Which Circular Is Better For Home

How to choose a hand-held circular saw How to choose a hand-held circular saw.

The overwhelming majority of developments implemented in the latest generation of circular saw blades are aimed at making it almost impossible for any accident when working with this tool. And the number of additional settings is growing from year to year.

One of the important functions is soft start. It avoids overloads and overheating of the motor, as well as a sharp increase in the current in the network. At the same time, it is important to remember that at the time of starting the disc must rotate freely and not be in contact with the material being cut, otherwise the saw will simply not be able to gain the required speed.

In the most complex models, there is a function that experts call constant electronics. The essence of its work is to maintain the optimal ratio of rotation frequency and power output to the shaft. In this case, the possibility of disc jamming is practically excluded. This also affects the quality of the cut. But to implement such a function, a sufficient power reserve is required.

The top models also offer protection against overloads that can occur, for example, in the event of excessive effort by the saw operator. In this case, the automation will turn off the power, which will save the owner of the saw from unscheduled repairs.

Finally, there is also such a function as an electrodynamic brake. This system works as soon as the operator releases the power button and instantly stops the disc, thereby reducing the likelihood of injury.

There is also such a device as a slip clutch. It works when the disc gets stuck in the workpiece. In this case, the clutch releases the motor shaft and it continues to rotate freely, which avoids burnout of the motor windings.

How to choose a hand-held circular saw

Since the term power tool appeared in the dictionary of a modern person, the circular saw has firmly taken its place in the list of the most demanded equipment. It should be noted, however, that not a single fundamental change has occurred in the design of the tool since the saw was mounted on the motor shaft. And all the improvements were aimed only at achieving greater safety.

Specifications

The key characteristics of a circular saw are power, speed and depth of cut. The latter directly depends on the diameter of the blade that this type of saw supports.

It is worth noting that for a hand-held circular saw, the division of tools into professional and household tools is perhaps even more conditional than for any other power tool. After all, a person needs to have a hand circular saw if he has to cut wood quite often, almost constantly. This means that cutting boards, plywood, chipboard is most likely part of his job.

In terms of depth of cut, saws fall into three main categories:

40-50 mm conditionally household saws, used for working with sheet materials;

50-65 mm universal saws, suitable for most jobs;

65-140 mm professional models, for those professionals whose work is related to construction work using wood.

Which Circular Is Better For Home

It can be argued with a high degree of probability that a saw with a cutting depth of 55 mm in most cases will be sufficient for household work, both during repairs and during construction.

The higher the blade speed, the denser material your saw can cut. For household tools, the rotational speed is typically between 1,500 and 4,500 rpm. Professional from 2000 to 9000 rpm.

Power consumption for relatively simple models starts at about 600 W. For professional ones, it reaches 2-2.5 kW or more. Naturally, this power consumption is displayed by the electricity meter. In addition, more powerful saws weigh significantly more. If a saw with a power of 1.2 kW weighs on average 4 kg, then the weight of a two-kilowatt tool is already about 7 kg. So it’s up to you to decide how much justified buying a more powerful saw is.

Most hand-held circular saws are capable of cutting at 45 degrees. Some models are also designed to cut at 60 degrees.

Appointment

Initially, the circular saw was a purely stationary tool, in fact, a machine for industrial woodworking, devouring thousands of kilowatts of energy and weighing hundreds of kilograms.

In a portable version, it appeared on the market in the middle of the last century and since then has improved mainly in the direction of automating the cutting process and the development of new security systems. Thanks to new types of discs, a hand-held circular saw today can cut not only wood and its derivatives (plywood, chipboard, MDF, OSB), but also much stronger and denser materials, various types of plastic, laminate, and also slate. A hand saw can also handle some types of sheet metal if a toothed disc made of a special alloy is installed on the shaft.

At the same time, there are certain limitations in work for a circular saw. Firstly, it is able to cut only strictly in a straight line with the mowing line (in some cases this is a very useful property). Secondly, in most cases, a circular saw cannot handle hard materials such as brick or concrete, unless the model is equipped with a diamond blade and a water cooling system. However, in practice, the hardest materials are still cut with angle grinders (angle grinders), and a circular saw is used to cut wood. Over, the latter has a very high performance.

Quality criteria

As already mentioned, the most important quality criterion for a manual circular is its potential safety. Today you will not find a circular saw without an automatically closing spring-loaded cover. With such a device, it is almost impossible to injure hands during work, unless deliberately. It is very good if the model you are interested in has an accidental start protection function. To do this, there is an additional button, which must be pressed simultaneously with the main one to start the disc.

The quality criteria of the circular are also the reduced vibration level and the stabilization system. The length of the cord is also important. Considering that the main job of the tool is longitudinal cutting, it is desirable that the length of the cord allows you to move freely over a distance of 3-4 meters. It’s even better if your model is battery powered. This can be very helpful, especially when working at height.

Worth remembering

A hand-held circular saw is not the safest tool, therefore, despite all the safety measures taken by the manufacturer, the risk of injury is still not zero. Work strictly following the precautions indicated in the instructions. Be sure to wear goggles to avoid dust particles from wood or other material. Always hold the tool with both hands and the object to be cut must be securely fixed.

One of the typical unpleasant moments when working with a circular saw is a jam of the blade in the workpiece, which can lead to overheating of the motor and such an unpleasant phenomenon as kickback. To avoid this, it is necessary to select the correct cutting blade, it must correspond to the specific material. The material to be cut should not contain any foreign objects (nails, remnants of metal fasteners). Also, the tool should not overheat.

Insert insert on a circular saw to protect against fiber chipping.

For the possibility of tilting to the side and lifting up the cutting disc, a rectangular hole is made in the working table. It is made with a significant margin, with a disc thickness of 1.6-3 mm, the slot width can be 30-50 mm, but a plastic or metal insert is installed inside.
Even in a standard liner, the gap on each of the two sides of the disc can be more than 6-10 mm, and then chips and sawdust get into the gap, causing the equipment to jam and complicating the operation of the turntable and the disc lifting unit.

For both table and stationary circular saws, carpenters independently modify anti-splinter inserts. Additional equipment, with zero or minimum clearance, allows not only to exclude the ingress of small fragments, but also prevents chips from forming and wood fibers being pulled out when the equipment comes out of the material at the edge.

Table circular saw Einhell TC-TS 1200. Table circular saw Sturm CS5020TB. Stops and guides for more precision cutting.

In the simplest desktop home circulars, the longitudinal stop is a lightweight aluminum profile along which the board moves, or if the width of the workpiece is less than 120 mm, it is pushed by a pusher.
Its use allows you to get the required number of parts without marking, at a given distance.
The longitudinal stop must be rigid and massive, and the method of its fixation must ensure the cut as smoothly as possible, without deviations, to the very end of the workpiece.
On stationary models, it is not clamped by a threaded connection with thumbs at the edge of the table, but by eccentric pivoting levers to separately installed rails.

The PTFE linings installed on the sidewalls contribute to better sliding and prevent the formation of dark marks from contact with aluminum.

The rotary stop with protractor, graduation scale and clamping clip is needed for cross-cutting. It is installed in a special groove on the surface of the table and, having fixed the required angle, into it, or a bar screwed to it, abut the workpiece and hold it with your hands, direct it towards the saw blade. The stop slides along the groove gently and without jamming.

Mini circular with flexible shaft FDB Maschinen DB18. Table circular saw for wood for the house Woodstar st 8. Circular saw for wood table for the house Utool UTS-8. Stops and guides for more precision cutting.

In the simplest desktop home circulars, the longitudinal stop is a lightweight aluminum profile along which the board moves, or if the width of the workpiece is less than 120 mm, it is pushed by a pusher.
Its use allows you to get the required number of parts without marking, at a given distance.
The longitudinal stop must be rigid and massive, and the method of its fixation must ensure the cut as smoothly as possible, without deviations, to the very end of the workpiece.
On stationary models, it is not clamped by a threaded connection with thumbs at the edge of the table, but by eccentric pivoting levers to separately installed rails.

The PTFE linings installed on the sidewalls contribute to better sliding and prevent the formation of dark marks from contact with aluminum.

The rotary stop with protractor, graduation scale and clamping clip is needed for cross-cutting. It is installed in a special groove on the surface of the table and, having fixed the required angle, into it, or a bar screwed to it, abut the workpiece and hold it with your hands, direct it towards the saw blade. The stop slides along the groove gently and without jamming.