Customer Reviews

Makita LS1013 Dual Slide Compound 10-inch Miter Saw Kit

5 star:		(78)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I am a professional finish carpenter and purchased this saw to use HARD every day. In many respects it is absolutely wonderful, but there are a few things I would like to see the manufacturer change. Lets start with what I like. I would vehemently disagree with a previous reviewer that said trim is not this tools' forte.I build stairs(open tread),handrailing,cabinet faceframes,do crown mold,wainscoting,casing,etc.with this saw and it is accurate and rock solid. Perhaps he got a bad unit. The slide mechanism is the smoothest of all the slide saws I have used. Beveling both directions is a lifesaver when cutting open tread stair stringers and when cutting crown molding. It is reasonably quiet and has a pretty good soft start. Now what I would like to see changed. The positive stops are actually too positive in my opinion. It is too hard to make a half degree change from the stops, it wants to pop back into the stop. They also removed crown stops or even markings on the scale for standard crown molds. 31.6 and 35.3 can be a little tough to zero in on, and that is just on the miter scale. Also the location of the scale indicator is ackward if you have stock to the right of the blade and need to change angles. you have to move the stock to view the scale. Overall I still love mine and have been using it every day for a year now with typical Makita reliability. I would recommend it to anyone interested in this saw. The drawbacks take a little getting used to but are definitely outweighed by the attributes.

I am annoyed at those who would let 6 different people use a saw that don't have the foggiest notion of how it works, then get critical of it when it breaks. This saw has a dual release on the front to set the miters. One is a lever that is spring loaded and easily moves aside in order to not click into the detents at 90 or 45 degrees for example. (So you can set it at 90.5 and not have it fall into the 90 degree detent) The other release is a large knob that screws in to tighten, and screws out to release. If you leave it tightened in and force the saw to change it's setting, you are for sure scoring, stripping, and breaking the setting mechanism.

Pertaining to the fence; With any tool you use, like a router, or a saw, you have to be careful to start the tool spinning fast before you enter it into the work. Have you ever experienced the run away router that was touching the work when you started it up? Well the same holds true of the Makita saw. Once or twice on my LS1212, I rushed into the cut before the blade was spinning, and the power took the piece and tried to force it through the fence. Spin first, plunge second. After that happened twice, I had to realign the fence. When someone does this on a regular basis, and then has to take the saw back for a replacement fence, it's the operators fault, not the saw. The fence is thick aluminum. Humidity has no effect on it whatsoever.
The adjusting lever for the bevel is located on the back of the slider, and of course it extends beyond the back of the stand.
I guess I am venting, because some have chosen to abuse this stellar piece of equipment, then return it trashed, and then try to convince others that the saw is at fault. I had to say something. So enough of the confusion, let's talk about the beauty of this saw.
The LS1013 is a brute workhorse, while at the same time an unbelievably perfectly accurate fine tool. Consider what Popular Woodworking had to say about it. "We can't recommend this tool enough. It's won every award this magazine gives out, and has earned a permanent place in our shop because it's tough and accurate."
Workbench Magazine gave its brother the LS1212 their editors choice award. Here is some of what they said about it. "Makita LS1212 proved to be the superior saw in this test on almost every count. It is compact, powerful, and dead on accurate. The saw made perfect bevels, miters, and compound cuts using only the factory detents for setup."
In ToolsOfTheTrade.com Tool test for sliding compound miter saws, without going into all of the elaborate criteria they used for each and every aspect of DSCMiters, they said in their Winners section; "Without a doubt, my overall favorite saw is the 10-inch Makita LS1013. The company's engineers really thought the design of this model through.
Personally I own the Makita LS1212 and it is a cornerstone of my shop. I used the Bosch Digital Protractor, which measures in tenths of a degree (equal to 3600 dots in a circle, no matter how small the circle) and measured the results in terms of accuracy right out of the box. This is it: The saw was dead on accurate, whether it was cutting a miter, a bevel or a compound miter-bevel cut, and wasn't off by even one-tenth of a degree. It is so quiet and smooth, I smile every time I use it.
Think of the engineering: Getting a saw to bevel both ways is a problem because when you tilt it to the right to bevel, the motor would normally get in the way. Some manufacturers put the motor at the back of the saw, and run belts to it. What Makita did, was still keep a direct drive by simply tilting the motor upwards at a 45 degree arc. Direct drive gives you the maximum amount of power, and zero vibration.
I could go on for hours about this saw. It comes with a blade that is such high quality, their is no need for an expensive replacement. It creates a glass smooth surface. With the dual bevel capability, and the Bosch digital protractor, you measure the real corner angle of the wall, (they are rarely a perfect 90) and it calculates the miter and bevel settings for cutting crown moldings. You lay the molding FLAT on the Makita, and cut a perfect crown the first time. No having to run up and down the ladder to keep tweaking it in.
Some may complain that the dust bag doesn't work very well. I throw my arms up in frustration hearing that also. How do you get a saw that is cutting forty million different angle combinations, and get it to throw all those shavings into a little throat. Production shops have a large collector behind their saws to catch all of the dust. It is amazing that the bag does the job that it does. Mine fills up with dust, but sure it doesn't get it all, none of them do.
I did a ton of research before buying my saw. I could tell you about the cheap plastic used in some of the competition. I could tell you about the saws that don't cut accurately, even on a simply 90 degree miter. Or the ones that cut the miter accurately, but falls short on the accuracy of the bevels. The ones that throw small pieces of wood flying at a 100 miles per hour, but I would rather just tell you that the Makita sliders are Simply the Best Compound Slider Out There. With the special going on right now, makes this a no brainer. I am so crazy about the Makita sliders that I ordered the LS1013 for portable use, even though I already have the LS1212 on a stand in my shop. Some reviews rate the 1013 higher than the 1212, due to a larger platform-work surface. It also has the crown detent, which the 1212 does not have. I love them both, now that I have been using them. Highly recommended. Triple AAA plus 5 stars.

I have been woodworking for the past 25 years and have a substantial investment in tools. I've used an 8.5" SCMS for 10 years and spent the past year shopping all the new larger sliders on the market. My purchase of the Makita LS1013 was based on precision, quality, ergonomics and value. Of the 30+ top brand power tools in my shop, the 1013 has it all! The one word that comes to mind is "SMOOTH"! The glide of the sliding rails, the ease of the miter table swing and bevel adjustment, the solidity of the saw head and blade guard in the cut and the smooth but powerful and quiet motor all give the feeling of a machine with precision and finesse. Don't get me wrong. This tool is solid and very well built. I know it will last for many years to come. The miter and bevel settings were square right out of the box and the blade run out was a negligible .001". I was ready to purchase a Forrest Chopmaster blade but found the stock 64-tooth carbide blade gave a "glass-like" finished edge with no tear-out on several types of wood. The supplied accessories and the add on accessories are great and give the saw the features to perform all the task I'll ever need. Overall, the saw "feels" right. A lot of thought must have gone into the design and final production of this unit and in my opinion, there's not really any competition out there in the SCMS market!! Although I haven't yet performed any crown molding projects with it, I'm confident that it will be up to the task. Makita has a real winner here. It'll be hard to better it in the future!

I own the LS1013 and it is a great saw. I'm a carpenter and furniture builder with strict tolerances. Out of the box, my saw was set up with no needed adjustments. The angles were dead on, with minimal runout. A couple of bothersome points; the blade guard can get in the way when sliding inwards cutting mouldings and base, also the stops do have some play in them. The dust bag is pretty worthless in my opinion. I like how it has a stop at 31.6 for cutting crown moulding. Many don't offer this feature. The LS1013 slides effortlessly, the soft start is great and doesn't kick hard when you release the trigger. The blade is excellent (makita makes great blades). A friend of mine is a chairmaker who often writes articles for fine woodworking magazine. He also owns an LS1013. Great saw for the money, and haven't had any problems yet. If your looking for an accurate dual bevel sliding saw for $500 this is the best 10" saw on the market.

Please disregard the 1 Star rating. I don't even own this saw. It's just that I'm sick and tired of reading manufacturers advertisements and rebuttals to their competitors "reviews" in these forums. Jay Concepcion, please clarify for me: You reviewed both the 1013 and 1013L less than a month apart. First you say you have no use for a laser as part of your 1013 review, then less than a month later you're writing a review for the 1013L (same as 1013 but with a laser). By the way, when you write your review for the next Makita saw you might as well just include a link to the Makita website. Let's see now....how many Makita saws do you own now? 42? I'm sick of all of these manufacturer's reps. convoluting "consumer" review forums everywhere. I need to buy a sliding dual bevel miter saw right away. I don't have time to weed through all of the bogus "reviews" to find actual end-user reviews. I don't know that I can trust any review, any where, any more. How can anyone rely on any of the reviews on this website or any other for honest, unbiased and objective information from actual end users? I'm curious, why are these reps. so quick to discount all of the professional review sources that use actual craftsmen to test their saws in head-to-head comparisons? What better way is there to separate performance and quality of fit and finish issues than a hands-on comparison? If tools are tested against one another and rated based upon the results, then the only thing left to determine is their actual durability in the field over time.

A true "end-user" of a tool should give me real, useable feedback that would be useful in making a purchasing decision. I don't need a manufacturer's rep. to cut and paste from their brochures and try to pass it off as a review. This is a note to all of you reps.! Please let the real consumers use forums like this to exchange true information regarding our actual experiences with the tools in question and let the best tools win.

This saw is the best infestment I've made in the 15 years I've been in construction. It will pay for its self in less than a year in the time I save in having to square and mark each peice. The dual beveling also saves in having to turn each peice around. all of the knobs, swithes and stops work great.

This is an accurate, reliable, sturdy, lightweight saw. I love mine and use it for home additions, deck, etc. The roller bearing slide is superb: no slop or backlash and the cutter head glides smoothly on these slides. I was also saved by the saw's sturdiness as I accidentally knocked it off my workbench on onto a slab basement floor approx. 3 feet below. Although scratched, it has not skipped a beat and is still accurate and smooth. I would buy this tool again in a heartbeat. Great job Makita.

I did alot of research on slide compound miter saws. Since Dewalt seems to have taken the low road in quality in recent years the decision came down to a choice between Makita and Hitachi. Previous reviews on both tools at Amazon.com influenced the final decision to choose the Makita.
Another influencing factor was the Makita 7-1/4" circular saw that I have owned and abused for 12 years. I beleive that nobody makes a circular saw with the durability and accuracy of Makita. Plus the included Makita blades make glass smooth cuts.

I originally purchased this saw soley for the purpose of interior trim work, however,with it's wide cutting capabilities I have also found this to be a great saw for siding and soffit work.

It really does allow you to do alot more than standard compound miters saws and is just about as perfect a miter saw as I have ever come across. It's worth every penny

I have been using this saw for two years in my woodwork shop. I find it being the most used piece of equipment in my shop (I have two table saws, jointer, drill press, etc.). It is extremely accurate and smooth. Put a Forrest blade in it and it will perform like "slicing butter". By far the best buy for quality cuts.

"tough call" on April 29, 2000 was either using a totally different piece of equipment than the rest of us, or he had too much "hot sauce" on his crawfish??

If you are looking for a compound miter saw (or even considering the purchase) look no further. You have found it! Yes, the LS1013 is a lot of money, but don't get scared off by it. You get exactly what you pay for.

I don't know exactly where to start. I've had the saw now for about 6 mos. Out of the box, it is ready to go - completely set up and squared up. I use it exclusively for woodworking... no carpentry. I checked it for squareness, etc with my set-up guages and found it to be less than a 100th off. Those tolerances are okay even in woodworking!

I should probably add, also, that I have made a lot of picture frames with this saw; if you've ever tried to make frames, you'll know that they're not all that easy. The positive-locks on the table really do the job - with a frame you can't be 46 degrees or 44 degrees. You need a perfect 45 at every cut... and that's what you get with this saw.

PRO's:
+The blade is superb. Glassy smooth on every cut. I don't sand any of the cuts that I take away from the saw. You'll be pleased.
+As mentioned, the angles set perfectly (no set up or adjustments needed)
+Blade brake really gets the blade stopped quickly
+Big table (some of the competition has really small tables)

CON's:
-The dust bag is worthless (though no dustbag really works on this type of saw)
-The fence could be a bit higher, longer.
-The compound angle setting (in the back) could do nicely with the same positive-lock settings as the main table.

Overall, this is a wonderful saw. I can't believe I waited so long to finally put down the money to get it.

-A woodworker