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I would have been through an entire case of abrasive blades by now. I wish I had listened to others and bought this saw years ago. The only flaw I discovered is with the keeper pin that the saw hinges on. It takes less than half the time to cut than my abrasive saw. It has been going non-stop now for three weeks and the blade is just starting to show signs of wear. It can work it's way loose allowing the blade to hit the frame. Only a small screw on either side of the pin holds it in and they tend to back out with vibration.
Cuts very nicely. I like the fact that there are a lots less sparks to start a fire than a typical chop saw.Don't use the blade for cutting stranded cable though, as I learned.
One big warning: don't cut stainless. As a friend told me, if you want to clear out the shop in a hurry, just fire up this saw. Yes, it costs more to operate, but resharpening in Minneapolis (Eide Saw) is less than $20.
Then about 20 teeth were missing or chipped in short order. It's worth it for the speed and for spending a lot less time cleaning up the burrs left by a chop saw. Even with the stainless blade: DeWalt DW7749 14-Inch 90 Tooth Stainless Steel Cutting Saw Blade with 1-Inch Arbor It blew up on me after about 50 beautiful cuts on 1-1/2" 16 gauge square tube; fairly light stuff.
The resharpened blades don't cut quite as clean, but they last as long or better. Thankfully, the Amazon guarantee made it worth trying out for no risk except for the wasted time.But overall, it's a pretty nice cheap alternative to a cold saw. It's also faster than a cold saw or even an abrasive chop saw.
There's also a heck of a lot less dust in my shop and on me now.I agree that the vise is cheesy, but if you deduct the value of the included blade, the saw costs less than $300.And one more thing. People will find another place to hang out as soon as they hear that DeWalt start wailing.
I have been using this saw for approx 2 years in a farm shop. There is no burrs and the cuts are cool enough to handle after you make them. I cut everything from alluminum to hard steel. I have even cut 3 inch heavy wall tubing with this saw and still on the original blade and that is after making all the cuts for 280 foot of pipe fence just recently built. The best part is you don't loose any of your cutting diameter after several cuts like with the abrasive blades. I normally went thru 6-8 abrasive blades a year and at 10.00 a pop it more than covers the cost of replacement of the carbide.I couldn't be more pleased with the saw and would buy another whenever required.
Cuts great, if you take proper care to go slow. If you're used to a using an abrasive type wheel you will be tempted to push too hard and ruin the blade. The cut finish is excellent.
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