Choosing a chop saw?

[canoetrpr]

I've finally got setup for welding with the advice of many of you here. Realised that I really need a quick easy way to cut some 1/4"-3/8" stock so that I can start joining things now that I've spent several hours running beads.

Can't find much on sale around here. My choices are (all 14" 15A)

1. Makita with a 4.5" angle grinder kit as bonus $240. On sale at TSC
Except I already have two angle grinders. One with a grinding disk and one with a wire brush. Could I really use another?

2. Delta at Princess Auto (our HF) - better than their home brand $179.

3. Milwaukee 6176-80 reconditioned, 1 year warranty $200

4. Milwaukee 6176-80, brand new, 5 year warranty $250

Which would you pick?

 

[kennyd]

Do you have Home Depot's up in the great white north? I have the Ridgid 14" and am very happy with it...

Ridgid CM1450

 

[MrJimi]

I have a Black & Decker Professional and a DeWalt 5.3 HP chop saw.
Your projects will look much better

 

[swines]

You should be able to find better prices than what you've quoted on the Milwaukee equipment. I've had a 6176-20 for 13 years and it works as good today as it did when new.

Here's a link with the 6176-20 for $139 as only one example Milwaukee Miter and Chop Saws

I also have the 6190-20 dry cutoff machine. Much nicer to use, better and cleaner cuts, but if you aren't careful with it, tweaking the blade is quite easy and EXPENSIVE...

 

[Wayne County Hose]

I would take the reconditioned Milwaukee. For home use, this will probably be the last chop saw you buy.

 

[Egon]

There are times you can get reconditioned DeWalt stuff for some pretty good prices.

The only other thing I can add is get a quality product.

 

[pekabu]

I have a Craftsman Chop saw. It's ok. I am looking into a circular type setup because it always seems that I am repositioning the saw or attempting multiple cuts because it's too wide. Granted this is mostly my fault. For small stuff it works decent though.

Added later: My saw looks a lot like the Milwaukee reconditioned model above. The saw I am looking at now looks like this:
DeWALT D28754R Reconditioned Heavy-Duty 12" Cut-Off Machine

 

[canoetrpr]

We do have Home Depot here. The Rigid looks quite nice but is $220.00.

Swines, alas, prices in the great white north are quite a bit higher than in the USA - despite the current exchange rates. For most items, shipping does not make sense from the USA as all the good shipping rates that US online retailers advertise are only for the lower 48 states.

On top of hefty shipping fees (very expensive for heavy stuff) we get dinged with a UPS 'brokerage' fee - about $50 for most things I purchase... and so on.

At the end of the day I often end up purchasing locally unless it is something that I can't get easily locally.

 

[canoetrpr]

I've never bought anything 'reconditioned' and have always been wary of what it meant. What do you guys think?

 

[AlanB]

I would look and insure that whatever I chose had a "flip up nut" or speedvise or whatever it is called.

The nut for the securing vice should be able to release by flipping up or shifting sideways allowing the vice rod to guickly do large adjustments, then flip into place and tighten to do the actual tightening.

Then I would look for a heavy base.

I think anything you listed would work.

I don't believe it is possible to have too many 4.5" grinders. I think I have about 6 or 7 and could do with a couple more

 

[dbdartman]

Reconditioned could mean anything from it was "defective" & rebuilt, to it was "returned unused." I picked up a reconditioned Makita belt sander last year for something like $39. It looks like it was assembled once, then repackaged & returned. The tables on it are, IMHO, rather flimsy (& I suspect that's why it was returned), but it works just as it should, & for me flimsy tables don't mean too much (I can work around them & if need be strengthen them). For what I've used it to do (sharpen drill bits & do lighter more precise sanding than a 4.5" grinder will do) it's just fine, plus I couldn't beat the price with a stick.

 

[Egon]

Dave:

I have the same reconditioned DeWalt saw. Mine has a 14 inch stone cutting blade in it as well as a few unused metal cutting fiber blades sitting on the shelf.

 

[Wayne County Hose]

In high school, I had a summer job of reconditioning air conditioners. What they were was a new defective unit that was returned to us, repaired, and repackaged with new paperwork and a full warranty, or, a unit someone just bought and returned. I have never had a problem with a new reconditioned anything and would not hesitate to purchase one. Only thing that scares me is that it's some kid like I was working on the thing.

 

[flusher]

I've finally got setup for welding with the advice of many of you here. Realised that I really need a quick easy way to cut some 1/4"-3/8" stock so that I can start joining things now that I've spent several hours running beads.

Can't find much on sale around here. My choices are (all 14" 15A)

1. Makita with a 4.5" angle grinder kit as bonus $240. On sale at TSC
Except I already have two angle grinders. One with a grinding disk and one with a wire brush. Could I really use another?

2. Delta at Princess Auto (our HF) - better than their home brand $179.

3. Milwaukee 6176-80 reconditioned, 1 year warranty $200

4. Milwaukee 6176-80, brand new, 5 year warranty $250

Which would you pick?

None of them. I prefer a metal cutting bandsaw to a chop saw. I bought one of those $200 bandsaws from Harbor Freight that work in the horizontal and vertical position. Got it on sale for $179.

Harbor Freight Tools - Quality Tools at the Lowest Prices

Works fine for cutting tubing, angle and pipe. I've cut 6" dia steel pipe with 1/4" wall thickness with no problem using that saw.

I like the convenience. Set up the stock in the clamp, align, start the saw, lower the blade onto the stock and go do something else. The saw makes the cut and turns itself off.

 

[bigshovel]

I've finally got setup for welding with the advice of many of you here. Realised that I really need a quick easy way to cut some 1/4"-3/8" stock so that I can start joining things now that I've spent several hours running beads.

Can't find much on sale around here. My choices are (all 14" 15A)

1. Makita with a 4.5" angle grinder kit as bonus $240. On sale at TSC
Except I already have two angle grinders. One with a grinding disk and one with a wire brush. Could I really use another?

2. Delta at Princess Auto (our HF) - better than their home brand $179.

3. Milwaukee 6176-80 reconditioned, 1 year warranty $200

4. Milwaukee 6176-80, brand new, 5 year warranty $250

Which would you pick?

We have used a 14" makita comercially for 18 years daily. Not one time has it needed repaired.

Brad

 

[Scooby074]

I have the Makita kit. Have used it regularly for 5 years with no problems. Highly recommend.Hey you could always use another grinder right?

Only other one id recommend is the Milwaukee if it has the cast iron base. Abused one regularly at work and it holds up well.

 

[canoetrpr]

flusher - interesting.

Our local HF type store (Princess Auto) as a 4 1/2" metal cutting bandsaw.

• cutting cap: @90 degreess round 4-1/2"", rectangular 4x6
• blade speeds 80, 120 and 200 FPM
• Blade size 64-1/2" x 1/2" x 0.025"
• 3/4 HP, 4.6A 1720 RPM
• Auto shut-off

Price: $289.

Can I really get by with something like this? Figured I should get a chop saw first. I picked up to some stock - drops - that is a ft or two long - about 4 to 5" wide. I imagine I would need a chop saw for stuff like that - right?

 

[Soundguy]

For light intermittant use.. you can get a chop saw from harbor freight for 50$

i have one and cut 1/4 angle and up to 5/8 round and several other sizes of small bar stock with it. i occasionally cut 1 - 1.25" hardened pins with it.. go slow and no problems yet.. had it a year with -0- issues.. comes with an extra set of brushes. I bought it as a throw-away for a small project where I had to cut up quite a bit of 1/4" x 3" and 4" flat, 1/2 x1/2 and 1x1/2 bar, 2"x1/4 angle, 3/8, 1/2, and 5/8 round stock and pipe... etc. It survived.. though the single chinese blade they give you for free was junk.. it died on the first cut. i bought a 5-pack pack of ?russian? blades, and am still on the 1st blade out of that pack, after cutting all that metal..

for 50$.. it's hard to pass up for non comercial use.

soundguy

I've finally got setup for welding with the advice of many of you here. Realised that I really need a quick easy way to cut some 1/4"-3/8" stock so that I can start joining things now that I've spent several hours running beads.

Can't find much on sale around here. My choices are (all 14" 15A)

1. Makita with a 4.5" angle grinder kit as bonus $240. On sale at TSC
Except I already have two angle grinders. One with a grinding disk and one with a wire brush. Could I really use another?

2. Delta at Princess Auto (our HF) - better than their home brand $179.

3. Milwaukee 6176-80 reconditioned, 1 year warranty $200

4. Milwaukee 6176-80, brand new, 5 year warranty $250

Which would you pick?

 

[RonMar]

I would look and insure that whatever I chose had a "flip up nut" or speedvise or whatever it is called.

The nut for the securing vice should be able to release by flipping up or shifting sideways allowing the vice rod to guickly do large adjustments, then flip into place and tighten to do the actual tightening.

Then I would look for a heavy base.

I think anything you listed would work.

I don't believe it is possible to have too many 4.5" grinders. I think I have about 6 or 7 and could do with a couple more

Alan summed it up nicely. If you want it to make consistent predictable cuts, you want something with a rigid cast base. Avoid any model that has a stamped steel base(most of the HF stuff) as this will allow the motor to twist and flex depending on how much force you apply on the handle, as well as allow the base and vise assembly to flex. The quick adjust nut is handy for the vise also.

I have had one of these from craftsman(without the laser) Craftsman 14 in. Abrasive Chop Saw with Laser - Model 21289 at Sears.com for a few years now and it has given me good service. It has a good solid base and an easy to adjust 0-45 degree backplate with a nice angle scale. It is heavy, but in this case, that is a good thing.

A band saw would also be an excellent choice as it will do aluminum also, but it will take up conciderably more space if that is a factor. My chopsaw sets on the floor under my workbench next to the welder with room to spare when I am not using it. I don't think I could fit a bandsaw under the bench in my case, but I would still like to have one

Good luck

 

[Wayne County Hose]

Soundguy

I hate to admit it, but I have the HF saw you speak of. I bought it 16 months ago when I opened my hose shop. It has cut hydraulic hoses up to 2" 6-wire and all the steel for all my projects. I have gone thru at least 20 wheels on it, probably more. This saw has never skipped a beat. For 50 bucks, I could buy 3 more of these and still be ahead of buying 1 name brand. I would not hesitate to buy another when this one breaks, if it ever does. I have abused the livin' snot out of it and it keeps coming back for more. Believe it or not, rubber is difficult to cut, especially when mixed with steel. The rubber melts and gums up the wheel, making it stick to the metal, which makes the motor work harder.