Circular saws cordless vs corded.

[Restoration man]

I have a basic makita 240v circular saw used it for fencing cutting sheets ripping timber etc basically everything before I got a table saw.

I'm starting to go cordless with a few more tools and was looking at the basic dewalt saw the ones about £120 for a bare unit to use with 18v xr batteries.

It has no riving knife is this a problem?
They boast an ultra thin blade what's the big deal with this?

I mainly want this for quick jobs cutting the odd bit of ply etc where it's a hassle to set up the 240v with extension cable or get the table saw on the go.

And for running along joists to lift floor hatches.

Any other issues compared to a 240v saw?

Thanks

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I'm starting to go cordless with a few more tools and was looking at the basic dewalt saw the ones about £120 for a bare unit to use with 18v xr batteries.
It has no riving knife is this a problem?
They boast an ultra thin blade what's the big deal with this?

On sheet stock the lack of riving knife is rarely an issue, on solid stock you need to make sure that you aren't standing behind the saw if you get a kickback - this can and does happen so you need to position yourself correctly at all times. Cordless saws really do need to use ultra thin kerf blades because they have far less power than equivalent size corded saws. For example the Makita BSS610 (DSS610) I used to have (brushed moter) had just over 300 watts on tap - the brushless DHS680 which replaced it has 600 watts. These saws both have 165mm blades and will cut circa 60mm depth, so they have the capacity to handle stud framing without the need for a chop saw (just get a pair of trestles and a speed square), however the thin blades are less robust than the thicker blades you find on corded tools (basically the teeth are more likely to be damaged or destroyed if you hit metal or stone with them) and being thinner they blunt somewhat faster. The flip side is that without them your batteries just won't last long enough and you'll risk overheating the saw and the batteries to boot. You'll need to invest in at least a couple of 3Ah batteries for a cordless circular saw - 2Ah and below won't hack it (and on Makita saws you can't even use them) - whilst for serious use I'd recommend a pair of 4ah or even 5Ah batteries. BTW DW seem to make the best blades I've used to date and if you cast around DW 165mm ultra thin blades will come in at under £15 a pop.

 

[Restoration man]

Can't argue with a response like that. Spot on.
Thank you sir.

 

[ntb]

If you go for it I think you will find yourself using it more than you envisage. I have the Makita 610 (and a touch of 680 envy). With a 4Ah battery it will happily rip about 80ft of 18mm sheet material, maybe more on one charge. It will cope with wet pressure treated 4*2's if you take your time and flies through dry stuff. I too use the DW blades, definitely recommended. Depth of cut on mine is 57mm with a 165mm blade.