“Best Buy” Cordless Circular Saw

“Best Buy” Cordless Circular Saw WOODLOT EQUIPMENT Chain Saws Earlier this year Makita introduced a new battery-powered 7 1/4-in circular saw We decided to buy one and try it out in the hope that it would work better than other cordless saws on the market I’m happy to report that Makita’s new XSR01 is definitely top-notch It’s not cheap at about $360 but in my opinion it’s worth the money And I’m not the only one who likes it Pro Tool Reviews an online tool-testing outfit www protoolreviews com ranked the Makita first out of 16 new cordless circular saws after conducting a variety of tests I used the saw to cut the ends off 25 oak 2 by 8’s rescued from a century-old pole shed They were a full 2 in thick and very hard but the saw never hesitated I also sliced up some 3/4-in OSB ripped 2 by 4’s and sliced up some other old lumber before running the batteries down after more than an hour of steady hard use Under normal circumstances where you make a cut and then put the saw down to measure before making another cut the saw would last 3 to 4 hrs The twin 18-volt 5 Ah batteries give it plenty of juice They have indicators on them that tell how much juice is left When the batteries do run down the dual-port charger that comes with the saw will pump them back up in about 45 min At about 12 lbs the saw is no lightweight However it handles well Controlling the cut with one hand was no problem when the saw was resting on the work piece With a sharp blade it practically pulled itself along the cut The in-line left side blade takes a little getting used to if you’ve only cut with right side blades Once you get used to it though the saw makes it easy to shave a sliver from a board because of the better visibility A computer chip controls the brushless motor running in high-speed mode when starting and making easy cuts As the cutting load increases it switches to high torque mode An indicator lights up when the saw goes into high torque I sliced through one 3/4-in rain-soaked OSB without a problem Three layers of OSB caused the torque light to go on but it still cut through all 3 sheets easily if slower The smartness of the saw extends to overload Should the operator push it too hard and the motor start to overheat it shuts down That happened when I pushed the saw too hard into wet boards A blinking battery indicator light tells you to let it cool before using again If operated with excessive load the mode indicator blinks in green until the operator reduces the load The 7 1/4-in blade cuts up to 2 9/16 in deep on a straight cut and 1 3/4 in on a 45-degree bevel Adjusting depth of cut and angle of cut is straightforward with easy-to-grab levers A positive stopper lets you quickly adjust bevels from 22 5 degrees to 45 or 53 degrees That was a handy feature as I switched from straight to bevel and back The depth adjustment was surprisingly accurate I dropped it to roughly the 1 1/2-in mark and ripped a 2 by 2 from a 2 by 6 The teeth barely scratched the OSB board beneath From a safety standpoint the Makita features a saw brake that stops the blade fast when you take your finger off the trigger Looking for additional input I showed the new saw to a finish carpenter who like most started out framing houses He approved of the weight ease of handling and suggested framers would find it really handy I also shared it with my young son-in-law who uses his circle saw for nearly every type of woodwork He too found it easy to work with Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Jim Ruen ph 507 895-2229; farmshowjim@gmail com

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