Issues with mitersaw

[Dave Sims]

Hello,

I have always had issues with my craftsman 10" sliding compound mitersaw. I am new to wood working and use poplar for alot of my projects. I struggle to get square cross cuts and it will sometimes make a concave cut in the board. I have searched around and found a similar issue that someone had with their table saw making concave cuts, but it didn't really help me out.

I have tried to adjust the fence alignment. I can get it cutting fairly square, but it doesnt stay that way. Also, if i get it to cut square when the piece of lumber is resting only on the right fence, it will not cut square if i try to cut a piece that is resting against the fence on both sides of the blade.

I upgraded to a borg freud 60 tooth blade and it seems the concave cuts have gotten worse. It seems to lessen if i push through the wood or cut through slowly. I have not been impressed with craftsman anything and I am considering giving up on this saw all together.

I liked the sliding ability to cut the wider plank pergo flooring and i like the compund angle ability to cut crown molding. I like these features, but would much rather have a saw that cuts square as its only feature. I would say that I would generally look to crosscut 3/4" stock, 6" wide max.

Any suggestions for fixing my saw, or maybe another saw that might be more reliable?

Thanks in advance

[Larry Rasmussen]

That little bit of a concave aspect even if the overall angle measured up ok always made me feel like the board was just messing with me. The part where the cut comes out differently if it extends unsupported just past the blade vs going long enough to hit both fences indicates some misalignment between the two fence halves of course. If you can get a straight edge clamped to both fence halves after loosening up the bolts then tighten gently and evenly it should be looking better. I've also taken to clampling the board down for every cut whether it feels like it needs it or not. That did definitely improve my cuts.

I used the time honored General Woodworking and Power Tool Forum technique of simply buying better cuts. I purchased the Milwaukee 12" miter saw- has the miter or "chop" function but is not a slider. The price dropped to under $400 for a refurbed unit on Amazon and I just had no choice. I'd been studying up on Miter saws for a bit and this one just fits my needs.

My previous saw was a current or one back model Hitachi 10" Slider and I thought it was a good budget choice. Getting after the fence alignment carefully did help cut quality quite a bit though basic as it may be.

Hope that helps a bit Dave, nothing earth shattering but that concave cut does respone to a little dicipline.

Regards,.
Larry Rasmussen,
Seattle

[Lonnie Cook]

Dave:

I don't know if your Craftsman saw has a split fence or a one-piece fence.

The one-piece fence on my 12" HF SCMS was not straight. Like your saw, a workpiece registered against the left side of the fence was cut at a different angle to one registered against the right side. Here's what I did to correct the problem. My HF saw cuts (almost) like the big boys now!

I made an aux fence from half inch multi-ply plywood. Make it full width. No cut out for the blade. Follow the top line of your Craftsman fence so that the head will tilt completely for bevel cuts. Hot glue the aux fence to your miter saw fence. Use a straight and square beam such as a jointed 4X4 or table saw fence to hold the aux fence perpendicular to the miter saw table while the hot glue sets up.

The thick hot glue fills the voids between the bent fence and the straight aux fence. The aux fence will remain straight after the blade cuts the kerf through it.

Adjust the aux fence to be square to the blade. Adjust the head/blade to be perp to the table.

The blade will kerf the aux fence when you make your first cut.

Good luck,

- Lonnie

[Dave Sims]

I will definently try clamping a straight edge to my fence and then aligning it. What is your method for checking squareness of the fence? Also where can I get a square that is square. I have read that many people here recommend veritas straight edges, but who makes a good square? The best one I can find is one of those oversized aluminum framing squares. Its too bulky for alot of things. I have purchasd two other squares that are suppose to be true to .001", but that is not the case.

I think that a new saw may be in my future, I would like a descent fence system to make repeatable cutting easy. I will have to deal with this fussy saw until I save up enough cash for a new one. I think maybe I will leave the craftsman name off from everything except screw drivers and that's only because I break them alot and sears will replace them for free.

thanks again

[Dave Sims]

That is also a great idea. I purchased a ridgid jointer a couple of weeks ago and i havent got to use it yet. I am waiting on some rough cut stuff I bought to acclimate, but thats a whole different story. I will scrounge around in the garage for a left over 4x4 from the deck and see what i can come up with.

[Lonnie Cook]

Hi Dave,

I use plastic drafting triangles. Five-cut method to fine tune 90* miter.

- Lonnie

[Jim Rimmer]

That is also a great idea. I purchased a ridgid jointer a couple of weeks ago and i havent got to use it yet. I am waiting on some rough cut stuff I bought to acclimate, but thats a whole different story. I will scrounge around in the garage for a left over 4x4 from the deck and see what i can come up with.

If that left over is pressure treated, find something else or spend a lot of time getting all the chips and sawdust out of your joiner to preent rusting.

[Bill White]

An incendiary grenade will solve the C'man problem. Just be sure to take the saw out of the shop before you pull the pin.
Bill

[Dave Sims]

I have not heard of the five cut method, im guessing aligning cuts at 45*,22.5*0*,22.5*45*??

I have used a square to draw a straight line on a wide board ~6" and cut right next to it to see if they agree, but i dont think it works very well.

The best thing I have come up with is to stack two boards up, nip the ends off and see if they agree when one is flipped around

[Lonnie Cook]

Here is a good explanation from an old Sawmill Creek post ...
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showpost...93&postcount=6

Remember to put the freshly cut side against the fence each time.

- Lonnie

[Dave Sims]

That sounds way better than anything i have thought up. Thank you for explaining the five cut method, i will try that out and pass it on to my buddies.

[Bob Turkovich]

Not sure if this applies but I had a similar problem with a Delta Chop Saw. Found two things contributed to my problem: 1.) Not clamping the work piece to the table/fence. 2.) I didn't always use the lock lever which held the miter angle at 90 degrees, that is, I relied on the detent to hold the blade to fence angle.

When I clamped the work and remembered to lock the table, I had much better cuts.

[Dan Karachio]

I once cut some jointed 4x4's on my Hitachi 12" (non slider) and man oh man, was it awful. Cupped, concave... I never tested this out, but I suspected the blade - a thin kerf model - as the main suspect. Am I nuts in thinking this could be a factor too - the blade?