I have been attributing my inability to get a square edge cut on
panels using a circular saw to poor technique, lousy blade, sunspots,
phase of the moon...and the big one - just not enough attention to
adjustment. Well, I'm starting a cabinet project using plywood and
damn it, these edges need to be RIGHT! I have two circular saws, one
of which I mistakenly assumed to be good quality because it belonged
to my grandfather who (almost) always bought professional quality
tools. The other is a nondescript Ryobi that was in my wife's garage
when we first met.

Anyway, after an entire morning screwing around with these two saws, I
figured out that the shoes on both of them were absolutely worthless,
flexing around like cardboard. I have several cabinet projects in the
works, and just not enough room to set my table saw up for 4 x 8 sheet
stock, so armed with that justification and about $100 in Borg gift
cards, off I went to get a real saw.

I was pleased to find that they had the Skil Mag 77, and right along
side it was an obvious copy by Ridgid. The Ridgid looked very good,
and more ergonomic. The scales on the Ridgid were more granular and
much easier to read, and the clamp levers were rubberized and much
more comfortable to operate. The Skil was just more "industrial" and
about $20 more.

I went with the name and the history and came home with the Skil. It
was less than I expected at $189. Spent 15 minutes checking the
adjustment and making one cut with the blade going the wrong way (you
know, that left-hand, worm drive thing) and after reversing the blade
went to town on my $60 a sheet plywood. BEAUTIFUL! Cuts like a dream
and perfectly square edges.


WOOHOO! Highest recommendation for this tool. I'd bet the Ridgid is
very good too.

Tom

Nice, but I'll bet you burnt the blade.
I have a left hand porter cable and put on a ply blade and did the same
thing... burnt it to toast..

Glad to hear your new saw is all you hoped it to be.

wrote:
I have been attributing my inability to get a square edge cut on
panels using a circular saw to poor technique, lousy blade, sunspots,
phase of the moon...and the big one - just not enough attention to
adjustment. Well, I'm starting a cabinet project using plywood and
damn it, these edges need to be RIGHT! I have two circular saws, one
of which I mistakenly assumed to be good quality because it belonged
to my grandfather who (almost) always bought professional quality
tools. The other is a nondescript Ryobi that was in my wife's garage
when we first met.

Anyway, after an entire morning screwing around with these two saws, I
figured out that the shoes on both of them were absolutely worthless,
flexing around like cardboard. I have several cabinet projects in the
works, and just not enough room to set my table saw up for 4 x 8 sheet
stock, so armed with that justification and about $100 in Borg gift
cards, off I went to get a real saw.

I was pleased to find that they had the Skil Mag 77, and right along
side it was an obvious copy by Ridgid. The Ridgid looked very good,
and more ergonomic. The scales on the Ridgid were more granular and
much easier to read, and the clamp levers were rubberized and much
more comfortable to operate. The Skil was just more "industrial" and
about $20 more.

I went with the name and the history and came home with the Skil. It
was less than I expected at $189. Spent 15 minutes checking the
adjustment and making one cut with the blade going the wrong way (you
know, that left-hand, worm drive thing) and after reversing the blade
went to town on my $60 a sheet plywood. BEAUTIFUL! Cuts like a dream
and perfectly square edges.


WOOHOO! Highest recommendation for this tool. I'd bet the Ridgid is
very good too.

Tom

Good tools are nice to have. If you are doing plywood work with a
circular saw then you need one of these if you don't have one already.
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?Offerings_ID=16448 The pictures
aren't too good but you'll get the idea.

Or you can make a panel cutting jig like this one
http://wayneofthewoods.com/circular-...ing-guide.html

Good luck.


On Mar 9, 5:06*pm, wrote:
I have been attributing my inability to get a square edge cut on
panels using a circular saw to poor technique, lousy blade, sunspots,
phase of the moon...and the big one - just not enough attention to
adjustment. Well, I'm starting a cabinet project using plywood and
damn it, these edges need to be RIGHT! I have two circular saws, one
of which I mistakenly assumed to be good quality because it belonged
to my grandfather who (almost) always bought professional quality
tools. The other is a nondescript Ryobi that was in my wife's garage
when we first met.

Anyway, after an entire morning screwing around with these two saws, I
figured out that the shoes on both of them were absolutely worthless,
flexing around like cardboard. I have several cabinet projects in the
works, and just not enough room to set my table saw up for 4 x 8 sheet
stock, so armed with that justification and about $100 in Borg gift
cards, off I went to get a real saw.

I was pleased to find that they had the Skil Mag 77, and right along
side it was an obvious copy by Ridgid. The Ridgid looked very good,
and more ergonomic. The scales on the Ridgid were more granular and
much easier to read, and the clamp levers were rubberized and much
more comfortable to operate. The Skil was just more "industrial" and
about $20 more.

I went with the name and the history and came home with the Skil. It
was less than I expected at $189. Spent 15 minutes checking the
adjustment and making one cut with the blade going the wrong way (you
know, that left-hand, worm drive thing) and after reversing the blade
went to town on my $60 a sheet plywood. BEAUTIFUL! Cuts like a dream
and perfectly square edges.

WOOHOO! Highest recommendation for this tool. I'd bet the Ridgid is
very good too.

Tom

wrote

I went with the name and the history and came home with the Skil. It
was less than I expected at $189. Spent 15 minutes checking the
adjustment and making one cut with the blade going the wrong way (you
know, that left-hand, worm drive thing) and after reversing the blade
went to town on my $60 a sheet plywood. BEAUTIFUL! Cuts like a dream
and perfectly square edges.


Quality tools can make life much easier in the shop. Congrats on both a new
tool and the valuable lessons learned. I am not much of a worm drive fan.
That type of saw does not work for me very well. It just doesn" "feel"
right. But most people I know seem to prefer it.

One thing I do If I cut any plywood with a circular saw is to buy a new
plywood blade for each project. I want that cut to be glass smooth. A
simple, steel plywood blade does a good job. They just don't last that
long. The split second it starts to dull, off it comes and gets replaced by
a new/newly sharpened blade.

On Mar 9, 10:52*pm, "SonomaProducts.com" wrote:
Good tools are nice to have. If you are doing plywood work with a
circular saw then you need one of these if you don't have one already.http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?O...gs_ID=16448The pictures
aren't too good but you'll get the idea.

Or you can make a panel cutting jig like this onehttp://wayneofthewoods.com/circular-saw-cutting-guide.html


Great minds think alike. I have been looking at that Rockler guide for
a long time, and I would have bought it if it was long enough for a 8'
cut. I read the same (or similar) article about the homemade guide and
built one yesterday from memory. That was actually the first real cut
with the new saw. It works extremely well.

On Mar 10, 9:06 am, "Lee Michaels"
wrote:

One thing I do If I cut any plywood with a circular saw is to buy a new
plywood blade for each project. I want that cut to be glass smooth. A
simple, steel plywood blade does a good job. They just don't last that
long. The split second it starts to dull, off it comes and gets replaced by
a new/newly sharpened blade.

About how long is that? Say, if you were cutting 4x8 sheets of 3/4 ply
into eight 1 foot by 4 foot pieces for some reason, how many sheets do
you think you could cut with one blade?

wrote in message
...
On Mar 10, 9:06 am, "Lee Michaels"
wrote:

One thing I do If I cut any plywood with a circular saw is to buy a new
plywood blade for each project. I want that cut to be glass smooth. A
simple, steel plywood blade does a good job. They just don't last that
long. The split second it starts to dull, off it comes and gets replaced
by
a new/newly sharpened blade.

About how long is that? Say, if you were cutting 4x8 sheets of 3/4 ply
into eight 1 foot by 4 foot pieces for some reason, how many sheets do
you think you could cut with one blade?

Guessing here, it would depend on the blade and plywood, several sheets. I
have only needed a second blade on one project. But I rarely use more than
two or three sheets per project.

wrote:

Or you can make a panel cutting jig like this one
http://wayneofthewoods.com/circular-...ing-guide.html

Mikey likes it, bet you do to..

Great minds think alike. I have been looking at that Rockler guide for
a long time, and I would have bought it if it was long enough for a 8'
cut.

If you build guide above, then 48" lg covers the shorter stuff.

Add a 4'x8'x2" sheet of styrofoam and you are good to go.

Let the saw blade cut into the styrofoam instead of something else.

Have fun.

Lew

On Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:11:53 -0700, tom_murphy wrote:


Or you can make a panel cutting jig like this
onehttp://wayneofthewoods.com/circular-saw-cutting-guide.html


Great minds think alike. I have been looking at that Rockler guide for a
long time, and I would have bought it if it was long enough for a 8'
cut. I read the same (or similar) article about the homemade guide and
built one yesterday from memory. That was actually the first real cut
with the new saw. It works extremely well.


I made one years ago too, and have used it many many times.

If you're careful with the sizing you can cut the other side off to suit
another tool - I set mine up for my router with a 2" long x 1/2" diameter
straight bit, for trimming edges - but it could easily be a different
circular saw if you have one.