DEWALT DW718 Heavy-Duty 15 Amp 12-Inch Dual Bevel Sliding Compound Miter Saw

List Price: $599.00 Discount Price: Too low to display

Features:

• Heavy-duty 12-inch double-bevel sliding compound miter saw with 10 positive miter stops and carrying handle
• 15 amp motor; 3,600 rpm; precise miter system and machines base fence support optimizes cutting accuracy
• Stainless steel detent plate; carbide blade
• Includes saw, blade, blade wrench
• 57 pounds; 1-year warranty

Accessories:
DEWALT Construction Professional Reference (Dewalt Trade Reference Series)	Rousseau 2875XL Miter Saw Stand	DeWalt DC022 Combination 38 Watt Fluorescent Worklight and 7.2-Volt to 18-Volt Dual Port Pod Style Battery Charger with GFCI Protection	Denali 11-Inch Digital Angle Protractor	DEWALT DW7187 Heavy Duty Adjustable Miter Saw Laser System

Customer Reviews:

I love mine.  [Posted on 2008-03-23]
I am a carpenter by day and operate a small furniture building business nights and weekends. This saw has been with me for 2.5+ years now and gets used daily for all types of woodworking. Sometimes framing or trim, but mostly cutting parts for fine furniture. The blade that came with it is junk for anything but framing. With a good tune up and a Forrest Chopmaster blade, this saw is capable of doing extremely precision work. The following is a review I posted on a woodworking newsgroup shortly after I purchased the saw. It explains what I was looking for and why I bought the DeWalt:
"Well, after 6 weeks of borrowing co-workers saws to trim houses out because
I couldn't make up my mind on which saw to replace my old 12" Ridgid MS, I
made the decision yesterday to buy a new one. The choices narrowed down to
two, Hitachi's 10" slider, which I've used considerably. The Bosch 10"
slider, which I've never actually used, but the upfront bevel lock was worth
putting it at the top of the list. The new 12" DeWalt slider, which I
happened across browsing the tool section of HD earlier this week, was a
late entry in the running, but worth adding to the list.
I went out yesterday to get the Bosch. I own many Bosch tools and have
been very pleased with all of them. After playing with the Bosch a while,
basically putting the saw through the motions as I would if I were really
cutting with it, I couldn't help thinking about that DeWalt. Decisions,
Decisions, Decisions!!!
Anyway, I decided to drive over to the HD to give the Dewalt a second
look. On the way there, I put together the perfect miter saw in my mind,
basically combining all the things I've liked about saws I've used over my
18 years as a carpenter into one perfect saw. Knowing I'll never find this
one, I'm gonna settle for the one that is as close as possible. Here's the
list:

1. Tall fence - This allows cutting things standing up. Great for
baseboard. Also, I like to cut crown laying at the spring angle upside down
against the fence. This way, you only change the miter from left 45 deg to
right 45 deg. for cuts, and it doesn't matter if it's 45/45 deg crown or
52/38 deg crown. If you lay it flat, you're constantly changing the miter
and bevel for left and right cuts. Way less efficient for a production run.
This eliminated the Hitachi with it's small fence.

2. Slotted blade guard. - This is important for sighting straight down the
blade to your cut line. The Hitachi and Bosch have a clear guard similiar
to my old Ridgid which is nice for a while, but dust settles inside the
guard making it difficult to see through and hard to clean. This left me
sighting down from the side of the blade, which can be inaccurate. (A laser
may make this a moot point) The new DeWalt, like their other saws, has an
excellent slotted blade guard that you can sight down the blade easily.

3. Easy to read miter/bevel scale. - The DeWalt line, IMO, has the best
miter scales of the three. The miter scale on their new saw is the familiar
stainless one on their other saws which works very well. The bevel scales
were about the same on all 3 saws to me, none being greatly easier to read
than the other. (All 3 could improve here)

4. Easy to operate Miter/Bevel locks - The Bosch won the bevel lock with
it's upfront controls, but the DeWalt won on the miter lock. No knob to
turn to lock the miter, just push down. And the detent override was easier
to access too.

5. Smooth slide without deflection. - I felt the differrence in smoothness
between the three was negligable. All worked well. And, like any slider,
all deflected somewhat if enough pressure is applied anywhere but perpendicular to the fence. The key to using any sliding saw is to let the saw do the work and just guide the blade with slight steady pressure perpendicular to the fence. If the blade is forced to make a cut, it will drift. Dull blades will also cause the cut to drift.

6. Size does matter - I didn't measure each one, but the DeWalt seems more
compact for a 12" than the other two 10" saws. Oddly, it seems quite
"roomy" and compact (hard to explain this one).

7. Price. - The Dewalt, being a 12" was the same price as the competitors
12" saws at $650 which was a hard pill to swallow. The competitors saws
also came with a laser while the DeWalt is a $50 option. However, after
years of buying what I could afford as opposed to what I really wanted,
lately, I've been buying what I feel will help me produce the best quality
work with the least amount of fuss.

There are a number of other things on the list of the "perfect saw" such as
dust collection (which is not-so-great on all saws I've used), capacity,
accuracy, (which I'd expect on any quality saw) etc, that I can add, but the
points mentioned are the differences between them rather than what I'd
expect from all saws so I'm gonna let it go at that.

I ended up with the DeWalt as it met the most things I was looking for. Set
it up last night (well, it was put together out of the box except to attach
the dust bag and optional laser, which i purchased) and have put it to the
test today. The laser took a little time to align, but produces a nice
bright thin line. If the laser is aligned incorrectly, it will make a thick
fuzzy line, kind of like pointing a flashlight straight at the ground as
opposed to shining it at an angle with the ground, so keep that in mind if
you are setting one up. I read some reviews about the saw this morning on
this group and noticed someone mentioned the slide was difficult to use. I
did notice this on the store model and was somewhat concerned. However, my
saw slides smoothly. The store model was on a shelf considerable higher
than my stand, so I suspect the height difference may play a part in the
sliding mechanism being operated smoothly. As far as accuracy, I've cut up
some big thick stuff today, 12/4 x8 WO, 8/4 walnut etc. The saw performed
just fine. Accurate and smooth cuts, even with the factory supplied 60
tooth DeWalt blade (and I'm am not a fan of DeWalt blades either) and easy
to operate. So far, I'm very pleased. It has passed all preliminary tests.
The real test is gonna happen this week when I take it to a production
environment and see how it goes. I'll post a follow up shortly.
The salesman told me it has a 90 day money back guarantee if I don't like
it, but I think DeWalt is going to keep my money on this one."

That was a recap of what I was looking for when I purchased the DeWalt 718. After using it for several years, I have never regretted buying the saw. It's been a real workhorse and although I regularly check it's settings, it's rarely went out. This saw, when tuned up with the right blade, can be deadly accurate. My only real complaint is the optional laser is junk. It works until the saw is moved even slightly, and then it goes out of alignment. It's been annoying enough that I haven't even turned the laser on in the last 2 years. However, the saw gets used pretty much daily and continues to provide me with reliable, accurate cuts. -dave

Dewalt 718 Dual bevel compound sliding miter saw [Posted on 2008-03-31]
Bought the 12" Dewalt dual bevel sliding compound miter saw on sale at Murdoch's. The saw has very poor dust collection system. The dust built up on the slide and would not complete cut. I returned it and was refunded my money. Went back to the Makita with same capabilities and no problems. Thanks for your time. Loren Holland Miles City Mt 59301.

Great Saw [Posted on 2008-04-05]
The best part of using this saw is you can cut a 2X12 board in any angle at one time. The same saw without extending arm requires two or more cuts while turning the board over or around to complete the cut. You can make a better cut in a shorter time which will save time on the job site.

The problem with this saw is the weight.

Quality Reduction [Posted on 2008-04-22]
So here's my story.

I've owned the previous model (708 dual bevel sliding miter) for about 7 years and loved that saw. Great quality blade, great cut, dead on. The saw was heavy duty metal that did what it was supposed to. I got a little greedy when I saw some of the features on the new 718 model like the bevel presets and laser capability.

Here are the complaints... First of all. With the old 708 you could grab the handle anywhere to depress the blade. The first time I grabbed the handle and depressed the blade on this new 718, the plastic blade guard swung up and sliced the skin off my thumb. I cannot believe that made it through product testing. Second issue is just general quality of construction and materials. The 718 is such lightweight low quality aluminum that I cannot believe it will stand the test of time. Honestly, it is hard for me to accept that both these saws came from the same company.

It is sad what Dewalt has let happen to their product quality.

Good job Dewalt! [Posted on 2008-05-09]
I really enjoy this saw! After reading some of the negative reviews I was a little worried about the saw being accurate. Right out of the box I checked its accuracy, It was Dead on! I really have only been useing this saw for Fencing, Decking and some framing. I look forward to doing some finish work.

One feature that I really like is that when you begin your cut you don't even feel the guard action. I looked at the Ridgid and Makita, both of those had a little resistance when you began your cut.

This saw also turns really smoothly.

I was wondering why some people critized this saw for producing dust when cutting, I think that its no worse then any others I have used.

I also heard that this saw was underpowered. I strongly disagree. I have been cutting all sorts of very wet 4x4's and 2x4 and 2x6's. This saw spins a little slower then others to give it plenty of power!

One user complained that the 2 sliding rails were smaller than others. I would probably not just talk about size here, but what material surround the sliding action, and what material the bars themselves are made of.

The only critism that I have us that its pretty heavy and big to move around. Although if I wanted a smaller portable one, I would not have bought this saw.

This is probably the most expensive tool I have ever bought, but I have not been disapointed! Good job Dewalt!

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