Was in Lowes the other day and was drifting thru the toolroom when I saw it, the makita cordless 18volt 7 1/2″ sliding compound saw in that slick carrying case for a clearance price of $249 or $259. It looked like a winner and made me think those makita guys are on the ball. In fact, I would have bought out the wallet right then if they had added just one thing, but they can’t cause they’d be shooting themselves in the foot if they did. A saw like that needs an accessory power cord option to run juice from a 110 if so desired. Even my little peabrain figures that the technology must be there to transform down to the 18volt without a killer pricetag. Now that would be one handydandy tool then. But I imagine the aftermarket battery sales bring in some big bucks to the corp so they wouldn’t dare. Oh well, they had another opportunity for greatness. If I were a whiz kid I’d be tempted to try and rig something on my own.
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Just dug out my DeWalt 18 volt circular saw that I bought to use on a 170 Sq. shake roof. Tried using it to cut treated lumber that was going along a chimney to attach counter flashing, before cultured stone was applied. What a useless tool. In theory it is a good idea, but all the aggravation of slow cutting, makes you realize that you could run out a cord and be done by the time you screw around with the battery tools. My guess is that a battery powered miter saw is just like you implied; a reason to sell more batteries.
Dave- You hit the nail on the head as far as the usefulness of cordless saws. They are great for overhead work and esp for shakes and shingles.
Ken
Ya I don't own one yet but I saw a buddy with a cordless circular and I questioned him about it and he said it was great for cutting plastic pipe when your fitting down in cramped spaces.
I`ve never had much use for the cordless circular saws, but the cordless jigsaw is perfect for wood shakes.
Jay
Sure, you can make an AC adapter for any battery tool. Use the shell of a dead battery as the adapter to the tool. You know the voltage, you'll need to find out how many amps by running it under load from a battery thru a meter. Then buy a step down transformer for the required volts and amps, a bridge rectifier to handle the amps (probably a heat sink for it, too) and maybe to be fancy a nice big filter capacitor. (Add the capacitor if you get AC hum or chatter.)
The smart way to go about it would be to choose some sort of connector, say an XLR, and make your own low voltage power cords. That way you could use either your AC adapter, or you could make large off-board block batteries for when you need more run time and less weight in your hand, but you don't want to run AC all the way. The AC adapter could also double as a charger for the block batteries.
-- J.S.
I have the older 5 3/8" 18v Dewalt circular saw. With a sharp blade we used it on a porch rehab. We made at least 35 cuts through 5/4X6" decking without changing the battery. We even ripped a couple, which did work the saw and slow it down but it did it. Not as powerful as a cord saw for sure but none the less I sure couldn't say I think its useless. DanT
Dewalt makes a cord option for their 24 volt drill.
I have a friend who lives in Atlanta that called me and asked to fly down there to trim his new basement remodel... Due to the travel I only agreed to do it as he said he had a saw and compressor. Well, when I arrived there it was one of those cordless saws. The smaller one. I didn't honestly think the saw would last beyond the first window but it did the whole job. It was real light and portable. Ideal for "punch out" work. I still would'nt buy one though. Goes through batteries real fast. Blades have to be thin and they don't last. Plus it wasn't very accurate. I had to constantly adjust the thing. Save your money... there are better toys to buy.
I was confused when I first saw this. Why would you need a sliding comound saw thats cordless?? It's not the kind of tool you normally hold over your head in the rafters.
Sears makes a cordless 18 volt - 10" compound miter saw that works very well for it's intended purpose. It is very lightweight, pretty powerful, and cuts pretty good for an el cheapo saw.
Kinda pricy though at $299James DuHamel
J & M Home Maintenance Service
"Southeast Texas"
ya, I don't think that the technology for a good quality cordless saw has hit the mass production lines yet, but give it a little more time and I think we'll be seeing some sweet machines out in the marketplace. Look what's happened to the cordless drills in the last 5-10 years. Fine tuned. How long has the cordless circulars been out? Personally I'm looking forward to seeing the next generation of cordless tools. Can you picture a 24 volt drill with the weight of a 14.4? And batteries with the same power downsized and increased life expectancy?
I have the 18v DeWalt combo pack of drill, 5 1/2" circular saw, and flashlight. I've used the hell out of all three when cords weren't an option like remote fence work, roofing a cabin in the woods, etc. I agree, they chew up batteries too quickly but considering what they are and how I've used them, I got my money's worth. I'd likely shop around next time and go with a PC 19v setup. I think we're all holding the cordless tools to too high a standard expecting them to work as tirelessly as corded tools. Ain't gonna happen til NASA flushes our toilets for us...
now there's a thought. Think of the water savings we could come up with with a auto flush time mechanism. live with the smell in your house till , say every 4 hours, then a giant whole city flush will occur at the same time when they release the rainwater holding resevior to flush the main pipes. The timing mechanism would have to be controlled by a battery pack of course.
Was that an idea inspired by a flashback from your mispent youthful endeavors? Granted, I was being facetious with my NASA toilet idea but if you invent it and make a billion, remember me in your will. Have a good one...
Homewright- ya the cordless tools really are a godsend and the durability of some of them continues to amaze me. I used a cordless 12v bosch for something like 3 years about everyday. Dropped off ladders. etc. And the thing is still going. The battery life isn't what it use to be so I got a 14.4 bosch replacement for it since I like the grip and that one handed jacobs chuck is to die for on ladder work. Yep, definitely got my money's worth here too.