Craftsmanship in Wood

Thanks Gents, appreciate the suggestions.

I've got to live on the cheap for a bit, so making due where I can with this saw. The nice thing about a miter saw is that I can work to a knife line then do a minor bit of clean up and I have a nice facet. The downside of course is that if I try and minimize that work to simply 'off the saw' then I'm probably over-tasking it's ability.

A miter jack is not a bad idea, that might be the best solution for the moment.

I suppose it is a bit frustrating having something that is 'almost' good enough, hah.

That Kyowa setup is pretty cool. I assume these are the saws I see so many kumiko makers using? If so, they're incredibly accurate.

A sliding saw would be wonderful, I'm heading that direction of course but it will take time and space, the space I can manage around I believe. I've contemplated even working with a cheaper sort of sliding saw and putting it in my basement shop, then replacing with a real monster when/if I manage a larger space. I've run out of room in the garage and the last bit of space there should be consumed by a shaper since the layout doesn't lend itself to a sliding saw.

Ah, *light bulb*. I was checking out the Kyowa petty work saws, and finally the specialization of these saws clicked for me. Some examples I'd seen previously appear superficially similar to European sliders, which is a touch misleading(**). The PW-300 series really stands out for being dedicated crosscut machines. I'd love to see video of the wider models in action, and/or video which captured the common usage patterns of these saws.

** edit: misleading as to the role of petty work saws, that is.

They are quiet and precise, and can even be transported to job site if you wanted. There's a guy on Long Island with a couple of them and he really likes them for precise work in smaller stock.

Tenryu Miter Pro has arrived. Wow, what a difference a saw blade can make. Normally I cut even moderately thick material with slicing passes rather than a 'chop' and in this case a blade with a slightly bigger kerf and more teeth cuts considerably easier and with much better precision through the material.

A chop would show lines where the blade moved perviously, instead this chop is nice and clean without splinters. The cleanliness is expected, but I expected the saw to work slightly harder and instead it works easier.

The "old" saw blade came off still sharp, very sharp judging by my thumb gauge. I expected it to feel mildly dull given how easily it was making splinters.

Wow! I think i know which blade i'll be getting next for my Kapex. Who did you purchase it through?

I bought through Carbide Processors, they had best pricing and were quick to ship.

Interesting. I have some of their Cermet II-tipped blades for my tablesaw, which I have been pleased with.

Excellent, they have a pretty good reputation, both carbide processors and the cermet blades.

Carbide processors seems to be mostly a marketing outfit. The Cermet II tipped blades, for example, are made at a shop in Oregon. I don't know if they make anything 'in house'.

Ah, likely true that they do not do much in-house. I ordered a Whiteside router bit along with the saw blade and that drop shipped right from whiteside. They may well be doing the marketing and not much more. Tough act in the age of Amazon but they do have a good following.