best basic chop saw

[nc9933]

I want a cheap but decent chop saw,probably 14 inch but...for pipe and angle iron etc.2 -8 inch stuff mostly 2-5 inch..
what do you think is best and best prices online..???? thanks

[MrWild]

Don't go cheap. Milwaukee is the best bang for your buck. Glad I bought mine. Why do I say that? Let me give you my 4.5" angle grinder experience. I bought and used a cheapy. Then I bought another cheapy. Then I bought another cheapy. I kept the third running with parts from the first two. All different makes of cheap, but all kind of inter changeable. All junk. Last I bought quality for about the same cost of all three peices of crap. It is still running, and running, and running. It doesn't over heat in the middle of a cut.

Sure, you can find cheap that will work for "awhile." Throw away tools, versus quality. Face it, you're going to be around a long time. You're going to use tools a long time. Buy once, buy quality, and never need to buy in the middle of a project. Frugal comes in different flavors. Quality is really the smart frugal.

[DSL PWR]

Save up your cash, and get a cold cut saw. DeWalt and Millwakee make them. You pay more for these up front than an abraisive model, but you get 2 huge bonuses. 1. The blades last a long time, and 2. you are always cutting with a full size blade.

[mc-motorsports]

Honestly, I loved my Ryobi, I burned it up trying to cut an 8" round bar, replaced it with a DeWalt and I hate that POS! Loud, annoying, flimsy, no trigger lock... I think the Craftsman Professional might be the same exact thing as the Ryobi.

No matter what saw you buy, if you get an abrasive saw, make sure you buy good wheels, I believe the ones I buy are Norton? Anyway, they are WAY better than the crap wheels you get at HomeDepot and Lowes. I buy them at my local tool supply.

[nc9933]

do you think those Milwauks on the web for 170 are the way..
and who has the best prices on the web,,shipped to Montana.??
Id never buy a band saw for cutting pipe..

[cnczoner]

Funny, I've been researching the same thing. One good resource is to search on amazon.com, and you'll find many brands with reviews.

For my purposes, I really will use it about 5 mins a month, so I start looking on the low end, but the $50-$75 no-brand imports have really crappy reviews, so I skipped up to the next level. HF has a $90 chop saw and a $110 heavy-duty unit. The local HF only has the heavy-duty, and whereas I would buy an HF chop saw, I will only get this locally, so I can return if it's junk. I'm considering trying out the $110 unit, but I will also wait for a sale. And since I'm up over $100 already, I'm now looking at the $150 Hitachi unit from Lowe's. And since I'm in that range, I'm also looking at the $170-$200 regular-brand units like Bosch, Milwaukee, DeWalt, etc, and the reviews on those are much better. I've been really hating Home Depot's service lately, so I would buy those brands online. I also have to check out Sears still, btw.

BTW, FWIW, I have 3 Harbor Freight drill presses (the 8" unit that goes on sale for $39.95 periodically), and at this price I just leave a couple of them jigged up for some things I drill regularly. A couple of these I've had for a few years with no problems. My use is all very-light duty -- 3/32" holes in 1/8"-wall aluminum tube. So the el-cheapo tools are fine sometimes, depending on purpose.

Cheers,
-Neil.

[mc-motorsports]

Honestly, I think the abrasive wheels you use make the biggest difference. The Ryobi I had was so much smoother than the DeWalt that I have now, HATE THAT THING! So noisey, sounds like it's going to fly apart. Plus the Ryobi had a cast aluminum base, the DeWalt has a stamped metal base.

Anyway, I use my chop saw quite a bit when I do use it. I'm actually building a "fixturing table" of sorts. I basically have a 3/4" steel plate that's about 24" X 30", obsolete milling fixture that's getting flipped over and granted a new life. I still haven't decided weather to slot it or drill and tap 100 holes, but I plan on being able to mount milling vices or set up angle iron and clamps for production fixturing of cutting opps. I honestly prefer a chop saw over a band saw most of the time, but that's just me, most people would take the band saw any day. I cut up a lot of tubing BTW, .065 to .120" wall.
And yes, the chop saw will be removed from it's flimsy a$$ sheetmetal base it currently resides on if I ever get around to building the fixturing table. All the material is sitting there, just have to make up my mind.

[AppEng]

I have a Makita and am really happy with it. Also, the Ridgid is a pretty nice tool- plus the warranty is there too. Pay attention to the construction of the base and the clamping mechanism. A stamped steel base would be alright if you're banging the thing around a lot, but a cast base I think is the best way to go otherwise. The flimsy stock clamps on some of the saws are really cheap in my opinion.

Also...the wheels are where it's at. Buy a decent wheel, and it will cut MUCH better and freer- make your saw motor last longer as well, especially with solid stock.

[nc9933]

what model no. are those??? thanks

by the way.. this site is sick with adds and clutter.It sucks. get rid of some of it..