# A new portable Kobalt miter saw



## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

For my fellow handymen, thought I'd point out this new saw I found. It's a 7 1/4 sliding compound miter saw that is very lightweight. I actually can't find it on the crappy Kobalt website, but I think it's only 22 pounds. So not only is it a lightweight miter saw, but it's also sliding and will cut up to 8", so you can still cut through most dimensional lumber while being very portable at the same time.

This was a great saw for me, and I guess the reason I'm mentioning it is it's the only one of its kind that I know of. I'm a Home Depot man myself, and obviously this is only available at Lowes. A guy at Home Depot said he thought Ridgid was coming out with something similar, but there's no mention of it anywhere I can find. Nothing at Harbor Freight.

*http://tinyurl.com/akpawp9*


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

http://www.ryobitools.com/catalog/power_tools/miter_saws/TSS101L
http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...H=REC-_-product-4-_-202049523-_-203596452-_-N

With these you could build a real deck and cut real floor joist.


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

Moved to Tools forum.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

So? The whole point is the Kobalt is lightweight and very portable. The saws you pointed to weigh literally twice as much and have a much larger footprint as well. There are a million of those kind of saws.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

the kobalt saw is the exact same saw as the mastercraft maximum saw sold at canadian tire in canada. makita makes a cordless 7 1/4" slider that runs on the 3.0 amp lxt batteries.. i cant remember if their still making a corded version.. dewalt used to have a corded model


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

Sorry, should have mentioned I'm only familiar with US market. Not interested in cordless versions 

Having said that, I don't see anything like it on the Canadian Tire website.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

joecaption said:


> http://www.ryobitools.com/catalog/power_tools/miter_saws/TSS101L
> http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...H=REC-_-product-4-_-202049523-_-203596452-_-N
> 
> With these you could build a real deck and cut real floor joist.


I prefer this for that.


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

I've got one----Very handy tool---I'm glad I own it----


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

Really neat saw. But for only $109, how durable will it be? Keep us posted.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

I don't know how durable. I'll get back to you in a year if I remember though  I guess the point being, it's not a $250 saw, which is good for the occasional user who wants to move the saw around and not spend a lot of money. Obviously construction guys are going to want a bigger and heavier duty saw.


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## sixeightten (Feb 10, 2009)

I don't think this saw will be very handy for any kind of framing other than maybe basement walls. Not gonna cut through most bearing headers (2x10 or 2x12) Not gonna make the angle cut for anything above a 2x6 rafter, etc. Even for a deck job, it won't cut through many joists, make angle cuts for handrails, or cut stair treads. Last year I bought a used Hitachi 8 1/4" slide for $100. If I can pry it away from my brother, I could tell you how good it is for occasional framing. It weighs in at about 10 pounds more, but will cut most framing items.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

those old hitachi sliders are awesome.. then again hitachi invented the sliding mitre saw..

actually a finish carpenter on contractor talk just got one ... says its ok.. says hes pretty sure it wont last long. hes just using it for cleanup work , meaning 1/4 round and the odd peice of missing trim at the end of jobs.. he wanted something light weight so he wouldnt have to bring in his bosch axial glide or makita 12" slider


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## ddawg16 (Aug 15, 2011)

I think your missing a key point.....7 1/4".......

Except for cutting moulding and 2x4's laying flat, you won't use it for much else.....


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

ddawg16 said:


> I think your missing a key point.....7 1/4".......
> 
> Except for cutting moulding and 2x4's laying flat, you won't use it for much else.....


Huh? I'm not missing anything. This is not a be-all end-all construction saw. I like it _because_ it's 7 1/4". I want it for cutting molding, but also being able to cut larger things if I have to.

Name another saw that is 23 pounds, cuts 2x8s straight, and cuts 2x6 at 45 deg. Obviously it's good for cutting molding. The point is it's very portable and can also cut up to 2x8 if you need to. And like any miter, can cut 2x12 if you have to by flipping the stock over. The point is, _it's 23 pounds_.

If I wanted a DeWalt S780, that's what I would have bought. It cuts 2x12s without flipping over the stock. It weighs in at only 56 lbs, and costs a mere 5 times as much.


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## ddawg16 (Aug 15, 2011)

jeffnc said:


> Huh? I'm not missing anything. This is not a be-all end-all construction saw. I like it _because_ it's 7 1/4". I want it for cutting molding, but also being able to cut larger things if I have to.
> 
> Name another saw that is 23 pounds, cuts 2x8s straight, and cuts 2x6 at 45 deg. Obviously it's good for cutting molding. The point is it's very portable and can also cut up to 2x8 if you need to. And like any miter, can cut 2x12 if you have to by flipping the stock over. The point is, _it's 23 pounds_.
> 
> If I wanted a DeWalt S780, that's what I would have bought. It cuts 2x12s without flipping over the stock. It weighs in at only 56 lbs, and costs a mere 5 times as much.


23 Lbs? Wow......oh yea.....

Ok.....reality....

While it might be easier to carry around....wait until you start using it.....there is an advantage to weight....it means the saw is not walking all over the place. When you start using it on long pieces of wood, you want it to stay put. If it's too light, your going to have issues keeping the wood on the rip fence.

There are times where a light tool works against you....I think this is one of them.

I have the Ryobi saw....ok...so it weights over 40 lbs....and I 'might' move it once 'now and then'.....It's not like your going to be moving it several times a day. Typically, you set it up and leave it there until your done.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

ddawg16 said:


> Ok.....reality....While it might be easier to carry
> around....


_Might_ be easier to carry? No, it _is_ way easier to carry. Reality. And I have been using it. It comes with clamps if anything starts walking.

I own it, I use it, I like it, so I came here to share my experience. While you are just guessing. Not sure exactly what the problem is, but if you need a parade to pee on, maybe you can find one elsewhere. You're not going to convince me it's not good for what it's designed for.



ddawg16 said:


> It's not like your going to be moving it several times a day.


Actually it's exactly like that.


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## ddawg16 (Aug 15, 2011)

jeffnc said:


> _Might_ be easier to carry? No, it _is_ way easier to carry. Reality. And I have been using it. It comes with clamps if anything starts walking.
> 
> I own it, I use it, I like it, so I came here to share my experience. While you are just guessing. Not sure exactly what the problem is, but if you need a parade to pee on, maybe you can find one elsewhere. You're not going to convince me it's not good for what it's designed for.
> 
> ...


You might want to go back and edit your original post.....it's not real 'obvious' that you already have the saw.....and it would appear that I'm not the only one who thought you were 'thinking' about the purchase vs already bought it....

So you have it and your happy....Ok.....

I'm not trying to 'pee on anyone's parade'.....I just know from using a 7 1/4' saw that I wish it was larger....and dragging my 45+ lb Ryobi around is not an issue either....I never considered the weight to be a problem....but not being able to cut a 4x4 in one pass would be a problem.....


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

ddawg16 said:


> I just know from using a 7 1/4' saw that I wish it was larger....


Sorry, you're just not making sense to me.

Let me see if I can explain this one more time.

I have a sledge hammer, and I have a 7 oz, not to mention several others. I do not want to put a sledge hammer in my portable little handyman toolbox. Neither do I want to swing a sledgehammer to knock in some little nails or tap something into place.

No, I do not wish my 7 oz hammer was heavier, nor do I wish my 7 1/4" sliding miter saw was larger, nor do I wish my #1 Phillips head screwdriver was bigger, nor do I wish my 150 grit sander was 40 grit, nor do I wish my 1/4" drill bits were fatter, nor do I wish my 1 1/4" drywall screws were longer.

If they made 1 1/4" drywall screws that could be extended to 2" if I needed in a pinch, that would be a nice feature though.

Is this making sense?

If there was another saw like this in the world I was aware of, I wouldn't have bothered posting this. If you don't appreciate the unique combination of attributes this saw provides, then don't buy it. It's not the saw for you. But if someone wants to buy a moped, don't bother trying to tell them it can't go as fast as a car, and they might get wet when it rains. They want a moped - not a car - for a reason. They know a car has 4 wheels and their moped doesn't - they get it, I promise you.

I have a bigger miter saw, and I don't like carrying it around with me. It's heavier, it has a bigger blade, it's more expensive, but it can't even cut as wide as this Kobalt because it's not sliding - widest is 2x6.


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## toolaholic (Jul 31, 2011)

Freud makes a 8 1/4 inch slide that weighs 32lbs. Model TR 215. Saw it on amazon.


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## Missouri Bound (Apr 9, 2011)

jeffnc, I think it's a good purchase and a good deal. I've been looking for another saw myself and I've used some Kobalt tools and they aren't bad.
I've had my Craftsman 10" saw for 20+ years now and it's a great tool.....unless you want to move it around more than once a day. If it was any heavier I'd put it on wheels. I'm sure the tool will serve you well and don't forget to check back after you have it a while. Best of luck:thumbsup:


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## ToolSeeker (Sep 19, 2012)

To be honest I have never bought or used any Kobalt power tools, I have used some of their hand tools and they seemed OK. The reason I never bought their power tools is they seemed kinda flimsy to me. And this saw sounds the same but that's just me. If you think this is a good saw and it will do what you want it and expect it to do, and your the only one who can answer that, then go for it by all means.


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

I have little experience with Kobalt in general, since as I said I shop mostly at Home Depot. I haven't heard much about them in general, but I have noticed some innovative tools lately, such as the parallel grip pliers
*http://tinyurl.com/b7sz6mn

*or the double drive screwdriver, which turns the bit clockwise on both the clockwise stroke _and_ the counterclockwise stroke
*http://tinyurl.com/ammvot9

*I'd be interested in both of those, although the pliers seem more practical, and the screwdriver kind of gimmicky.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

your not the only one who thinks ddawg doesnt make any sense... this user argues about posts by the pros on here all the time saying theres a better way becasue of the garage they built themself..


as for the 7 1/4 saw , they work and they work well. if you dont set up the tool properly and support the material properly your going to have issues.. its known as "common sense".. those of us that are in the construction industry who make a living building and renovating things are required to have common sense first and foremost.. no one cares if you own a hammer or a tape measure or a nail gun.. if you dont know how to use your head to use a tool properly so you dont damage the tool or hurt yourself your going to get your walking papers before you get a paycheque


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## ddawg16 (Aug 15, 2011)

woodworkbykirk said:


> your not the only one who thinks ddawg doesnt make any sense... this user argues about posts by the pros on here all the time saying theres a better way becasue of the garage they built themself..


Really? Examples?

Come on guys....I post an opinion based on my experience and I'm wrong? In reality....I really do wish my Ryobi was a 12" and not a 10". I wish I had a Skill worm drive instead of my POS Craftsman.

If jeff is happy with his 7 1/4" saw, great.

At this point is sounds like you guys are trying make something out of nothing.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

your saying the small saw cant handle the weight of materaill.. like i said. common sense. prop up material correclty and it wont be an issue.. 

most times if a tool is struggling to do its task 90% of the time its user error


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## jeffnc (Apr 1, 2011)

ddawg16 said:


> Come on guys....I post an opinion based on my experience and I'm wrong?


Well, sort of. What you said doesn't make sense - even to you.

I'm going to assume you have different sizes of screwdrivers, all handy. When you're using a #1 Phillips, are you really wishing you were using the #3 instead?

One of the basic (implied) points in this thread is to use a tool that's most appropriate for the job, all things considered.

When stated that way, I have a hard time believing you'd disagree. Yet, that's more or less what you did. If you have no need for a certain tool, fine. But don't try to convince someone else that they don't, "based on your experience." It makes no sense.


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