price you quoted fits
in with what I usually expect to get for used equipment in good
condition (60% of current best price). This doesn't take into
consideration the stand, or any other accessories, blades, etc. that
may come with it.

If the saw is in good shape, you should wind up with an accurate,
high-capacity tool for a fair price.


Regards, Tom
Thomas J. Watson-Cabinetmaker
Gulph Mills, Pennsylvania
http://users.snip.net/~tjwatson