Best Miter Saw for Homeowner

This saw has a stainless-steel miter detent plate with 14 positive stops and a cam miter lock system that provides repeatable accuracy and durability with easy adjustments. Tall sliding fences support 6-1/2 in. of base molding vertically and 6-5/8 in. of crown molding vertically nested. A high-efficiency dust duct is concentrated at the point of cut for maximum collection. Its lightweight design and built-in carry handle provide portability.

How To Work Bosch Miter Saw?

How To Choose Miter Saw?

Buyer’s guide for the miter saws

This review and guide provide information on some best miter saw sharpeners you can find.

There are quite a few manufacturers of miter saw sharpeners on the market, and the prices vary greatly. From a pure price point of view, the type of miter saw can be priced from $120 to $650.

The Best Miter Saw For The Money

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Miter Saws In Comparison

Metabo (Hitachi) Compound Miter Saw

Miter Saw is lightweight for easier transport

The 15 Amp motor generates a no-load speed of up to 5,000 RPM for making crosscuts and miter cuts with ease. This saw offers a bevel range of 0-45 degrees to the left to provide clean and accurate bevel cuts. It is designed for woodworkers who demand precision, reliability, and versatility on the job.

Bosch Miter Saw

The patented glide system allows wider cross-cuts

Bosch glide miter saw also offers unmatched smoothness of cut. Expanded cutting capacity 14-inch horizontal capacity nominal 6 1/2 inch vertical capacity against the fence base 6 1/2 inch crown capacity against the fence 45 spring. Upfront bevel controls all-metal bevel lock lever and range selector located upfront for quick and easy bevel settings without reaching behind the saw

Makita Compound Miter Saw

Precision machined aluminum base ensures accurate cuts

Combines power, performance, and ease of use for most common miter cuts including a range of applications including woodworking, cabinetry, deck building, framing, and more. Miter adjustments range from 0°-45° (left) and 0°-52° (right), with 9 positive miter stops at 15°, 22.5°, 30°, and 45° (left or right), and 0° (90° cuts).

A so-called miter refers to a corner joint, as seen, for example, on a picture frame. The respective ends are cut off at a 45-degree angle; if you now place two edges together, a 90-degree angle is created. This type of corner connection is not only visually the better variant but also contributes to more solid stability.
Such a connection is indispensable in all kinds of crafts, be it a professional furniture maker, hobby carpenter, or model maker.

If the miter is done incorrectly, even small angular errors can cause major problems, otherwise, the entire structure will be distorted. To avoid this, there is the miter saw, because it facilitates precise edge cutting.

No matter what type of miter saw, the principle is always to clamp a saw at certain angular dimensions to enable an accurate cut. The product range extends from space-saving hand saws with angle devices to professional, electronic circular saws that require their own table as a base.

The miter saw is used mainly for wood and similar light materials – for more solid materials there is a special type, the metal miter saw.

What is the difference between coping saw and miter saw?

The term “coping” means to shorten, that is, to cut off a piece of wood. The miter itself is the 90° angle created when two pieces are placed together at a 45° angle.
Thus, the miter saw is a type of chop saw, however, the chop saw is not a type of miter saw. This is the same principle as that all thumbs are fingers, but not all fingers are thumbs.

There are few devices that are decidedly miter saws. In fact, most of them are offered as miter saws, because this universal saw allows you to cut straight – which is a constant need in any workshop – but also to shorten at an angle.

What safety precautions do I need to follow?

First and foremost, be sure to check the manufacturer’s safety instructions, because every saw is different to operate. Nevertheless, there are some general tips that we would like to briefly summarize for you:

• Protective devices on the machine
• Clothing / protective clothing
• Concentrated work

Protective devices on the machine

Despite the different devices, each electronic saw has certain protective devices. You should always leave them as they are, i.e. do not remove them and certainly do not tamper with or change anything on the machine itself.

Clothing / Protective clothing

When wearing your own clothing, make sure that you do not wear long fabrics or chains. Anything that hangs away from your body, such as jewelry and scarves, could get caught in the saw and be a potential hazard. You should also tie back long hair.

As for protective clothing, you should have at least an eye mask, as sawdust can severely injure your eyes. It is also an advantage if you don’t have to squeeze your eyes half shut to avoid getting dust in them.

It is also recommended to wear a protective mask to avoid inhaling wood dust. In the case of metalworking, be sure to protect your eyes and mouth, as metal shavings can cause great damage to the eyes and lungs.

Furthermore, gloves and thick work clothes are useful, depending on what the climatic conditions allow, but you should avoid bare skin as much as possible.

Concentrated work

One of the main reasons for accidents in workshops is unfocused work or distraction. If you’re working with co-workers, you should be especially careful not to startle them, as hand tools can get deafening in volume, and a sudden nudge on the shoulder can make even a skilled craftsman flinch.

What types of miter saws are there and which one is right for you?

A miter saw is used to cut certain angles in crafts, most often it is a 45° angle to be able to create a corner joint of 90°. Depending on individual desires and needs, there are the following four types of miter saw, each of which has its own merits.

• The miter saw
• The crosscut and miter saw
• The train crosscut and miter saw
• The metal crosscut saw

Depending on whether you’re a professional, hobbyist, or very rarely get to use this saw, a different device will suit you. In the following guide, we will present the most important features and help you to make a well-considered, correct purchase decision.

What are the advantages of a miter saw?

A pure miter saw is usually not electronic, but manual. For this reason, this is more for infrequent hobby use, as work requires a lot of effort on this saw, or for a very low budget, as this type of saw can be purchased extremely cheaply.

While motorized circular saws can saw very precise cuts, the edges with the miter saw usually become a little coarser, it should accordingly not be used for small, fragile works.

However, a clear advantage over the chop saw is that this plain saw is very light and space-saving. Thus, it finds its place even in very small workshops and is also easy to store.

What is the purpose of the miter saw?

The crosscut and miter saw are particularly commercial because this is electronically operated and therefore also useful for frequent and regular use because the muscle strength of the worker is not so strained. Thus, large and longer works are possible with this saw.

In addition, it is not only used for cutting miters, but also for general “trimming” – which means “shortening”. Many craftsmen, therefore, reach for this combination pack, because a circular saw for crosscutting is indispensable in any workshop.

The motorized crosscut saw also brings a cutting precision that is very difficult to achieve by hand, which is why it can also be used for highly detailed models.

In terms of size, there are a variety of products, some are to be attached to a base on the table, while other devices are intended for use with the bare hand, so here is something for every need.

This type of saw is significantly more expensive than the hand-operated miter saw, however, even here there are already very inexpensive models for the small budget. For more professional work, there are of course stronger, more precise, and therefore more expensive circular saws. Crosscut and miter saws can be found in just about every workshop because you certainly won’t go wrong by choosing this saw.

What are the advantages of a train crosscut and miter saw?

This type of saw is basically a chop and miter saw, but with a pull function. This feature allows for a wider cutting width. Unlike conventional crosscut machines, which can merely be moved up and down, the pull function allows the saw to be pushed forward and backward as well.

This means that wider pieces can also be sawn or mitered. This brings the decisive advantage for large working models, but you have to reckon with a correspondingly higher price.

What is the metal coping saw used for?

As the name suggests, this is a circular saw, which allows you to cut hard materials such as metal and iron. Many conventional electric saws have the ability to insert a metal saw blade, which also allows these devices to cut metal.

However, those models are not designed for this purpose, because power, materials, and shoring are designed for use with wood. For short, infrequent metalwork, this is quite sufficient, but for regular, heavy use should resort to the metal coping saw.
Not only will you damage your crosscut saw, but you’ll also put yourself in danger by bypassing safety regulations. With a metal, circular saw you are always on the safe side because here you can easily insert a wood saw blade without harming yourself or your device.

Based on these factors you can compare and evaluate miter saws

In the following sections, we will explain the factors to consider when buying a saw. With this knowledge, we will make it easier for you to choose the right model.

The most important criteria are the following:

• Power
• Pull function
• Metal cutting function
• Working laser
• Chip suction bag
• Price
• Dimensions and weight

We will now explain the importance of these points.

Power

Power, measured in watts, gives you a rough idea of how strong the machine’s motor is. For soft materials such as softwood, this number is secondary, but for harder wood, plastic, or metal, you need more power.

Pull function

Although the pull function has already been mentioned in the decision part, we want to mention it again. Conventional crosscut saws can be pulled down vertically to saw the workpiece, after which the saw must be folded up again.

However, a pull-cut saw can also be moved horizontally after lowering the saw head, which allows you to cut wider boards.

Metal cutting function

Should you be looking for a miter saw to cut metal, not only the power mentioned above is essential. In addition to motor power, the saw blade is also an important consideration when it comes to metal sawing, as the blade’s thickness and serrations vary depending on the material.

If you preferably process wood and exceptionally need to saw a small piece of harder fabric, it is enough to equip a common crosscut saw with a metal saw blade.

However, this way is not intended for regular use, because wood machines are designed differently from materials and processing than metal crosscut saws. You would therefore be ignoring all safety regulations and putting yourself in possible danger.

Working laser

A working laser is a pleasant extra, which gives you assistance in accurate detail work. The laser is attached to the device itself and lights up the exact interface during use. Especially in carpentry, it is essential that there are no deviations in the dimensions.

Even small wear of the size of a millimeter can have an immense impact. To avoid this, the working laser, which is attached to some electronic miter saws, will help you.

Chip suction bag

One point to consider when doing manual labor is the chips, which can cause not only contamination, but also uncomfortable scratching in the lungs.

To keep this contamination to a minimum, most electronic saw models have an exhaust bag, and some units even have a vacuum cleaner connection to clean this bag. Indoors it is unthinkable, but even outdoors should not work without suction device.

Price

This point has already been mentioned in the guide, but we would like to go into it again here. Depending on the use, priority, and budget, the product range can be narrowed down.

Pure miter saws without electronic function can be purchased for very low prices. If you only have a small need for the saw, do not have to cut particularly precise details, and are not afraid to make a little more effort, these devices are absolutely sufficient for you.

Here you can get by with a budget of $30 to $80. If you do very little work on small pieces, there are miter jigs with fine saws from five to $15.

However, if you like to do DIY on a regular basis and have to cut some pieces, you should get at least a miter saw. Depending on the use and budget, there are devices from about 80 to 250 euros, although you can already get really great models with a budget of $200.

For pull-type miter saws, you’ll have to count on about $30 to $50 extra. Anything over $250 is already suitable for professional use, or DIYers with big demands or high budgets. The upper limit of professional miter saws is almost completely open.

Dimensions and weight

An often overlooked criterion is the size and weight of a saw, which can be a jumping-off point after all. Logically, devices with a good motor and qualitative materials, unfortunately, have a high dead weight, good manufacturers should still have great attention to these factors.

The size of your saw should be adapted to the dimensions of your workshop, or your space in your workshop to be able to store it well.

Weight is relatively irrelevant for chop saws with a base, so you won’t need to pick them up regularly. Also, manual devices do not attach importance to this point, because here only the saw is moved. However, for hand-operated circular saws, heaviness is more important and critical.

Electronic saws are intended for long and elaborate use, has this a high or unbalanced weight will quickly tire even a well-trained arm. This is not only exhausting and uncomfortable for you, but also the quality of your work would suffer.

The functionality of trimming saws represented in the US is quite wide and in order not to make a wrong choice, you need to know their basic differences.

What needs to be cut?

Some models of trimmers are designed to work only with wood products. They can cope with beams of hard (boxwood, walnut, Australian eucalyptus, amaranth) or softwood (poplar, alder, aspen, pine). Other materials are not up to them. Some models can see plastics, but that’s all.

Multifunctional models are more functional with their help the master can easily cope with sawing workpieces made of plastic, chipboard, aluminum, laminate, and others. Some models are equipped with a fine-toothed disc for cutting metal. They are used in the work to cut soft metal and hard steel, cast profile. So the crosscut saws are available for cutting both wood and metal.

Domestic or industrial applications

The choice between the classes of saws depends on the application. It is hardly worth buying an expensive professional unit for occasional woodwork. Although there will be such amateurs. Amateur variants of crosscut saws also seriously differ from professional tools by the number of options and functions. Professional tools assume a long period of work, for several hours a day, hence the long life and reliability of the materials. A motor with a gearbox makes the saw blade rotate, a solid base holds the construction. As a matter of fact, these basic elements make up the crosscut saw. Additional mechanisms and devices, in the form of handles, stops, rulers, etc., are designed to facilitate work and comfort.

There are two types of motors used in the working tool. Synchronous and asynchronous. It is believed that the asynchronous motor emits less sound pressure, making the work more convenient. The service life of such a drive is much longer. The drive operates in braking mode, does not require serious maintenance, it is extremely easy to operate. The synchronous (collector) motor is characterized by higher rotation speed, compactness, high starting torque. It is possible to regulate the rotation speed smoothly and in a very wide range. The synchronous motor reacts little to fluctuations in the electric network, and has a high overload capacity with high efficiency. Of the disadvantages should be noted the complexity of design, the presence of the brush node, which, sooner or later, will require maintenance.

The motor can be located on the right side of the disc or behind, which implies better visibility and convenience during work. Engine power is the main indicator of tool performance. The number of revolutions determines the speed of the disc and, therefore, the cleanliness of the cut, the speed at which it is made. On another note, the more power the tool has, the less the parts involved will be warm, which means stops to cool down will be much less frequent. A powerful motor has higher performance and rotation speed than the saw blade. The saw blade on powerful units can be larger in diameter. Amateur tools have enough motor power within the range of 1650 W, professionals will need more powerful units with motors over 2.2 kW.
For professional tools, the manufacturer issues a longer warranty, as it really assesses the duration of operation and reliability of the unit.

Cutting width

Another important characteristic when choosing is the kerf width. From this depends on what kind of workpieces the craftsman will be able to work with. The parameter itself is directly related to the disc diameter and is determined by the manufacturer. The larger the diameter of the disk, the greater the width of the cut can be performed by the specialist. There is a device that increases the standard kerf width. This is the broaching function. Many models boast this system. Thanks to the broach function, the width of the cut is significantly increased.
The power unit together with the console can move along two parallel rods (some models may have one guide), the disc moves with the structure, increasing the width of the cutting line. Individual saws are equipped with a broaching mechanism with a complex lever device, all made to expand the capabilities of an electric tool. Units with professional features can make cuts more than 3 meters in width.

Cutting depth

The diameter of the blade determines how deep a cut can be made by the craftsman. The depth of cut is greater when cutting at a right angle and somewhat less when cutting at an angle. As a rule, domestic counterparts have a smaller cutting depth, on average, by a factor of two. The depth of cut limiter is an additional advantage. With its help, a specialist can select the grooves and process wooden parts by thickness. The most modern models can deepen into the workpiece by 100 mm or more.

Cutting at an angle

Each saw model has its own set of additional features and capabilities. Cutting at an angle is included in the basic equipment. On the main bed there is a special rotating section. The bed can be made of aluminum or magnesium alloy, indicating its strength and ability to withstand heavy loads. Aluminum also implies not only the stability of the structure, but also a low weight that allows you to easily carry a crosscut saw. The sturdy saw table with high vertical stops adds comfort, but the overall weight of the tool increases immediately. Given the special mechanism, the section rotates effortlessly to the left and right side without effort. A screw-lock stop helps secure the workpiece to the selected position. The most common rotation angles are 15, 22.5, 30, 45 degrees. Fixation of the angle is due to special grooves and is accompanied by a slight click. The scale with detailed marks is well readable, so the master can choose any angle, special settings will help to set the most unusual angles. Rotation to the left is available up to 47o, to the right can be more than 60o.

Tilt cut

Adjusting the blade position is an important part of choosing an electric unit. Most crosscut saws have the ability to swivel the blade to either side. In some models the head can be tilted from 45 to 55o to the work table. A separate mechanism is responsible for adjusting the rotation and tilt of the saw blade. Such devices allow the master to perform a variety of cuts, which cover the maximum possible options for selecting the angle and tilt. The optimal choice would be a crosscut with a tilt in both directions.

Cutting precision

A clean cut is the quality and integrity of the material to be cut. The mitre saw has the ability to cut without splintering, without damaging the paint and with a perfectly even cut. The speed at which the saw blade rotates is decisive. The higher the speed, the cleaner the cut. The material of the blade and the correct tooth geometry and sharpening determine how effectively the blade operates. Depending on the design of the disk you choose the material to be machined and the complexity of the operation.

For cross-cutting it is better to buy one kind of disc, for higher cutting speed in longitudinal direction – another. Wavy lines and fine cuts on the discs are used to reduce temperature deformation, which makes the result of the work even better. The next thing that can affect quality is the perfect assembly of mechanisms and parts. Their overall fit, which prevents backlashes and misalignments.

Additional features in the form of a laser pointer, also differ on the accuracy of the work. The fixture is attached above the cutting disc, the luminous beam shows the direction of the cut. It is possible to adjust the thickness of the luminous strip. The pointer reflects the vertical to the surface and shows the exact cutting direction. The workpiece retainer helps the user achieve a straight cut. Clamping clamps hold the workpiece and keep it from moving. The sliding rails (work table extenders) are used to keep long parts stationary.

Cleanliness of the work surface

To keep the workplace clean and so that the craftsman does not breathe wood shavings, the chip extractor is designed. It is located next to the place of cutting and immediately removes sawdust and dust. Some models have a cloth bag connection for waste collection. More productive units have special spigots with a standard diameter for connecting a domestic or industrial vacuum cleaner.

Miter Saws Price:

Miter Saws Under $200

• Metabo (Hitachi) Compound Miter Saw

Miter Saws Under $ 300-400

• Makita Compound Miter Saw

Miter Saws Under $500

• DEWALT Miter Saw

Miter Saws Under $1 000

• Bosch Miter Saw