sliding compound miter saw

[tom sarno]

my 10 year old saw died yesterday

i've been looking for a replacement but it seems that everything is made in china (to me that means over priced junk)

every thing which iv'e purchased (rated as professional grade )

made in china wasn't woth the time it took me to throw it in the dumpster.

any one have any recommendations for a replacement ?

[Chuck Decker]

Tom,

 

I absolutely love my new Bosch GCM12SD. The "GCM" stands for "Gliding Compound Miter". I knew this was coming out months ago, so I waited-and-waited for it to come to market. I think I probably have one of the first ones to make it to the States.

 

I love the design. It is the best design I have ever used for a miter saw (and I have used a lot of them). It glides on a set of knuckles/hinges instead of rails, which accounts for it's silky, smooth feel. It also means that it needs no extra space at the rear of the machine like sliders do. So you can gain a few inches of floor space in your shop.

 

I paid less than $800 at Performance Tool Center. Here is the link:  http://www.performancetoolcenter.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=Bosch+...



This machine is a pure joy to use! The slider design that has been around for ever has a vibration that is caused by the steel bearings rolling over dust on the rails. That vibration shows up in the cut face. This design has no rails and therefore NO vibration. So, it gives you a very smooth cut face.

 

Another feature I like are the solid detents. Absolutely NO slop!

 

Chuck

[Steven Waskewicz]

I also have the Bosch GCM12SD. It is a beautiful piece of gear.

Check out Amazon, for a good price on these. Bosch GCM12SD

As Chuck mentioned, it sure slides easily, and is definitely big enough for the most demanding projects.

I've only had mine for about 3 months now, but find that it serves every purpose I can find.

Steve

[Mandodad]

another big fan of the Bosh gliding saw...still saving my money to get one...after trying one, nothing else even compares        Mandodad

[Stanley C. Pearse]

Tom,

 

In review of all the replies, I see no one asked the following two questions:

1. Are you wanting (or need) a 10" or 12" compound miter saw?
2. How much are you willing to spend?

Once we know those two elements then we can venture forward in helping you with replacing your saw.

[Howard Brown]

I've been really happy with my Ryobi from Home Depot. I use it at least once a week for straight cuts and monthly for miter cuts.

As far as dust collection, I've learned to attach my shop vac to the saw instead of using the bag. It helps tremendously. 

My neighbor has a DeWalt and loves it. He swears by it in fact. But I have yet to see a difference between it and my Ryobi other than the price. Mine even came with a laser for free, which is a $80 upgrade on the DeWalt.

Hope this helps.

[Angela Spohr]

I have a bosch 12" compound sliding miter... I had a rigid 12" before that ( it was stolen )   I love the ease of setting and adjusting the bosch more than the rigid...  the dust discharge bag on the rigid was AWFUL it had a 90 degree fitting and more dust ended up outside of the bag, not so bad on the bosch.  I lucked out and got the bosch @ a factory store... so it was $300 cheaper than list, still got the factory warranty.  

 

I am much happier with the bosch...  good luck!

 

[Steven Price]

Sears is losing my market.  all their power tools are made in china

craftsman hand tools are still made in USA but they have a green hand tool 

they call bio tool thats made in china no understandin there but i wont buy it.

Recently brought a Bosch driver no longer built in Germany was built in Malaysia.

prefer to buy from USA products also will buy Mexican products to help their economy.

Help put America back to work dont buy china products

[John Schaben]

Hi Steven - Noble thoughts but until the US mfg decide to put quality back in a reasonable cost, China is pretty much here to stay. My last major woodworking purchase was a router table, made in USA, for $450 delivered. That was in January. The only things original on it is the cabinet, between the casters and the top, and the fence. Although I have modified the fence and am still not overjoyed with the cabinet. Bottom line was I had to add another $300 + to make it acceptable.

Right now, Darex is about the only completely US company that produces a good product at a fair price with top notch customer service. I wouldn't be surprised if some of their parts aren't sourced off shore though. Darex makes the Drill Doctor and the Worksharp products.

Incidentally, Sears lost my market 30 odd years ago just because of their arrogant attitude toward the customer, me.

Steven Price said:

Sears is losing my market.  all their power tools are made in china

craftsman hand tools are still made in USA but they have a green hand tool 

they call bio tool thats made in china no understandin there but i wont buy it.

Recently brought a Bosch driver no longer built in Germany was built in Malaysia.

prefer to buy from USA products also will buy Mexican products to help their economy.

Help put America back to work dont buy china products

[Phillip Madonia]

Why do you guys keep bashing things made in China?  The computer you are using, quite sophisticated I would guess, was most likely made in China.  Chinese tools can be as durable and as accurate as US made goods.  If you shop, you can find value.

[Steven Akers]

Melamine in baby food?  
Antifreeze in medicine?

The sheetrock that is killing people?

Lead in childrens toys?

I could continue but that's reason enough for me. 

Phillip Madonia said:

Why do you guys keep bashing things made in China?  The computer you are using, quite sophisticated I would guess, was most likely made in China.  Chinese tools can be as durable and as accurate as US made goods.  If you shop, you can find value.

[thetoolnut]

The most expensive sliding mitre saw on the market is the Festool 10'' Kapex which is made in Germany by real Germans. Festool make top quality power tools and i buy their stuff when i can, i recently bought their 2-1/2'' power planer which is ideal for door hanging. I have had some horrible experiences with power planes in the past so i checked my new Festool planer for accuracy out of the box. Everything was spot on and the blade changes are simple, no fussing trying to get the blades parrallel with the base and with one blade it's idiot proof. It came in a bomb proof sustainer case and an additional table is available so you can invert the planer and turn it into a mini jointer. I have my eye on the Festool cordless barrel grip jigsaw and the new 3-1/2'' random orbit sander. I also own power tools from other manufacturers like Dewalt, Makita and Bosch and these have served me well, if you're willing to pay a bit more and are looking for top drawer tools go with Festool.

[patrick in memphis(collierville)]

i buy a lot of dewalt due to its ability to be easily rebuilt when/if it wears out ridgid would be my next recommendation if you are looking in the 100-700 range .upper level equipment in my opinion is not able to do anything worth justifying the price tag lol i know that will stir up some folks the higher end is built better and last longer but its still a cut lol.one thing to keep in mind is not all of them are dual bevel compound miter saws and sometimes the slide bars just get in the way..(the guys at work tell me my seiko does the same thing as their 10$ casio lol)