Thread: Circular saw not true - 2 degrees off

Not sure about that one but some have a screw in the base plate that can be adjusted for squaring up
good luck

Not sure which issue you have, are the edges of the base not parallel to to the blade so that the saw cannot properly follow a striaght edge guide, or is the blade not perpendicular to the base (tilted) so that the saw cuts a bevelled edge rather a square edge.

If the edges of the base are not parallel to the blade, and there is no adjustment fto align it, I would make a sub-base out of masonite, phenolic sheet, or even Epoxy printed circuit board and screw it to the base in a way that you can set it up so the blade and edges are made parallel. If you use masonite, and can set it up accurately first, then plunge the blade through the sub-base, you should end up with a zero clearance around the blade and reduce chipout etc.

If the saw has a tilt, the base is normally adjustable to provide a bevel cut facility, and you should set it up with a square between the base and blade, rather than relying on indents or scales built into the adjustment mechanism.

Thanks for the responses.

The blade not perpendicular to the base (tilted) so that the saw cuts a bevelled edge rather a square edge.

I've tried making adjustments with the bevel gauge to compensate, but still having problems because it is only a wingnut holding the angle.

Thats all you get, the wingnut.
You could try a small springwasher to hold it tighter for you.
But thats usually, you do it up tight at 90 degrees.

Being a little picky aren't we. I consider myself to be a good carpenter/woodworker and I would never rely on a hand-held power saw for 'true' cuts, they aren't intended for that. I use my SCM saw or a bench ripsaw for that. Makita make good power tools but any of the saws with pressed metal base-plates are not as accurate as those with a machined alloy one. That said, you should be able to correct yours to cut at 90.

I'm just getting started so I don't have a drop saw or table saw.

I'm gradually buying more tools, but wanted to get started with some basic cabinetry to see if I will stick with it and am having problems getting a true end on my cuts. Any help appreciated.

I've got a pretty good little circ saw, a Dewalt, with a nice heavy baseplate - however, if I carefully set it to 90 deg, it will cut very slightly off if I put too much downwards pressure on it during a cut.
A nice sharp blade, a cutting guide and not exerting too much force on it gives a nice 90 deg cut. A nice little machinist's square will help square things up....

On the freebie circular I picked up from my brother it was ~3º off the other way . It turned out the frame was bent and I had to open up the angle adjustment slot a bit more with a file - it runs true now. It also had a dry (noisy) main bearing but a couple of drops of oil sorted that out.

It's probably a little late for this given when the initial question was asked, but I had this exact same problem with the exact same saw that I own. Basically I would set the saw to 90degrees then make a cut and it would be at a very slight bevel.

The solution was simple but pretty frustrating at the same time. basically the single wingnut that you use to adjest the bevel can't take a large amount of downward force. So if you apply to much downward pressure during the cut the washer slips until the motor is resting on the baseplate and you get your 2 degree bevel. The way I fixed this was to change my technique slightly, I stopped putting any downward pressure on the front handle and tried driving the saw from my trigger hand if that makes sense.

The final part is something I picked up from using hand saws, that is let the saw do the work, if you are trying to muscle your way through the cut, something just isn't right.

Cheers
David

The obvious answer.
Take it back and ask for a refund.
Buy a good quality S/H saw.

I had that problem with a smal Hitachi I bought fromthe local h/ware store ripped some short lengths, took it back and showed them,baseplate was twisted ,swapped over straight way,no problems.

I had a similar problem with the makita circular saw I bought, I think its the same model as yours. From memory the angle of the cut at maximum setting was about 88 degrees, the same as yours. I solved the problem by gradually lengthening the bevel adjustment slot by filing it with a small round file. I did this by small bits at a time, checking the angle of the cut each time until it was 90 degress. I now don't have to worry about checking the angle marked on the adjustment as when I set it to the maximum angle it is dead on 90 degrees.