Makita upgrade!

[chopnhack]

My old craftsman picked up at a pawn shop several years ago has developed a wobble in the blade increasing the kerf to nearly a 1/4". It has served me well doing a lot of rough construction, but on plywood....

I picked up a new makita with blade brake and courtesy of eurekazone's fine ideas equipped it with advance dust collection! And man what a difference it makes. The plastic used for the dust deflector at the front was from a container of decorative chinese food containers. The rear dust collector port was from bosch, but fit nicely with some silicone to seal. Tapping the screws was easy, placement of said screws was not... there wasn't much flange area to work with on the lower side. The screw is not visible in this photo, its hidden by the guard handle.





Also got to do a little more work on my version of the ez table. Just got to cut some more scrap and it's ready for service. I used the t-track with 1/4" lags screwed up into the underside of the plywood strips. Just got to remember to lube the tracks.

[Sawatzky]

Cool saw. I could not believe the difference when I switched from a cheapo skil saw to a Ridgid. So much smoother, much more powerful, and much easier to control. Enjoy the new saw!

[cabinetman]

That's a great looking saw. What's the amps, and is it lighter than the Craftsman?

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[chopnhack]

Thanks Sawatzky. Mike, the saw is rated at 15a. It weighs 10lbs, so its fairly light, feels good in the hand and the brake works well. Very smooth... The magnesium shoe is fairly soft so it does require some attention, I don't know how, but I already put a small scratch in it, nothing like breaking in a new tool, right!