Thread: Recomendations for Sliding Drop Saw (on a budget..)

SWMBO bought me a SCMS from SupaCheap Auto for Christmas ($230 with Amex discount voucher). Of course, I'd done my homework and know that the Makita LS1013 & LS1212 are *the* ones to have, but I couldn't justify the extra thousand dollars...

Anyway, I'm pretty happy with it, for my usage. It doesn't have positive stops for the common angles, and the manual SUCKS!

I spent ages trying to match a 1 cm square muddy grey/black rectangle in the book, to the depth setting mechanism on the saw, so I could trench with it, and when I found it, it's pretty rudimentary.

For a small fee, I'll tell any other owners of this saw how to pfaff about with the sliding plate on the top of the saw near the dust bag to set the depth of cut.<grin>

So, in answer, the SupaCheap SCMS is reasonably light, acceptably accurate out of the box(IMHO), but is NOT the one to buy if you plan to do lots of work where you need accurate control of depth of cut.

Cheers,
Andrew

Greg: Get a GMC for that budget. The quality is reasonable given what you're paying for it, but most importantly the warranty is good - 2 year replacement. Most other cheap brands you're taking a gamble.

In realtion to depth of cut I found the scms I've used don't give repetitive even depth cuts. I've used a dewalt, no luck, my makita - no luck. Hitachi - similar.

On the Makita the depth is limited by a fairly small screw. You can get reasonable results however there is a very small amount of play. If you take two passes with differing downward pressure you will get two cuts differing in depth. When I tried this way instead of using the table saw I made sure to cut just shallow of the required depth and cleaned them up with a chisel.

Eastie

GJP

DON'T buy any tool until you can afford to buy the one you want! Don't buy the GMC - you won't be happy with it as it is not accurate ewnough for trench cuts - IF that is what you want the saw to do primarily.

On the other hand, if you want a saw primarily to chop ends of timber, get the best you can afford - if the GMC is up to that task (makes accurate repetitive cuts), then buy it. You have a wider choice in this area. You can also consider non-sliding saws (which are much cheaper, and therefore you may obtain a better, more accurate tool). Decide what your priority is.

This is not simply a rant against cheaper tools - I own a few myself. But you do generally get what you pay for. Just recognise that fact and be prepared to find alternative methods of working wood to reach your intended goal. For example, you can always use a router to do trenches, and more accurately (just not as conveniently as two-tools-in-one).

Regards from Perth

Derek

I thought the Ryobi was good value at $299 from bunnies (for rabbit joints ) or MItre 10.
I use mine for mdf in the kitchen and built in robes and so far it has gone well.
Sorry, there is no depth stop but I am exploring ways to overcome this.

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: http://community.webshots.com/user/iain49

[This message has been edited by Iain (edited 09 February 2003).]

I've got the same ryobi...not bad but the angle markings on the front weren't really accurate

46 deg is actually 45 deg etc... Looks like they platered the strip on quickly and didn't even check it.

Not a bad saw though. Needs a better blade on it when I have some spare $$ though.

I am finding that the dust extraction on my Ryobi SCMS is pretty poor. Their design of having the dust bag on top of the saw seems to miss catching the bulk of the sawdust.
I have used a Makita LS1040 and its system of the bag at the back is much more effective.

I would save a little more, only for the unknown factor for reliability and accuracy. If you are not cutting any great depth, but need a a 300mm croscut, then consider the Hitachi 81/4, reliable and relatively inexpensive around $750.00.

Regards
Tony

Bunnings has the Ozito sliding drop saw for only about $160 at the moment in their stocktake clearance. 15/3/03

Saw the Ozito today at Bunnies...had a quick look but looked flimsy and you needed some muscle just to drop the blade down..

Have been using my cheapy ($299) Ryobi CSS1000 a lot lately and I am liking it more and more. Good buy for the money... I think it is slightly more solid than the Supercheap one for the same price also.

I'd recommed the Ryobi CSS1000 for $299 if that fits your budget.
Only drawback is the 40 tooth blade...Great for rough cutting, but if you want nice clean slices that wont need sanding, expect to pay another $100 for a 60 or 80 tooth blade.

Well I bought one of the Ozitos sliding drop saw for $169 - I'll let you know how it goes! Sale ends today 16/43/2003.

Cool,

Yep, let us know! Hopefully it turns out to be a nice bargain

I have a GMC compound mitre saw, which I bought primarily to do the framing of my workshop, which I have just finished. I would have to say that it did an outstanding job, and I used it to make all the roof trusses as well as the wall framing, so angle cuts were put to the test. I had cause to contact GMC when I could not find a replacement blade with the right size arbor in Bunnings, and the answer came back from their Managing Director!
Since then I have bought one of their drill presses (with the laser sight) and have now decided to buy their 2400watt router, following further emails with the boss. They are very keen to keep customers happy, and when I mentioned to them that the drill press was labouring, he offered a couple of solutions, and said that if they did not work he would replace the unit immediately. (One of his proposed solutions did fix the problem)
As someone who has worked in retail for 25 years, I will agree that you get what you pay for most of the time, but if I have to choose between an over-engineered tool with lousy service and a reasonably good tool with excellent service, the choice is easy.

I am starting to sound like a commercial for GMC, but my experience with them has been outstanding, and their products are good too. We should also not be too quick to assume that anything made in China is sub-standard, because that is simply not the case.

Ken

Where did you get replacement saw blades from in the end?

Derek