Woodworker's Journal 2009-33-4, страница 33

| RS7 $100

With built-in LED lights and a flip-out rafter hook, the Bosch is one of the most feature-rich tools in this test. It cut fast and powerfully. 877-267-2499

one with the blade in the usual orientation, the other with the blade horizontally set, close to the top edge of the saw (see photo below). This is very useful for cutting flush with a surface — say, sawing through the nails in the top and bottom plates of a wall you want to remove. Next, instead of a pivoting foot, the DW304PK has a sort of steel cage that encases the entire area around the blade shaft.

Finally, unlike the blade-shaft-mounted blade clamps found on other saws, the DW304PK has a lever on the side of the cage that unlocks the dual clamp during blade changes. The lever works well regardless of the position of the blade shaft.

Despite the DW304PK's 10-amp motor and lW-long blade stroke, the saw's cutting performance was underwhelming, taking 19.5 seconds — the second slowest in the 2x8 cutting test. Vibration wise, it wasn't quite as smooth running as the Bosch. It also lacks selectable blade orbit.

DeWALT

Tool Review

with the blade fully extended, the saw's foot interfered with the lever. I also thought the blade clamp didn't hold the blade all that firmly — a shame, as the Bosch ships with a very nice 5"-long progressive tooth all-purpose blade. The RS7's foot is adjustable via a supplied Allen wrench that stores on the side of the tool's handle.

Performance wise, the Bosch was aggressive and surprisingly smooth, considering it has no special counterbalance mechanism. It was the second-fastest cutting saw in the group, taking only 16.75 seconds to cut a 2x8 — which surprised me, as the Bosch also lacks a blade orbit setting.

DeWalt DW304PK

The bright yellow DW304PK is a well-built, compact saw with three standout features: First, its unusual dual blade clamp allows the blade to mount in either of two positions:

DeWalt's two-position blade clamp is a winning feature. It also had one of the most practical keyless blade changing systems of all the saws in this test. 800-433-9258

Although no foot adjustments are possible, once I got used to using the cage as a foot, I found the saw stable and solid during cutting.

DW304PK $99

CR13V $79

The foot adjustment of the Hitachi saw is huge at 1/2". The saw is priced right, but has too much vibration to suit our author. 800-706-7337

Hitachi CR13V

Tied with the Skil as the second-least-expensive saw in the roundup, the Hitachi CR13V is a hefty saw that packs a punch. Although it features triple-sealed construction that's dust- and water-resistant, it lacks selectable blade orbit, and the 10-amp motor's chunky profile makes the tool look a bit like a pregnant guppy.

The CR13V's blade clamp is easy to operate — press down on a small rubberized tab to release the blade lock — but it's hard to reach the tab when the blade is fully retracted. Its foot adjusts over a huge span of V/2" with an included Allen wrench, allowing you to get

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August 2009 Woodworker's Journal