Sliding miter saws do a lot of work on my job sites. It’s a tool that has always been the center of my work set-up.
Origin story.
Back when I was first repairing homes, my go-to tool was a fixed-head, double bevel 12-inch DeWalt miter saw. It appears to have not changed much in the past two decades, so that’s saying something about the usefulness and popularity of the saw.
That saw cut just about anything I could get on the table and against the fence. It cut 5 ½-inch base upright with no unnecessary beveling, and crown molding in the position called “nested.” It also motored through framing, trim of all sorts, 2×2 deck balusters, and whatever else I threw at it. Sliders were just barely on the scene as I recall, with Hitachi (now renamed Metabo HPT) being first and best to market as they often were, and remain to this day.
Then Hitachi, made a pro trimmer’s dream saw, the Hitachi fixed-head giant 15-inch miter saw. This was the high-end guys’ raison d’etre. The blade for this thing, I think, cost more than my truck. It was ground-pounding.
What sliding miter saw do I use?
I use a Milwaukee miter saw, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. The 12-inch slider is right for the work I do, which is general remodeling with a focus on decks, basements, and sheds. It’s the blade size that matters, not the slide. The 12-inch saw cuts everything I need them to cut.
On the rare occasion I need to cut something really wide, say a 12-inch shelf blank for a closet or bookshelf, it can do it and not have to give it a second thought. As a professional, need this go-to ease in our toolbox. As a DIYer, it’s not necessarily the case.
The other element sliders offer is an optimized cut. A fixed-head saw (often called a chop saw) only chops. It works, but it only chops, and that limits the width of cut.
A fixed-head saw (often called a chop saw) only chops. It works, but it only chops, and that limits the width of cut.
A jig can help.
If I’m whacking a 2×2 to length for a deck, I set up a jig and cut those pieces six or eight at a time. With the slider, I can glide that 12-inch blade out, lay it into the cut, then glide it through all that glorious Southern Yellow Pine goodness. If I’m cutting a shelf made from plywood or MDF, I can pre-kerf the cut to minimize tear-out by scoring the surface with a ¼-depth cut, then come back for the full cut.
Do you need a sliding compound miter saw?
A sliding miter saw cuts more and does so better, more comfortably, more to one’s preference or needs than a fixed head. Does it cost more? Sure. It should. It does more. Do you need a sliding miter saw? I revert back to an answer that has never failed me:
When buying tools, buy the most tool you can afford and don’t just think about the job at hand. Think about the next job and the job after that.
I hope this helped.
About the Author
