Hello, I previously owned a loved a CTD dual motor manual 10 inch saw for wood mouldings. I am looking for a replacement of same CTD 20. I am looking into double 10 inch makita Clearmount system with 64 inch max cutting limit. I will purchase the best blades I can get. Had used Ultramitre 110 tooth 10 inch I believe. I will cut wood only and am a small shop of 15 frames a week unless commercial job on occasion. How about some feedback from users of clearmount. My concern is miter consistancy and larger moulding cut quality, basically are the makitas a big enough motor to handle larger mouldings.
I purchased one of these systems and can share some experience. You will no doubt be dealing with Winnie at Clearmount, and can say that she's a great person to deal with, and an absolute hoot! Customer service is really top-notch from this company. I purchased one of the Makita LS1040 saws. I remember the model number because I associate it with tax forms. I felt the saw was an absolute piece of junk, and promptly send it back. They recommend that particular saw because it has a built-in depth stop, but the saw does not seem to return to the same position, and had a little bit of play in it unless it was firmly screwed down.Seemed more like a toy than a precision tool to me.
Clearmount says that the table does not need any support, but I found that it bowed, and did require support. There is a piece of wood in the center where the blade enters, and it has piece of plastic under it that is used as a shim to level things to the table tops. The shim was not the correct thickness, which was not too hard to fix, but still it did not come across as a precision device. I would think they could have used a piece of high molecular plastic or some other type of composite material that was precisely machined to thickness. It's basically a piece of particle board with a piece of plastic underneath it, and the two together do not equal the thickness of the sliding tables. I wasn't impressed for the money they were asking.
As one other person mentioned, the tables are hard to get back into position or moved by small degree. I think they should have used a T-track with a couple of adjustable thumbscrews or something similar that would allow for small adjustments. Instead, there is a groove on the under side of the table surface that has threads on both sides, and then a screw goes through the bottom and catches these threads. It's very easy to cross thread or move in fine increments. I don't think it's a deal breaker as once it is set you are not likely to move it very often.
I ended up purchasing a DeWalt saw, which is light years ahead of the Makita saw, and has a very positive notch that locks into the 45° position. I did end up having to remove one of the screws from the the miter scale to get it into final position. The problem was if I set the left at 45, I could not get the right at 45. I also ended up buying a chop master 80 tooth blade, and can't say enough good things about this blade! It runs super true. The saw actually quiets down after installing it is so well-balanced. At $140, you tend to get what you pay for. I absolutely, positively recommend this blade to anyone. I was a woodworker for 15 years and, you don't get much better than this.
I also ended up buying a digital bevel square, accurate to about 2/10 of a degree, and actually wish I would've got the 1/10th of a degree one. If you have enough patience, you can probably get this adjusted to produce perfect miters, but it's #### frustrating to get it there. I would think a better solution would be two saws, and you would not have to deal with the possibility of the thing going out of adjustment. The fence system is true, so as other people mentioned the magic here is in the saw and the degree of accuracy of said saw. Naturally the blade also is key. Two saws an you should be gold.
The clamping system is inadequate for the task. I found that the rebate clamps tend to lift the molding off the table, and you can't get them close enough to where you need them without interfering with the blade. A much better solution is to mount a track and use a vertical hold down. The vertical hold down system works much better, but you have to come up with something yourself. I used an Incra T-track and then some toggle clamps from Rockler. I can send a pic if needed.
In the end, it's a poor mans miter saw, but can do the job if you want to mess with it enough. For the quantity you are talking about you may consider a foot chopper too. I have both, but still prefer a saw, as it is much faster. I have not experienced any chipping, but felt like saw was unsafe for fillets. Have you looked at a Frame Square? You can get a used one for about 1K to $1500.
Hope that helps.
Troy
