Ridgid 10" SCMS - opinions?


Razorburne

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This is the one I'm talking about:

 

http://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-10-in-Sliding-Compound-Miter-Saw-with-Dual-Laser-Guide-MS255SR/203132245

 

 

Anyone have any experiencing using one?  For the price point, with the online reviews I could find, and the features, including the fact that it's a double bevel and comes stock with a Freud Diablo blade, it seems like a good deal.  But this of course is all what I see/notice as a newbie who has never owned a miter saw before.  Therefore I defer to anyone who has owned or used one, or in general anyone who would like to chime in with something constructive to say.

 

I really like the Dewalt 780 with the XPS (instead of a laser)......my original thought was to get a less expensive Dewalt and add on the XPS system myself, but I am learning that the saws sold nowadays from Dewalt are now "Type 3" and are not wired to accept the XPS add-on.  Crappy from a consumer stand point - genius from the company's stand pt. --- force everyone interested in XPS to buy the 780 b/c it's the only option, right?   B) 
 

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It's main use is for breaking down stock. This is because I usually only purchase rough stock in lengths of around 8'. It happens to be the best tool for the job, between the scms and the bandsaw depending on the task...

 

Having said that, I also use the saw for making high quality cuts for furniture making. I use the scms for making cuts that are not convenient for the table saw to handle. If the table saw is the better tool for the job, then I use the table saw. The scms debate always goes this way... Some say it's a rough tool, others get furniture quality results with them. My first miter saw, an 8" delta was a piece of garbage only good enough for firewood, maybe! The saws that are available now are more than capable of making furniture quality cuts. Even Fine Woodworking magazine has said as much.

 

For full disclosure, I find myself using the table saw more. I use the table saw even more than ever since I bought the Incra 1000HD miter gauge.

 

The real answer is it depends... I know that isn't an answer, but it has more to do with what task I am performing, and the particular work flow.

 

I hope this helps.

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As I said, I have the Dewalt and although the aftermarket laser is horrible at best, the saw is great and used often in my furniture builds for much more than stock break down.  I will, at some point, upgrade to the Kapex but not because of cut quality, because of dust collection.

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The number one thing I do when I look at any CMS in a store is check the stops to see if there is any amount of play in them.  There are only a handful of saws I have found that have no play in them at all.  Those are on my short list of when, someday, I decide to actually buy a new CMS/SCMS.

 

I have read through the CMS vs. Table Saw debates for awhile.  The one variable is that most of the low-end CMS just are not precise enough to make accurate cuts for furniture.  Case in point, I have a 10" Craftsman CMS that when I swing to 90*, there is a lot of play within the stops.  Getting it to lock down at 90* angle to the back fence is tricky at best.  While I would love to replace it with a high end saw, it made more economical sense to me to get an incra miter gauge combined with a good crosscut sled for the table saw.    I mostly use it now for rough work or where the precision isn't needed.  For example, it got a lot of use when I built my lumber rack.  I would use it more for breaking down my rough lumber, but most of that is 6" wider, or wider, and the 10" CMS only has a 5.5" capacity.

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