I finally got tired enough of pushing long stuff sideways thru the table saw or clamping on a guide to use the sidewinder, and popped for a real chop saw, a Makita LS1030N. I wanted to go with a 10″ because the blades are less expensive and easier to find than 12″, and from the old Unisaw I have 60 years’ worth of them already.
Big surprise: This thing won’t cut through a 2×6. It falls short by about 1/8″ vertically and 5/16″ horizontally. In the down position there’s a good inch and a quarter of usable blade that extends past the face of the fence. All they have to do is re-design the fence a little. What the hell were they thinking?
Anyhow, I have the good fortune to have a benchmaster mill with a rotary table, so I was able to make the necessary fence modifications. But I’m still wondering, why would anybody make a chop saw that falls just a hair short of being able to cut 2×6’s? Shouldn’t any 10″ chop saw be able to crosscut 2×6’s? It’s just amazing.
— J.S.
Replies
DeWalt DW708 12" SCMS is the cure to what is ailing this Makita. :-)
Oh Lord, here we go again.
I didn't know that moving jobs to mexico was a makita problem!!??
TDo not try this at home!
I am a trained professional!
I had an amazing Makita mistake today also. I drove off with my 6 month old 12V impact driver in it's case with extra battery on my tailgate. Got to my destination, figured it out, backtracked the 5 miles, and somebody has a new tool(without a charger). Went to HD and bought a new one........I hate when that happens!
Yeah Kieth, You didn't learn enough from your mother about putting things where they belong and tidying up your tailgate.
;).
Excellence is its own reward!
"The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit.
The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are."
--Marcus Aurelius
i don't know this saw, but can you lift up on the back of the board to finish the cut?, you may have tried that already.
I probably could lift the back of the board, but the whole reason for buying this saw was to eliminate the awkwardness of trying to shove a 12' 2x6 thru the unisaw squarely enough to not bind the blade. The goal was to have a truly right tool for the job of making 6' long joists.
-- J.S.
use skillsaw.
I've got a maybe 15 year old Black & Decker 10" chop that won't do it either without placing a piece of 3/4" on the table. I rarely use this saw anymore but that's what does the trick. I always held some PB or MDF to the table with double-stick so I could easily remove it when I had to cut crown and needed the height back again.
And yes, it's an engineering blunder...or maybe not.......that could be how they planned to get more 12"s sold.
> 10" chop that won't do it either without placing a piece of 3/4" on the table.
That's an excellent idea, and a lot easier than all the machine shop work I did. I may do that with 1/4" just to make the depth adjustment a tad less critical.
Thanks --
-- J.S.
How odd, even my old Sears 10" compound mitre will cut a 2x6 (but you have to move the fence to its 'back' position).
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
I'm probably stating the obvious, but are you sure there isn't an adjustment or a stop that could be fine tuned to get the proper result? (I'm sure you checked that already, but sometimes it helps to cover all the basis)
Jake Gulick
[email protected]
CarriageHouse Design
Black Rock, CT
Check all the stops. My LS1013 will cut 91 x 305 mm (3.5 x 12 in).
I'm sure LS1013 must be a sliding type in order to cut 12" with a 10" blade. LS1030N is a simple one hinge pin swing arm design.
-- J.S.
John
my mistake, saw the N sufix and assumed it stood for North America, to distinguish your 110 volt single phase power for our 240.
Ditto what Jake and ian said. There HAS to be sone sort of depth stop. And it can be adjusted, whether it's with a wrench or a hammer..............(-:
You're gorgeous enough to drive a soccer player insane.
After all, they can't use their hands.
Yes, there is a depth stop, and I adjusted it as close to cutting into the aluminum as I dared. The fence is also bolted down with oversize holes to allow for squaring it up to the blade. I extended those holes to become short slots, taking out about 0.350" with the mill, and replacing the hex head bolts with Allens. The round part of the fence that bridges around the back of the blade also had to be relieved about 0.100" to clear the arm casting.
The booklet that comes with it says it cuts "69 mm x 130 mm (2 3/4" x 5 1/8")", so they really did intend in the design to fall just short of being usable for 2x6's. With plenty of blade going past the fence, they didn't have to do that.
-- J.S.
"The booklet that comes with it says it cuts "69 mm x 130 mm (2 3/4" x 5 1/8")", so they really did intend in the design to fall just short of being usable for 2x6's."
Maybe they know something that we don't.........a nominal 2x6 is about to change to 1 1/2" x 5". :-)
Knowledge is power, but only if applied in a timely fashion.
'...a nominal...'. Please elaborate.Character? I never had any problem with character. Why, people've been telling me I was one every since I was a kid.
Webster's defines "nominal" as
1 - Of, relating to, or like in name
2 - In name, but not in fact
For example, a 2"x6" hasn't been 2 inches by 6 inches in quite some time and yet are referred to as a 2x6. For a while they became 1 3/4" x 5 3/4", now they're 1/1/2" x 5 1/2" when wet......... if you're lucky.
Knowledge is power, but only if applied in a timely fashion.
I was wondering about the 5 " 2x6?Character? I never had any problem with character. Why, people've been telling me I was one every since I was a kid.
Penny wise and pound foolish! ya got a little trim saw and thought it would do a real job...