Craftsman  7-1/4-Inch Sliding Compound Miter Saw

I bought the craftsman 7.25 inch sliding miter saw and it makes nice cuts but the design of the saw is poor. There is a place for a holddown clamp on the right side of the saw but it is not usable because the saw motor is located on that side, The manuel recommends bolting the saw down but the legs of the saw have to be removed to use the bolt holes, the laser guide line does not work. Technical support by telephone is very poor, the technician didn't have any good advise or understand the question.

Purchased just prior to the rehab of a resturant job. Broke within 3 weeks of an 8 week job, became unservicable after about 7. Took to repair center and they said we can't get parts for it??? WTF! It is a current model and a new saw. They offered me a replacement, "no thanks" took the money and bought a makita slider elsewhere. Since Sears does not carry any real "crafts-man" tools anymore. I'm a GC and I like to buy tools ONCE. Buying a new saw every job-to-six-months would kill my profit margin. Sorry sears, no more power tools from you with craftsman on it. Sidebar: a happy-homeowner who uses it 6 times a year may like it and it may last a few years. Pro's: don't waste your time/money.

As a pro contractor, I wanted an accurate small saw, but didn't want to spend $700 for the small amount of time I'd use it. This saw fits the bill. Its sturdy and accurate. BUT, don't use the blade that comes with it! Spend some $$ to buy a really nice blade as you would for any saw!

I had the saw for approximately four months. I never felt the blade brake was very effective. However, I did not return the saw for this reason. After some use, the saw began to bind when adjusting the angle. It got to the point that it was difficult to move. There was audible grinding while turning and metal filings were deposited on the bench after turning.

dust collector is pretty useless

Great littrle saw. I'm building toys, so cutting small boards with a 100 tooth blade. The dust collection bag is a JOKE. The dust collection vac hookup is for the small hoses. If your Sears shop vac is standard, it uses the larger hose. Go buy the adapter & hook it up to this saw. Otherwise, I'm more than satisfied with the saw & what it will do.

this is one great saw getting the bigger ones is a waste of money because this saw does it all. it's lite weight and positive feel are great for making precision lazer guided cuts.

I wanted a saw that could crosscut .75-1.0" /5-6" boards. I grew tired of switching between rip and crosscut blades on my tablesaw. Overall, this saw works very well. But given the price, it did require an hour or so to tweak it into a precision machine. (it was acceptable for rough work out of the box). 1- The long, red plastic strips that run down the middle of the base were not flush with the rest of the base. In fact, they were about 1/16" low. I had to remove them, add shims (electrical tape), then re-install. No big deal. Took 15min. 2- The face of the fence was not flat (cupped). I drilled four small holes through the fence and installed an auxillary fence made from laminate flooring. In fairness, most people install auxillary fences on their miter saw, even if the fence is perfect. So again, no big deal. Things about this saw I do like are the long cord and the abidexterious on/off switch. Sometimes its easier to use a miter saw "offhanded".

I bought this saw because I was putting down a laminate floor and needed a fast easy way to cut the flooring and trim. The flooring is a little over 7" wide, so a sliding miter was the only way to go. Right out of the box, I checked all the miter stops and fence alignment. All were dead on. I only have three complaints. First, the laser marker is pretty dim. It's pretty much useless if you work in good light (no big deal, I don't use it anyway) Second, the dust collector bag doesn't seem to collect dust. After cutting all day, it's the cleanest part of the machine. If you need to work clean, hook up a shop vac and you are good. Lastly, The rivet that holds on the hold down disc is a little proud of the disc. This will mark the wood if you tighten it down. A small piece of cork glued to the bottom of the hold down disc solved this problem. In short, it's not perfect, but for the money, it's the best I've found.