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Makita LS1214L 12-Inch Dual Slide Compound Miter Saw with Laser Guide | List Price: $629.00
Discount Price: $599.95
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Brand: Makita
Binding: Tools & Hardware
Features: - Built-In laser clearly indicates line of cut with micro-adjustments; independent switch allows laser to be seen with and without the blade rotating
- Dual steel rails with dual linear ball bearings ensures stable, accurate and vibration-free cutting
- Powerful direct-drive 15-amp motor never slips or bogs down
- 9 positive stops at 15, 22.5, 30, and 45 degrees left or right and 0 degrees for the most common miter cuts; additional stop at 33.9 degrees left is added on the LS1214L
- 1-year warranty
Apples to apples [Posted on 2006-06-08]
I researched 12" sliders for several weeks. I read the reviews from several web sites, borrowed a saw to test, went to the stores to see them in person, asked my friends who are brand loyal. Each saw had their strong points, but it comes down to this - What will you primarily us the saw for? I do mostly finish work, custom trim, occasionally larger construction. I need precision and portability.
For comparison, I have a Hitachi 10FCH, a straight forward compound miter saw with laser. The laser is mounted on the lower part of the saw arm, and works extremely well. The saw is light enough to carry up several flights of stairs without too much grief, and it has proven to be very accurate for trim and crown. I've used it outside in the Florida summer and New York winter, never skipped a beat, never bogged down. The dust bag catches about 85% of the saw dust.
I needed a saw to do bigger moldings, nested crown, finish cabinetry work, as well as rough construction tasks. I preferred the larger base of the Makita, versus the DeWalt's mini swivel. Delicate trim, wider nested crown - much easier to work with on a broader base. The slide out table extensions are a nice plus (they only adjust about 3"), extra handles for carrying as well. It's worth noting that the swivel action is the smoothest of them all. The slide action is ridiculously smooth as well, and rock steady.
I need to carry it in and out of customer's homes. Not going to happen with the Rigid or Hitachi (although they may make excellent jobsite saws - large base, front controls, and massive - like tying to carry a buffalo). The soft start feature is really nice, it doesn't jump the material off your mark. The direct drive motor is bull-strong, and very quiet compared to the screaming howl of the DeWalt. A customer friendly attribute.
It needs to work outside occasionally. The only non-mandatory thing on this saw is the laser. To be perfectly honest, I'm not that impressed with it. (My Hitachi is dead nuts on, no matter where the blade is). To set a standard measure point, the blade must be in the raised position - that puts the laser module more than 14" from the work surface, so as you bring the blade down 6-plus inches of travel- the laser line moves a touch to the left. A little frustrating when working with stupid expensive hardwood molding that I'm trying to trim a 16th off of. Sort of eliminates the point of having it in the first place. It does work, it just takes getting used to. It is well constructed, very durable all around. I feel comfortable that it will last out in the unexpected rain and around new construction sites. No bells and whistles or cheesy plastic knobs to break off. My dad has the 10" slider version, 5 years old and it's as accurate as the day he got it. Although I am a big fan and user of Bosch tools, on their 5412L it just seemed that I would break something.
The dust bag gets about 50% on a good day, depending on the blade type and material being cut. The blade that comes with the saw - a 70 tooth crosscut - is really nice. I use a 96 tooth Diablo blade for really fine miter cuts, and it basically makes powder, so only a vacuum can help there. The fence is tall and sturdy enough, although I do like the DeWalt sliding design better.
All in all, a great saw. Durable, very smooth, not extremely heavy, quieter than most saws, and capable of handling everything that I throw at it. I use it on a TracRac T3 stand, which I'm thrilled with as well. The laser just takes getting used to. It could use front controls for the bevel, but the current design works and has durability on its side. I had no quality control issues, it came shipped in an intact box. Being assembled in the USA is a nice plus.
Short Time Owner [Posted on 2006-08-23]
I haven't used the Makita enough to really give it a workout, but it is far and away the best built sliding miter saw!! It doesn't have the scary looking stamped metal pieces that all of the other sliding miters have. I have used it and do like the soft start feature. I only have done rough work with it but accuracy and ease of use has met expections and then some. Very good price and pleasant transaction.
Good quality saw [Posted on 2006-10-24]
I bought this saw several months ago and love it. The base is true and accurate. The lazer works ok however it doesn't show up in any sunlight. Makita should definately beef up the intensity on it. It weighs a ton, but so does every other 12" saw on the market. The glides are still smooth after some pretty extensive use so far. It balances well on my dewalt miter saw stand.
A great addition to my shop [Posted on 2007-02-23]
This is an awsome saw. it seems to handle what ever I can throw at it.Only thing not to thrilled about is it is little heavy. Happy I don't have to lug around too much. I foung the laser easy to adjust
Great Saw [Posted on 2007-03-28]
I ordered the LS1214L from Grizzly to replace a DeWalt DW716 that I returned and it is super nice. I was hesitant about mail-ordering it b/c of a few reviews about damage during shipping so I checked everything out before signing for the delivery and I'm glad I did. Although there was no damage, Makita does not take any extra care when boxing the unit. In fairness, I don't recall that DeWalt did either (though I purchased it from Home Depot), but I think it's something they both should reconsider now that a lot of their saws are being delivered to their final destination via UPS ground. Something I ran into when putting the saw on it's stand was that it was not locked in the 0 degree bevel position (... or any position) and as I was trying to seat it, the saw collapsed. Except for a couple of unecessary nicks on the blade table insert, no harm was done but I could have easily dropped the saw. Okay, enough about poor packaging.
As for the saw, everything seemed to be in order. Bevel and miter pointers were on the money with no adjustments needed. The laser is set to .04 mm to the right of the blade kerf, square to the fence and dead on accurate. Depending on the cut, the laser shoots on either side of the blade. The slide action is awesome ... smooth as silk. The saw is pretty heavy, so you may want to spend the extra money for a good stand. I have a Hitachi UU610cz that works pretty well for a portable stand. It's rock solid stable but the TracRac design places the aluminum mounts on an aluminum track which does flex at the end of a slide cut. So far it has not affected the accuracy of the cuts but I do find myself gently finishing off each cut.
One of my complaints about the DeWalt double bevel compound miter was that on a 45/45 right bevel/miter, the arbor housing hit the fence. There are no problems hitting anything on this saw. The bevel scale is much easier to read and the overall craftsmanship of the LS1214L is much more refined than the DeWalt DW715, DW716 and DW718. I've test cut just a few bevel/miter cuts and the saw performs very well with the laser making it super easy to cut your mark. I have been using the saw indoors and of course outdoor use will affect the visibility of the laser ... just something to keep in mind but I think the extra cost for the laser is well worth it. The saw came with a 70 tooth MAKblade that is quiet and cuts good. The soft start is smooth and the brake is more gradual than some of the other saws that I've used. The bottom line is that I'm extremely pleased with the LS1214L and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a quality built high performance sliding compound miter saw.
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