Hi folks, recently I started noticing a problem with the cut quality on my 1-year-old Makita LS1013 miter saw. I'm hoping it's just user error and not anything wrong with the saw.

cut problem 1.pngcut problem 2.png

The freshly-cut face in both drawings is on the right. The red region represents a volume that is being removed by the saw. It seems to correspond to the location of the teeth when the blade is pushed all the way forward. It is sometimes burned-looking.

I've tried lifting the blade the instant the cut is done, as well as tried sliding the board to the left the instant the cut is done. Sometimes I get it in time, sometimes I'm too early, and sometimes too late.

Is this normal and just a technique issue on my part? Are my expectations too high? I am using the stock blade, but am not opposed to getting a nice new one if that's the culprit.

Any thoughts appreciated - thanks,

Mike