Replies

1. 
   cbsn | Jun 11, 2006 08:51pm | #1

   Hi Jay,

   I tried one about a year ago-I was looking to replace my old 8 1/2" Hitachi SCMS. I thought it would be great because of the lessened distance needed for working on a bench. I found the accuracy was less than what I would have liked. When making test cuts in 6" wide boards I would get a "bellied" cut. This happened with two different saws and the salesperson didn't have any explanation of why this was happening or what the fix would be. My suspicion is the 12" blade allows for some deflection while the cut is being made. Maybe it would be solved with a different blade or some other tweaking, but at $650 I think it should work better out of the box. If you are at a dealer that has the regular Hitachi SCMS and this one on display check for side play in the carriage- my experience has been the older design seems more solid.

   I'm not sure whether this saw is being marketed to framers or cabinetmakers...

   I'll be curious to see if Hitachi comes out with a 10" version; I think it is a great idea for saving space in a small shop. I ended up buying a Makita LS1013; it still needs the space front to back and side to side but is incredibly accurate and smooth cutting.

   Hope this helps

1. 
   JayM | Jun 11, 2006 10:43pm | #2

   cbsnIt does help! ThankJay

2. 
   USANigel | Jun 12, 2006 12:27am | #3

   a test I read stated when the blade was replaced with a better grade all the deflection and odd cutting disappeared.

    

3. 
   forestgirl | Jun 12, 2006 04:51pm | #4

   Other companies should be coming out with the compact feature soon, if you don't find the Hitachi respectable.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)