# Miter saw lasers



## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

I would love to hear some feed back from members who have purchased any of the miter saw laser washers. My old Craftsman compound miter saw came with the Craftsman version. This does speed up the alignment process a bit. I am guessing members would like to hear the pros and cons of the various models.


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## rweerstra (Feb 9, 2010)

I have one on my Dewalt miter saw. I loaned out my saw a few months ago and it has not returned yet. I cannot remember the brand but I think it is Irwin. When I change the blade, I will remove it. It puts a good bright line down on the wood but it is about 1/16th inch off of the cut. That means that I have to measure it anyway. 

I called Irwin and asked if there was a means to improve the accuracy and they said no, just measure the error and add that to the cut. That seems to defeat the purpose.

I don't see much value to it but possibly the ones that come as a part of the saw are more of a benefit.


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## Dmeadows (Jun 28, 2011)

I have one on my RAS. Have about the same accuracy results as Ron has. Works about the same on my Delta slider. At least in my case I didn't spend money for it. 

There are easier ways to make accurate cuts!


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## carlp. (Nov 3, 2012)

*mitre saw lasers*

Hi Mike I have a Bosch gcm 10sd not sure if is same as model in USA but will do some checking today to see if is available here In SA. regards carl


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## wuzfuzde (Feb 21, 2009)

rweerstra said:


> I have one on my Dewalt miter saw. I loaned out my saw a few months ago and it has not returned yet. I cannot remember the brand but I think it is Irwin. When I change the blade, I will remove it. It puts a good bright line down on the wood but it is about 1/16th inch off of the cut. That means that I have to measure it anyway.
> 
> I called Irwin and asked if there was a means to improve the accuracy and they said no, just measure the error and add that to the cut. That seems to defeat the purpose.
> 
> I don't see much value to it but possibly the ones that come as a part of the saw are more of a benefit.


i have a great 12 inch Rigid miter saw -when i had to change the laser it was at least 1/16 inch off…sort of renders the concept null … actually i can manually usually line it up closer than that with just eyeing it….


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## Botelho007 (Sep 23, 2012)

I bought the DWS780.
I have to use the tool to form the very opinion however the expectations are the best possible.

The laser system needs no calibration when changing the blade


_The DW780 compound miter saw comes complete with the new XPS – Cross cut alignment feature which has a bolstered LED backlight which will cast a shadow on your work surface to show you exactly where your blade will come into contact with your material. _


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## Gene Howe (Jul 10, 2007)

I discarded mine at the first blade change.
If the arbor were longer, one on each side of the blade would be better.


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## harrysin (Jan 15, 2007)

I have a Bosch GCM12GDL and unlike the American version, mine has TWIN laser beams and the blade goes between them so no measuring is required. The laser assembly is up above near the handle and is adjustable, I'm very pleased with it. I must say that It surprises me that Australia is once again ahead of America so far as power tools are concerned.


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## Cochese (Jan 12, 2010)

Add-on lasers are no benefit, no matter what country you're in (and I finally made use of the ignore feature, which I should have done some time back). They merely tell you if you're in the neighborhood or what side of the line to cut on.

If you aren't relying on your miter for precision, then it may be a benefit.


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## 64 ford (Apr 21, 2013)

Mike
I have one on a 10 Makita sliding compound mitre saw and it only gets you close so you still have sneak up on your cut.
I bought 2 Irwin's for skillsaws- both failed in short order -JUNK. I think lasers are just another "gotta have" item and not worth the money.
Dennis


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## Mike (Nov 22, 2004)

I always measure and lay out my cuts so the laser on my Craftsman is just used to quickly align the wood. I have a zero clearance insert and the laser hits right on the money. Maybe I just got the exception to the rule?


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## MikeMa (Jul 27, 2006)

on mine, there is a visible gap between the laser line and the actual cut. I have found for rough work its fine.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Gave up on them. When I need an exact cut with my Bosch sliding miter, I make a fine scribe mark and adjust until one of the blade's teeth line up exactly. The laser was useless for exact cuts, had to do this anyway. I can see that casting a shadow of the blade might work better, but for that final bit of accuracy, you're still lining up the tooth, not the body of the blade.


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## Dmeadows (Jun 28, 2011)

Mike said:


> I always measure and lay out my cuts so the laser on my Craftsman is just used to quickly align the wood. I have a zero clearance insert and the laser hits right on the money. Maybe I just got the exception to the rule?


MIke, with the ZCI, just mark the board on the edge close to the insert and line it up with the kerf in the ZCI! Much more accurate than the laser line, which is usually too thick even when accurate. 

Harry, we have had dual laser saws for many years over here! However, I thought we were talking about add ons for saws that didn't come from the factory with one.

PS: If you don't want to measure, an extended fence with a scale and a calibrated stop is the way to go. Even with the laser, if I am cutting more than 1 piece the same length, I use a stop block and lining up more than the first one, becomes a moot point!


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## MAFoElffen (Jun 8, 2012)

Mike said:


> I always measure and lay out my cuts so the laser on my Craftsman is just used to quickly align the wood. I have a zero clearance insert and the laser hits right on the money. Maybe I just got the exception to the rule?


+1 with Mike on how it worked and how I use it.

I got my first one of this type for free. Years ago, it (Irwin) came free with a new finish blade. A good quick reference, but I was working as a finish carpenter so I always verified my cuts to the blade edge.

Funny thing is, that was with the older 12" Makita and Dewalt SCMC's. I later bought a 10" SCMC to replace mine. It was a 10" Ryobi that came with a built in Laser. (Don't laugh or scoff! That saw has had heavy commercial use for over 10 years and it's still fresh!) That laser is adjustable. It turns on via a switch. (The blade didn't have to be turning to turn on.) That laser I liked so much, that I went to my parts supplier and had him look up the individual parts for that saw, ordered & bought them... and put them on top the blade guard of my panel saw. All of the pieces totaled less than $20. Like I said. It's adjustable and the range is good over 8 feet.


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

We have 2 Dewalt 705 compounds one older and one newer. I purchased lasers for them, and the adapter kits. I never installed them, to me they are just not accurate enough. We use fine mechanical pencils for layout, and either 'leave the line' or 'cut the line' marks for instruction.


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## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

I found a youtube video describing the dewalt saw that Claudio mentioned. The description of the dw780 is here:

Dewalt DWS780 Compound Slide Mitre Saw with XPS - YouTube

The info about the light feature is at about 3:25 in the video.

There is an add on for dewalts on amazon:
DEWALT DWS7085 Miter-Saw LED Work Light System - Amazon.com

It would be nice if someone could come up with a universal unit, even if it's battery powered. If anyone hears of one, I'd like to know Jim


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## MAFoElffen (Jun 8, 2012)

Willway said:


> We have 2 Dewalt 705 compounds one older and one newer. I purchased lasers for them, and the adapter kits. I never installed them, to me they are just not accurate enough. We use fine mechanical pencils for layout, and either 'leave the line' or 'cut the line' marks for instruction.


Dick- 
The as you know, we make the cut by getting the line close, then bringing the blade down to the work and adjusting the work to it... back the blade up off the work to start the blade turning and make that cut.

But on offhand angles, we usually take a bevel square to the corner, take that to the work to mark it. to the miter saw to adjust the miter. (Sometimes we have to measure and do the math first, but sometimes not)... Easily done with a laser, matching to what's marked on the work.

Laser width is fixed on the type Mike posted, but mine is adjustable to a range and adjustable to where that shines.

One of the two things I didn't like about the type Mike posted is that it only mounted to the left side of the blade... so it was referenced off the left edge of that blade. Another drawback was that it was a fairly wide mark. The worst drawback was that it was only turned on while the blade was turning...

Common sense told me that when the blade is turning is not a "time" when you want to start moving your left hand and the material around... or making adjusts to a saw. Just wasn't safe in my train of thought. Since that revelation has hit me, it's probably sat in a compartment in the top of my tool box for over 10 years. 

Now the other type that I can turn on via a switch (without the blade turning.) I use all the time. (But it is not the same.) The line is on a separate lens to the laser, that can be adjusted. It is on a bracket that can be adjusted. But to me, it's still just a rough reference. Like I've said before... it's almost automatic for me to make a rough cut 1/16 long, then bring that in for a finish cut.

Just me...


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## greenacres2 (Dec 23, 2011)

chessnut2 said:


> I found a youtube video describing the dewalt saw that Claudio mentioned. The description of the dw780 is here:
> 
> Dewalt DWS780 Compound Slide Mitre Saw with XPS - YouTube
> 
> ...


Thanks Jim--For some reason I didn't think the LED fit the DW718. Lasers have gotten consistently mixed reviews, but with my shop lighting the LED would be helpful to me even the shadow line isn't accurate enough to avoid sneaking up on the cut. I'll give that some thought. Makes sense to me as a light, alignment would be a bonus. At half the cost of the laser from DW, might be worth a try.

earl


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## MAFoElffen (Jun 8, 2012)

chessnut2 said:


> It would be nice if someone could come up with a universal unit, even if it's battery powered. If anyone hears of one, I'd like to know Jim


$4.99 at Harbor Freight. I have one of these and used it before ordering and installing a 
115 volt unit. 

Photo is linked to the catalog page. It is magnetic mount, but it also comes with double-sided tape and mounting screws.

For Earl- I use battery powered lights from Home Depot. One style has a c-clamp and the other has a magnetic mount. Both have a flexible necked light head. I found them as for propane bar-b-ques (that section of store). They are more durable and weatherproof than other's I've used. Other's just didn't last if dropped or if they got a little moisture... but these do.

Photo is linked to page... Jobsite tested.


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## Everend (Mar 15, 2013)

I bought one from Lowes a few years a back, it worked, putting the line within 1/16" or so of the actual cut.... Until I cut a 4x4 using a 10" blade saw. The wood rubbed against the laser housing and damaged it. 

The fancy zipper case it came in gets used every day, keeping my various driver bits.


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## CharleyL (Feb 28, 2009)

I bought a Delta compound miter saw about 5 years ago because it came with a dual laser system mounted up in the handle. I found that the laser lines themselves were a bit wide to use where high accuracy work. Then I got the bright idea to align them so that the blade side of the laser line was perfectly set to the edge of the cut line. I can now work from the lasers and get cuts within about .020" every time. Setting them this accurately took some time and fussing, but it was well worth it. The only thing that I've needed to do to it since is blow off the laser lenses with a blast of air every once in a while. The cutting accuracy has not changed.

Charley


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## Cochese (Jan 12, 2010)

I went back and looked at my Hitachi yesterday while I was out in the shop. It has a laser mounted in the body of the saw (which doesn't pivot) and I have to say it is remarkably accurate. In the future I will be able to only rely on it.


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