Makita LS1013FL

This is our second Makita slide saw, same model. The standard features along with it's portability make it an easy choice for our job trailer. We use it for anything from cutting framing lumber or fine trim… to vinyl siding. Only downside to buying online is the shipping packaging needs to be re-thought. Ours arrived with the tilt handle broken and laying in the bottom of the box.will need to take care of that.

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I have suffered for many years with an old B&D chop saw which was noisy as all getout, inaccurate, and worst of all had a badly designed blade guard that I had to remove long ago, making me wonder when I… would first chop a couple of fingers off. I am about to start a big home improvement project with lots of expensive trim and crown moldings, and wanted something that would be good for that as well as fine furniture-making projects I have planned for the near future. So I finally took the plunge and got the Makita LS1013FL. Though I have only had it for two days, I can already tell that this saw fills the bill nicely, and at a great price. I had looked at the Festool, but decided it wouldn't be wise to take out a second mortgage right now to get a tool, even one that appears as great as that. So after reading many reviews, mainly of the Dewalt, Bosch and Makita sliding miter saws, I quickly eliminated the Bosch and Dewalt and settled on Makita. I ruled out the 12" saws because of reports of inaccuracy due to blade flexing, plus I didn't want the extra weight. And with the sliding saws the capacity of the 10" models is really quite good, not that much lower than the 12" models and far better than the non-sliding saws like the old B&D that I had. I wound up actually getting the saw from big orange; they just had a $100 price reduction. So the price is now $399. As others have pointed out, the packaging could be better, so it was also nice to be able to inspect the box before buying, which in this case was in good shape, no visible damage. Right out of the box the saw itself appeared to be in perfect condition. The sliding mechanism was tight (no play) and smooth. I got very accurate 90 and 45 degree cuts, checked with an accurate Starrett combination square. Don't know if the detents will hold up, but that is not a big issue for me since I can always override them for fine work that requires the utmost accuracy. The saw was surprisingly quiet, at least compared to the old B&D. As others have reported, the blade is quite good, giving you a very smooth cut. The laser is plenty bright (at least indoors) and appears to be accurately aligned out of the box. The fluorescent light is OK, but not great and not really necessary, IMO, unless you are forced to work at dusk, say, with no other lights. My main complaints so far are that the right side sub-fence was not included with the saw, and the vertical clamp is not designed as well as it could be (it can be hard to position where you would like at times because the plastic spinner used to tighten the swinging part hits the left fence). I guess I would also say that even the left side fence is a bit on the low side, but the right side fence is just way too low without the sub-fence. So I have ordered the right-hand fence from Amazon for about $54, though it hasn't arrived yet. I was planning to use the Makita with a Dewalt 723 stand, which I picked up for $189, but am considering swapping the 723 for either a Delta 36-136 stand (appears sturdier and has wheels), or a Trojan MS-2000, a little pricier, but with some nice features. The main drawback of the delta has only an 8-foot wide support capability, compared to 16' for the Dewalt and 13' for the Trojan. (The Sawhelper Ultrafence sure looks good, but the 2nd mortgage requirement again looms large :)

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Having done a lot of searching and reading of reviews of so many compound miter saws to find just the right one, I can only be sweetly satisfied with my final choice. I read so many contradictory reviews… about every saw I had in mind to buy. It was easy to tell the casual handyman from the demanding dedicated woodworking specialist when reading the reviews. I finally found a site that tested products for woodworking enthusiast and professionals. The number one saw was 1600 dollars! The number two saw was the Makita LS1013FL. I trusted their judgment and went with the Makita. Let me say that it is the greatest. Two minor adjustments on the blade out of box and I was cutting precise trim angles. I've struggled for twenty years to get perfect angles consistently without having to "fudge" the adjustments of the saw. The detentes are right on, the slide is so smooth and the laser is perfect. I have finished the trim in my bathroom, utility room and kitchen with effortless precision. If you want a beautiful saw, this is it for the money. I give it 5 stars for making my work so much easier.

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