Mike Marlow responds:

I've long thought that the laser guides feel
squarely into the category of gimmick or gadget on a saw, but don't say that
out loud all that often. What kills me most is Sears' most current
commercial showing a guy running a cut with a circular saw with a laser on
it and advertising how this will keep your cuts true. Now, someone...
anyone... please explain to me how that cute little red line is going to do
anything more for your cut than my ugly black line that I've used all these
years? Oh well - that's advertising I guess.

Well, I can't argue with you about the arbor nut borne lasers. But the dual
laser line on the Delta and Porter-Cable models is a whole different animal. Of
course, P-C has something over a decade of experience in this line, so they
should do it better. The dual line comes on when a switch at the top front of
the handle is flicked. If it doesn't meet your current needs, flick it off and
go with a pencil/,marking knife mark. But the lasers are there when the blade
is up, as well as when it's down. Admittedly, they're slotted when it's up, but
they still mark the whole width of the board.

I like them.

Now, as to gimmickry...yeah, I guess so. But useful and time saving gimmickry,
IMO. You get a mark on both sides of the blade, so either cut-off can be the
useful one with on extra calculation, and no swinging your head around to see
if things line up. You KNOW the saw is going to give you a kerf right between
those two lines.

Neat thing. Or so I think.

Charlie Self
"Giving every man a vote has no more made men wise and free than Christianity
has made them good." H. L. Mencken