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Cordless Circular Saws

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smackababy

Lifer
Are these any good? I am not working construction (a hobbyist doing some light stuff) and don't need it to run all day, but I'd like it to cut more than a few feet of wood before needing a recharge.

Worth getting a corded saw anymore? Does it really come down to quality of the saw or something like that for how good the cordless version is?

Thanks!
 
In my experience they will cut a few feet of wood and then need a recharge. I have a cordless for convenience and a corded for heavy duty work.
 
Even when mine was brand new with a fully charged battery it didn't last long. It became pretty worthless once the batteries aged.
 
iamwiz82 said:
In my experience they will cut a few feet of wood and then need a recharge. I have a cordless for convenience and a corded for heavy duty work.
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+1

The only cordless circular saws I've worked with came as part of combo kits. They generally piss me off after a couple stupid slow cuts and I go looking for my corded saw.
 
You will never see a carpenter doing any kind of real work like building a deck or framing a house using a battery operated handsaw or sawzal for a reason.

If you only plan on buying one, I would go corded.
 
Thanks guys. That's all I needed to hear. Sounds like if I need to make a single quick cut, a cordless would work, but for any real work, corded is the way to go. I will pick up a corded one and call it a day.
 
I work construction and I always keep a cordless saw around. I use it a lot on the job, but if I'm doing any ripping, or tons of cutting then I definitely set up a corded saw.

After having them on the job I feel cut off at the knees without a cordless saw, but it by no means can keep up with a corded one.

And I advise that you run Diablo blades on your cordless saws, they are much better blades and will make your batteries last longer.
 
SyndromeOCZ said:
I work construction and I always keep a cordless saw around. I use it a lot on the job, but if I'm doing any ripping, or tons of cutting then I definitely set up a corded saw.

After having them on the job I feel cut off at the knees without a cordless saw, but it by no means can keep up with a corded one.

And I advise that you run Diablo blades on your cordless saws, they are much better blades and will make your batteries last longer.
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I'm the opposite. I've been a general contractor for 24 years and both of the cordless saws I own sat on a shelf unused, until I gave them away. I consider them absolutely useless on the job. Half assed toys at their very best, a time wasting hindrance at their worst.
 
What brand/model are they? and what do you do mostly?

I do concrete on a commercial level(general contractor but we do all of our own concrete), I'm always using them for cutting 2x12's, plywood, or whatever else.

I mostly use Makita, Dewalt, and Milwaukee. I keep a good 6 batteries rotating on a few different chargers, sometimes more depending on the size of my crew at the moment.
 
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A DeWalt and a Makita were what I had.
I'm almost entirely residential additions and remodeling. I keep most of the project in house, concrete, framing, electric, plumbing, roofing, trim, HVAC, and sometimes tile.
 
I got a cordless in a combo pack and the only thing it's used for is when I'm too lazy to drag out a cord for one or two cuts, want to cut something late at night and keep it a bit quieter or am in an awkward position and don't want to mess with a cord in my way.

I've used it about a dozen times in the last 5 years.
 
I built most of our deck and corresponding roof with my Makita several years ago. It will rip a full sheet of ply, but clearly is not as fast as the worm drive skil saw.
I was quite surprised at how quickly it would crosscut 2x6 framing.
Where they shine is tight quarters custom work. My brother had mine for a month while he braced up the hand cut rafters in his 1920 craftsman home. having a corded saw up there along with everything else would have been a bummer.
 
So for circular and reciprocating saws, they really do need corded power. BUT....I will say, when you are working on a roof, or on a dock! Somewhere away from power, they are really nice to have.

I bought a new cordless impact driver/drill combo from Ryobi last year for cheap. It came with the drill/driver, 2 batteries and a charger for $99....and uses a modest Lithium Ion battery pack. I needed a right angle drill for running electric cables... The drill is underpowered when it gets in a bind, but is manageable. I went to Home Depot and saw they have a whole line of LI batteries....2 of them are much larger than the one I have.....200% and 400% capacity.

So, perhaps, the key to using 18v drills and saws is to invest in new $100 batteries....if you really need the tools to be cordless. Extension cords are just more reliable in the long run.
 
Greenman said:
A DeWalt and a Makita were what I had.
I'm almost entirely residential additions and remodeling. I keep most of the project in house, concrete, framing, electric, plumbing, roofing, trim, HVAC, and sometimes tile.
Click to expand...

Maybe that's it, Sometimes I've got to run 300 feet of extension cords or get a generator up 3 flights of stairs to get a corded saw to work. If I had outlets and my entire job was 75 feet in any direction it wouldn't be as big of a deal.
 
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