I am looking at buying a 12 in compound mitre saw with the toss up being between a Makita 1214 ($995) and a Dewalt 12inch ($1040). The Makita will have another $100 rebate from Makita thus $885

The Makita has a nicer feel to the table rotation. However not quite the same rigidity wrt to the indexing when laying the saw over.

The Dewalt has probably a better fence arrangement and a more natural handle arrangement.

The Makita has the bevel gear drive and the Dewalt has a Belt drive. My gut feeling is the belt drive.

3 years warranty on the Dewalt 1 year on the Makita

Both the same power (1650 watts).

Any thoughts appreciated.

Donald

I have the De Walt Compound you are looking at and also have the De Walt SMCS ..... I love them both. Never missed a beat and very acurate. If you get it make sure you get the work stand too, it really is a good addition. I prefer the colour too. Cant lose anything nice and yellow!

Pete

__________________
If you are never in over your head how do you know how tall you are?

I've got a Makita LS1214 and have had it for about 14months. Its accurate enough to give me 45 deg cuts in either direction mitreing or slanted so that I need do no further work on picture frames and boxes.
It hasn't missed a beat and I like the smooth start up. I haven't had a DeWalt so I can't comment on the pros of their system. The Mak is quite heavy to carry, but a mobile stand would probably fix that. I have a Tommy Tucker stand. I have cut 5x19mm thick Jarrah boards at one time without a hitch.

Hope this helps,

Regards,

Rob

Hi Donald,
Unless you have your heart set on the DeWalt or the Makita, have a look at the Bosch GCM 12 SD.
It has 1800 watts of power and gets great reviews wherever it is tested.
There are many places that sell it.
Here is one of them:
http://www.derossi.com.au/powertools...eda3eb421f3589
It appears to have a three year warranty.
A promotional video is available to download at:
http://www.derossi.com.au/powertools...eda3eb421f3589

Our Hastings Woodworkers Guild has the 10 inch version of this saw, and it is widely loved.
Regards
SG

Attached Thumbnails

 

The belt drive Hitachi is a magic Sliding Crosscut Mitre Saw. Very quiet too. Dunno what I ever did without it. Mine's a 10" and its plenty for what I do. Paid $850 for it.

See mine here.

Cheers

__________________
I Transcend Dental Medication

I haven't checked the Bosch out, but will do. Trouble is, a third choice doesnt make it easier! The Dewalt and Makita (but not the Hitachi) allow you to set a half cut or otherwise which can easily be reset to a full cut by moving a flip out stop and thus without altering the settings of the half cut. Is this the same with the Bosch?

Donald

Can't speak to the makita, but my DeWalt 12 inch CMS is dead on and the handle configuration is very comfortable and safe. I like the 12 inch blade because it allows a greater range of cut size. Have cut some crown moulding and got great results. My farthing's worth.

__________________
Cheers,

Bob

DeWalt for my money..... mines a few years old now, had several sets of brushes, been carted fron job to job in the back of the ute...... still dead accurate & running well. The stand is great for lighter weight finishing work but I use a set of rollers as well if cutting framing timber. Saves excess weight on the extended arms.
Regards, Bill

I have a Makita 1212 and it is a great saw. BUT the depth stop is a real disappointment - not well engineered. The screw slips slightly depending on the downward pressure and results in different depth cuts.

Mak 1214 is the go. Mines Ace!

__________________
Zed

I have a Dewalt sliding compound - love it!

__________________
Cheers

TEEJAY

There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness"

(Man was born to hunt and kill)

G'Day Fraserbluff

I have used both saws, You wouldn't be disappointed with either. I currently have a 10" (LS1013) Makita in my shed. I got a good deal on the Makita but if there were no other discriminators I'd Err towards the DeWalt. It has a few more features, is a fraction easier to use, has a three year waranty and I also prefer the belt drive to the bevel gears. That said, the Makita is acurate, powerful and I've never had a moment where I'd wished I'd spent the extra on the DeWalt

My Father has had one of each (both 12") in his timber yard and swears by the DeWalt. It's been there 10 years getting heavy daily use (they have three blades that rotate through saw, sharpener and spare). it's had the brushes replaced but other than that it's never missed a beat.

I also looked at some of the other offerings from Bosch, Hitachi etc. All good gear I'd lean towards one of these two simply because they both have a reputation for being at the top of the pile when it comes to Mitre Saws.

Hope that helps

regards

Manix

The latest FWW has SCMS reviews. I don't have it with me - but September? Maybe Sept/Oct. I think the Bosch came out tops.

If that was Issue # 186, you may be the only woodie in Australia who has received his copy!

Where is my FWW magazine?

__________________
Driver of the Forums
Lord of the Manor of Upper Legover

Yes... is saw a little angst re Taunton.... I don't subscribe to FWW (stupidly because it does cost) but I do buy a copy now and then. I checked last night - it was October that has the SCMS reviews but I didn't check the issue number. Don't think there is anything special in it that would have got the OZ censors up in arms.