The ugly truth about the Hitachi 12" miter saw

I had a chance to extensively test this saw recently on some big pieces of oak. My advice - avoid it for a few years until they get the bugs worked out. It has some new technology and an interestingly weird look, but it just doesn't do the cutting job it's supposed to do.

Because the rods that the saw ride on are vertical instead of horizontal, the saw head wobbles around more than it should and more than most other 12" saws, especially when it's tilted to the side for a bevel cut. Wide compound miter cuts actually come out curved, and since they curve the saw really struggles with them. But even wide straight cuts are poor quality - cut a 10" wide piece of wood and hold it against a straightedge and you'll see lots of daylight. The digital readout is a great idea, but it only reads 1/2 degree increments, so it's not much good for precision cutting. The saw is very top heavy, and at close to 70 lbs. it's a killer to lug around. All in all, the saw is eye (and media) catching, but poorly engineered.

Posted by Eric Smith on May 4, 2006 10:37 PM |

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