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I'd like to buy a circular saw. I want to cut a kitchen worktop down to size and also lots of shelves for my garage. I don't want to spend a fortune but I also want something that will last a few years. Any suggestions? (Never used one before but I've got a few kitchen worktop end pieces to practice on before Mrs d'A lets me loose on the real thing )

I've got no hesitation in recommending a Hitachi, (Hikoki now) 7.25". There are various Hikoki models out there now, hopefully someone with a recent purchase can advise which is best.

You'll need a fine tooth blade for laminate worktops, mine's a wee bit excessive @ 96 teeth, but it's a Golden Oldie that I've had since the 70s, and it works.

I've got four circular saws now, ranging from corded 'no name' models to the Erbauer battery jobby and in all cases I've never had any issue with the device itself - all the problems have been with me being too much of a tight wad to purchase the RIGHT BLADE for them!

What a world of difference between a cheap saw blade and an expensive one! I'm talking about paying more for a replacement blade than the saw itself! The most recent blade I got cost me £60 (iirc) yet the saw was around £35 WITH a blade (no frkken wonder - the blade was a POS!).

In other words, for occasional use by a DIYer, forget the manufacturer, go corded and get a good (the RIGHT) blade for it.

Top tip - get a saw disk hole adapter kit (it's a selection of washers basically) so you can use other (any) manufacturers disks . Only a few £, saves headaches when chosing disks for the machine only to discover the one you want doesn't have the right sized hole!

If you are doing worktops I would really recommend a tracksaw, even the cheap ones are decent. I have a parkside paired with a trend fine tooth blade. I can cut shitty ikea MFC with zero chip out and a razor sharp edge.

im a joiner. my circular saws are mostly left in the van with my tracksaw being used massively more than any other.

my tracksaw is a festool ts55

i then have the battery 18v dewalt

a hitachi c7u2 which is a very good circular saw i just dont have much need for it these days.

and a dewalt worm drive saw that i just basically wanted to buy so i could have a bash of a one.

fin wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 11:27 pm im a joiner. my circular saws are mostly left in the van with my tracksaw being used massively more than any other.

any tips/pointers on the blades you chose?

only either festool or stehle blades on mine. same goes for my kapex. actually on my kapex both the festool blades are goosed... ive got a stehle on it now.

The Freud or Trend blades are OK.

Cheap blades can get hot and distort when cutting, the TC for the tips is probably the cheapest carp available too.

ayjay, both the festool blades on my kapex have distorted recently.

the original one now came back from the sharpenupperers with best job done written on it. the bloke said there was a slight wobble on it. the newer festool blade i bought is basically toast he would not touch it. and when i put the latest stehle blade onto it and pull the trigger the blade appears to ever so slightly wobble. like it doesnt litterally spin and not move side to side.... i wonder if my kapex has a fault that needs looking at