Archived from the Tools In Action forum (Power Tools). This thread is read-only.
I’m in the market for a new miter saw. I have really come down to the Bosch 12-in 15-Amp Dual Bevel Sliding Compound Miter Saw and the DeWalt 12-in 15-Amp Dual Bevel Sliding Compound Miter Saw. Both models appear to be quite similar except in price. I am leaning towards the more expensive Bosch. Per your experiences which is the better saw and choices. Any insight would be helpful.
I have the slide rail version of the Bosch. The nice thing about the Bosch is you don’t need any rear clearance to operate the slide so you can place it right against a wall. The plus on the Dewalt is that it’s lighter and has a blade sight system if you google reviews they will explain it in more detail. I would go with the Bosch because of the glide mechanism its nice being able to have a saw close to a wall in a shop situation or on a jobsite.
I own the Dewalt DWS 780 and it’s an awesome saw, It’s lighter then the Bosch by a far amount plus a lot easier on the wallet… Plenty of power to cut through anything and the XPS light system is awesome, it casts a shadow on the work piece using the blade to cast the shadow and where the shadow is it’s exactly where the blade is going to cut…. I believe the Dewalt also has more detent on it’s miter scale plus has more range as well… Plus the height range on the bosch is much lower then the Dewalt if your doing any kind of molding
So unless space is an absolute must I’d save the money and buy the Dewalt and put your money toward a Diablo blade and cut anything you want
I love the compactness of the Bosch, but the Dewalt is a really nice saw and would probably be my choice of the 2.
I would go with the 780, alot of people use that saw, DeWalt makes some great miter saws imo that are tough and the light system is fantastic.
I have a dewalt dw716 very similar to the one listed except not a slider. Excellent saw but one thing about dewalt miter saws that I don’t like is that they don’t come with extensions or clamps. Sure you can buy them separately but for what you pay for the saw since they are expensive, they should be included. Also the clamps are extremely hard to find. Bosch miter saws don’t have that problem since they include both in their miter saws.
One thing that I think is a huge deal for the Bosch pictured is that it doesn’t slide but instead has an extending arm which makes it way more compact than any other slider by not having rails stick out in the back.
On the other side, if that dewalt saw is a dw780 then it comes with a built in LED light which is great I’ve heard. It could be the dw718 which is close but doesn’t have that feature. One feature that I really love of the dewalt miter saws is that they use a lock down tab instead of a knob you must tighten to lock into miter angles. This makes constant changing miter angles a breeze.
It’s hard to suggest one over the other but those are the pros and cons I would consider if I had to choose. Hope that helps in your decision.
Wow, both very nice saw. I have both of them and love them both. The Bosch I have in my shop and love it because it doesn’t take up much room. I have used it over and over with no complaints. The Dewalt I have on a stand and have taken that to different jobs. Again a great saw with no complaints, except the blade that came with the Dewalt was junk.
I have noticed the dewalt seems to have a better cutting capacity and the motor doesn’t get in the way like it does on the Bosch. Also the Dewalt has a very nice laser where the Bosch doesn’t have one. I really don’t use the laser that much, so not a big deal to me. The Bosch doesn’t have the rails as a couple people all ready mentioned. Some people don’t like the arm because they are use to the rails. Personally, nothing beats the Bosch arm, plus you can adjust it to make it tighter or move easier.
I believe the Dewalt blades are OEM’d by Avanti, but I could be wrong. It’s not really that they’re bad blades, they just aren’t very good compared to the Diablos 😆
Anyone use Irwin Marathon blades?
Conductor562 wrote:
I believe the Dewalt blades are OEM’d by Avanti, but I could be wrong. It’s not really that they’re bad blades, they just aren’t very good compared to the Diablos 😆
I don’t think they are bad blades, but we had one in a circular saw right out of the box and it cut like crap. We actually thought the saw sucked. Once we changed the blade, it was night and day. Also on the miter saw, the same thing happened. However I have used some on other Dewalt saws and they weren’t too bad. Just not sure what happened to mine.
I haven’t used the Irwin blades. I really like Bosch and Diablo
It happened to me to i gest that quality control is not there with Dewalt saw blade haven’t tryed the irwin but i know they make good stuff freud and bosch are great and i’ve used a makita 10in and it was the best blade i’ve ever used but cant find them any more
The blade is good for rough cutting and framing, stuff like that but it’s no Diablo… But no blade stock on a saw isn’t much good for finer work… framing only really
I have an Avanti on my 12″ Makita that does a good job. If they hadn’t been buy 1 get 1 free I would’ve gotten the Diablo.
Most places that sell Dewalt should be running the free stand promotion right now when you buy the DWS780.
Good point. My Local HD has the free stand which is nice.
I got the Bosch Gravity rise stand with my Bosch Miter saw. Lowes ran a similar deal a few years ago. It was like getting the saw for 1/2 price.