bushwacked Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Is this a gimmick or even worth my time? I was thinking of getting this to help speed up cuts... if it is accurate. Right now I do the ol pencil mark and bump till I can get it lined up with the blade. This is not bad, but if I get bigger boards in there my non SCMS makes it tough to figure out where to mark the boards so I can get the blade close to check my cut line.I figure it is only $30 or so ... so if it is pretty good it could be worth it. Do I need a little darker of a shop to see? In a couple of the pics it looks like they are working in near darkness haha. If I need to turn off lights in my shop to make this work the best, then that would be a deal breaker. I would most likely be working in a well lit shop, or with the garage door open letting in the sun light.Does anyone have experience with these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Light at the saw is always a good thing. However, a lot of that stuff is pretty worthless and designed to part you and your money. Like you said tho, it's only 30 bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 No experience with them myself, but I've been told that they're good for stuff like quick & dirty trim work where a little latex caulk can fill the gaps. Not for high accuracy though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted August 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Light at the saw is always a good thing. However, a lot of that stuff is pretty worthless and designed to part you and your money. Like you said tho, it's only 30 bucks.Yep, I was thinking a light would always be helpful, unless it was offline more than 1/16 and then it would be annoying battling with the line it creates and then the line I created ... No experience with them myself, but I've been told that they're good for stuff like quick & dirty trim work where a little latex caulk can fill the gaps. Not for high accuracy though.yes for high accuracy I would do more alignment checks myself ... or just get the Kapex ... but I wont ever need that high of accuracy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 I have 2 LED spotlights on both sides of my Dewalt SCMS. Both are in those adjustable architect type lamps. For the best accuracy I use a marking knife then color the cut with a pencil.$30 is cheaper than 2 lamps($25 ea IKEA) and 2 LED bulbs ($19 ea Costco) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Immortan D Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Those lights come standard with the XPS saw and people seems pretty happy with them. At least a friend of mine is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 (edited) I have one of these on my DeWalt (12" non-slider), and I like it. When I pull the blade down (without power), the shadow accurately shows both sides of the kerf. I can line things up, and make a cut without creeping up (unless I'm doing fine joinery). Edited August 20, 2015 by Beechwood Chip 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted August 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 I have one of these on my DeWalt, and I like it. When I pull the blade down (without power), the shadow accurately shows both sides of the kerf. I can line things up, and make a cut without creeping up (unless I'm doing fine joinery).well thats cool ... seems worth the $30 then if that is the case Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janello Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 (edited) Here's my opinion. I've only used the 12" with light a few times because we have one at work. Can it be accuate? Short answer is yes, but not as accuate as turning the light off and creeping up on a line. It also seems you need to fiddle just as much with your stock and lowering the blade close to the stock so your shadow is the same width as the kerf. That said, If you are buying it for final assembly accuarcy building furniture, I think you'll be disappointed. If you are batching things out before final dimension, it's a time saver.Personally, I went with the 10" dewalt SCMS that doesn't have the light, because A It has better dust collection and B it slides better C Unless it's a Kapex It's not to my standard for accurate crosscuts and I love using a table saw anyway. Eric just wrote this in another thread, and I couldn't agree more.Box store miter saws are construction tools. You can expect construction-quality cuts from them. The Kapex is designed for high-end finish carpentry where a more precise cut is required...crown molding, etc...joints need to be tight. Honestly the Kapex is fairly under-powered for some aspects of furniture making, but it's certainly the most accurate miter saw available in a hobbyist's (upper) price range.I would suggest using your miter saw for DIY and making your furniture miter cuts on the table saw. Edited August 20, 2015 by Janello 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxdabroxx Posted August 20, 2015 Report Share Posted August 20, 2015 Yep, I was thinking a light would always be helpful, unless it was offline more than 1/16 and then it would be annoying battling with the line it creates and then the line I created ... yes for high accuracy I would do more alignment checks myself ... or just get the Kapex ... but I wont ever need that high of accuracy What about a zero clearance insert instead? Then you would know where it is going to cut all the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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