I have experience with two of them, each used for different reasons. One, my buddy that builds mostly decks has this saw and loves it. Sturdy, accurate, and lasts well on the job. He buys the guarantee/warranty just in case (as it is based on the sale price, not replacement cost!) and uses two of these a lot. He also uses it for framing to cut blocking and no doubt ridge cuts on rafters, etc.

The other is a retired contractor that wanted a sliding miter saw but couldn't afford a new DeWalt, Bosch or anything along those lines. He bought it, found it to be a bit out of adjustment, and he fiddled with it and got it spot on. Then he decided to take apart the traverse carrier mechanism and see what he could do with that. A simple clean up and re-lube and it (I have pulled it through a cut or two) is a smooth as the premium saws.

So my take away from the two of them is that it might take a little bit of finishing touches but you will get a good saw in the end. OTOH, this saw has come up in discussion with guys I know that tell me they have bought it and out of the box they couldn't be more pleased.

Don't see how you could lose at that price. Due to the fact that many of my tools wind up being consumables for one reason or another, I am always looking for viable alternatives to premium priced equipment. I try to keep up with tool pricing and utility value. I have had the strongest feeling that over the years that many of HF's tools offerings have come up in quality while the other more premium brands have gone down.

Robert