I'm looking into a miter saw and hoping to snag one on Craigslist. Any tips or overlooked gems?

 

 

Depends on your goals. I would try to find a sliding compound miter. Ridgid makes a fantastic 12" SCM. IMO the rails and action are 10X nicer than the DeWalt Professional series. I would be sure to buy a solid blade. I use only Forrest blades now, but there are many other good manufacturers out there.

 

I decided part way through looking that if it had to be a DeWalt/Ridgid/... that a sliding wasn't in the cards.  They all flex so much it is bad.  The Bosch/Milwaukee/Festool on the other hand

 

 

Got the offer. But damn it comes with some down sides. Two weeks of training, and training time only pays 8 an hr. After that its up to 12 an hr with ample room to advance. First step up only jumps up 1 dollar an hr, after that it is salary.

Plus side, it is solid employment after 90 days, they work with some big companies, and offers full benefits.

J

What about the other position?

 

No matter what I'd counter....

Countered back for more. Got told there is no room to negotiate the start price. If moved up to the salaried position is when they will talk.

J

 

Then it's a lie

The festool is balls out fantastic.

I looked for a LONG time for a used anything reasonable and there was NEVER any sliding one worth buying.  They were all sacked out.  Including the used Festool I found on CL.

My local Rockler (Johnson's Workbench) is a Festool dealer and they will let you try it before you buy it.  I was not enough of a fan to justify spending three times what I paid for my Bosch.  It's ONLY advantage was storage space.

I have actually used the Bosch and festool.

Both were great. The festool felt less sturdy, but from everything I read they are actually incredibly durable.

Dust collection. It destroys everything else in dust collection.

Murders it.

That or the Bosch was set up wrong.

For the price difference I would probably buy the Bosch though. However I can probably get close enough to employee pricing for Festool if I really wanted one in my shop.

Festool is also easier to make miter cuts with.  Significantly.  The jig and laser setup are the only ones that work.  The rest just don't really add much.  Those make it damn near idiot proof.

 

Any angle or sight cutting

Dust collection

Weight

Storage space

 

Are all advantages IMO.  I had such a hard time wtih the price I didn't buy anything.  

 

Two huge disadvantages.

Cost

10"

10" isn't really the problem, it just doesn't cut all that deep even for a 10.

I tried that and the articulating Bosch along with the standard choices.  The Festool and Bosch were the best.  Would have bought the Bosch at 70% of its price and the Festool at 50%.  So I bought nothing.  Doh!

 

If I was on a budget a non sliding Hitachi 12" would be my choice.  By far felt the most accurate of the plane janes and their plug in stuff is pretty bomb proof.  They make a helluva router as well.  You may find one of those used.  Hell if I saw one used I'd buy it and probably be more than happy enough to never upgrade.

 

...but I want the Festool

in a 12"

and with standard blades

Blades and 10" are the only real "problem" to me. And it's not that big of a deal.

But again, if I'm paying sticker the Bosch was awesome. I didn't think Hitachi made anything worth my time.

I burn through routers somehow. Gone through 2 in the last 3 projects. Just long enough the warranty doesn't matter.

The M12 Hitachi router will last you a LONG time.  It's a beast and that is a compliment.

Magic smoke came out of the golf cart charger in spectacular fashion tonight.

Probably shouldn't leave it out in the rain, morons.

Hope the battery pack is okay

Magic smoke is coming out of the egg right now!

That smoke probably smells delicious!

Neil, I tried to find that Big Gruesome Stout you suggested, but none of the big 3 microbrew shops here carry it.

Ok, I may give it a try for myself.

Sitting next to manny villafina

No one bit.  Founder of St Jude Medical & Guidant.  Small world.  I know the counterpart from Medtronic as his son is a good friend of mine.