How to choose a miter saw - the main criteria

During repair and construction works, it is often necessary to cut material at a different angle. This can be done with the help of the can. But the choice of angles in this tool is extremely limited.

At any angle with great precision, you can cut using a special miter saw. With this unit make window frames, door and window boxes. How to choose a miter saw to make it work for a long time? Knowledge of some technical characteristics of the instrument and its additional capabilities will help to do this.

General information on the miter saw

The miter saw, which is commonly known as trimming, is used for cutting wood pieces (fig. 1). But sometimes it saws plastic, laminate and even metal. This tool easily, very precisely and at high speed cuts the material at a given angle.

This ability has found its application not only in construction, but also in furniture production. Similar tools are often used in the manufacture of plastic windows.

The miter saw consists of an engine equipped with a gearbox and a working disk. They are mounted on the base with the power button on the unit. These are the main parts and components. The main load during the work is experienced by the cutting disk (fig. No. 2). For its manufacture using high-quality heavy-duty materials.

A motor can be used collector or asynchronous. Asynchronous produces less noise and lasts much longer. Collector does not have these advantages, but does not require maintenance and special attention to itself. Most often it is placed on the base on the right side of the disk, sometimes it is placed in the back of the saw.

The rotation from the engine to the disk is transmitted by means of a gear or belt drive. The gear does not slip under load. Belt emits less noise and vibration, prolongs the life of the engine. But the belt itself is gradually subject to wear and requires periodic replacement. In some cases, under heavy loads, it can simply fly off the pulleys.

The miter saw can perform additional functions. It can serve as a sawing machine. Such saws are equipped with special sawing tables. The tortsovochny saw of any design is the reliable and convenient tool in work, allowing to carry out exact cutting of materials from any angle.

Criteria for choosing a tool

How to choose a miter saw so that it serves for a long time and regularly? When choosing trimming, consider the following points:

1. The purpose of the acquisition tool. For infrequent use, a miter saw is suitable for standard functions. For more frequent and complex work, it makes sense to purchase a professional version.
2. Security. There must be a casing that completely closes the working disk. During the work, he is removed. The saw must be equipped with an automatic shutdown system if the disc is stalled. There should also be a system for quickly and firmly securing the workpiece on the table. The safest saws are produced by: Corvette, Makita, Bosch, DeWALT, Metabo, Hitachi.
3. Overall dimensions and weight of the instrument. Too heavy a saw will make it difficult to work. The operator will experience fatigue.
4. Ergonomic. The miter saw should provide maximum comfort when doing work.
5. Diameter of the working disk. It is recommended to choose a tool with a disc from 20 cm. Its maximum diameter is specified in the engine manual. Discs with thin cuts and wavy lines make less noise. The bore is 25 or 30 mm in diameter. Larger teeth will give a rough cut. They can not cleanly cut laminated products, as well as blanks, covered with expensive varnishes and paints. For their processing requires a disk with small teeth. The small tooth can cut even aluminum blanks.
6. The width and depth of the cut to be performed.
7. The quality of the base and the swivel block. The most durable bed made of magnesium alloys and aluminum.
8. Additional illumination of the working area makes it possible to perform work in low light conditions.
9. The miter saw some manufacturers equip with an electronic system that maintains the saw blade speed at constant values ​​regardless of the load.
10. Saw blade rotation speed. The higher it is, the cleaner the result is.The function of adjusting the number of turns allows you to cut wood, plastic, aluminum, plexiglas, cement-bonded materials.

Advantages of some models of saws

The Makita LS 1040 is a professional tool. Distinguished by its compactness and low weight (about 11 kg). It has a convenient carrying handle. The saw is equipped with an engine that develops up to 4600 rpm. Motor power 1650 watts. The recommended diameter of the working disk is 26 cm. You can cut blanks up to 13 cm wide. Saws blanks up to 95 mm thick at an angle of 90 degrees, up to 67 mm at an angle of 45 degrees. For processing long workpieces, special stops are provided in the holes of the aluminum frame.

The turning mechanism is easy to move, clearly locks in and locked by a screw mechanism. It has a special fixation with a characteristic click when installing angles of 15, 22.5, 30, 45 degrees. The disc can be tilted vertically up to 45 degrees. The quality of the device is very high, the cut is accurate and clean.

The guard automatically exposes the blade when lowering it to the workpiece. It is made of a transparent material of high strength. There is a device to protect the disk from jamming. The soft start system accelerates the drive without jerking. For a set of full turns he needs 2 seconds. The miter saw of this model is equipped with an electrodynamic brake, which quickly and smoothly stops the disc after turning off the engine. When replacing the disc shaft locks special lock. Dust bag included. It is possible to connect a vacuum cleaner.

Vorskla PMZ-90-255 is an analogue of the LS 1040 model, but made in China. This instrument is still far from achieving high quality. Backlash which do not allow to receive exact cuts interfere. Some components and parts are made roughly. Not very comfortable protective cover. The engine is very powerful (2100 W), it is noisy, it heats up quickly. Sawdust scatter past a special dust collector. There is no soft start system, this leads to frequent blown fuses in the home electrical network. Disc brake is also missing. The advantages of this unit include the ability to process workpieces up to 30 cm wide.

Metabo KGS 315 Plus is equipped with a 2200 W motor. For work the disk with a diameter of 315 mm is used. It rotates at a speed of 4100 rev / min. The unit weighs 26 kg.

DeWalt DW711 with a disk of 26 cm and a rotation speed of 2750 revolutions. It has a weight of about 20 kg.

The Bosch GCM 10 J saw is equipped with a 2000 W motor. The working disk with a diameter of 254 mm is applied. The speed of rotation is 4500 rpm. The device weighs 14.5 kg.

The instrument of the domestic brand Corvette is equipped with a laser that accurately indicates the direction of the cut.

The Hitachi miter saw allows you to rotate the working head through an angle of 15 to 55 degrees. In many other saws, this angle is 45-55 degrees.

The miter saw is an indispensable tool when you need to cut at a certain angle with great accuracy.

To select it, you need to know the operating characteristics of the tool, the features of its use. This machine is an electric cutting tool. Work with this tool should be in protective glasses to protect your eyes from falling into them of sawdust (fig. No. 3). It is not recommended to work on the machine with poor health.