The Best Circular Saw
Circular saws are capable of cutting lumber, plywood, steel, masonry and even granite when setup with the appropriate blade.
In this review, we’re going to show you the different circular saw designs and features and we’re going to look at different brands and models to help you make the right decision on what is the best one for you. The three different types of circular saws are worm drives, sidewinders and cordless.
Circular saws that have the motor directly on the side of the blade are known as sidewinders and are commonly known as regular circular saws. Traditionally, sidewinders were made with the blade on the right side of the saw which makes it much more difficult to see the cut line for right handed people like me. Thankfully most manufacturers have started offering left bladed models. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why anyone thought it would be a good idea to put the blade on the right side on the saw like on a typical sidewinder. Ranks right up there with the slot headed screw as the most counter intuitive designs of all time.
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THE BEST CIRCULAR SAW – SIDEWINDER
A sidewinder saw’s motor sits alongside the blade making it lighter and easier to maneuver versus a worm drive saw. There are many situations like cutting the tops of fence boards in place or cutting plywood up on a roof where it makes sense to trade a little less power for a lighter more manageable saw. Sidewinders are typically less expensive than worm drives as well.
Skilsaw SPT67M8-01
The SPT67M8-01 has the blade located on the left so it’s easy to see the cut line. Its 15-amp Dual-Field motor supplies plenty of power, runs cooler and extends the life of the tool. The magnesium table and motor housing reduce the weight down to 8.95 pounds and the blade bevels all the way to 56 degrees, making it the most versatile saw in our lineup. If you’re looking for a powerful professional grade sidewinder, the SKILSAW SPT67M8-01 might be the best one for you.
SKILSAW BRAND and HISTORY
SKILSAW is one of those brand names that has become a generic term. Just like when someone says “I need a Kleenex”, they are actually looking for a facial tissue that may or may not have been made by Kimberly-Clark, or when you take your “Jet Ski” to the lake, you are talking about your personal watercraft unless it was made by Kawasaki, most everyone calls any circular saw a SKILSAW.
SKILSAW power tools was founded in 1924 with the invention of its flagship tool, the SKILSAW, the world’s first portable circular saw. In 1937 the SKILSAW Model 77 became the benchmark of portable circular saws and continues to be used on jobsites around the world today. Bosch took over ownership in the 1990’s and then in 2016 the SKILSAW brand was sold to Chevron (HK) Ltd, a global tool manufacturer that had been making Bosch’s (and SKILSAW) brands of saws for years. The quality and durability of their tools is as good or better now than at any other point in their life as a company.
THE BEST CIRCULAR SAW – SIDEWINDER
Skilsaw SPT67M8-01
If you’re looking for the best circular saw in a sidewinder, the one that will give you years of dependable service and then you can hand down to your son or daughter, the SKILSAW SPT67M8-01 is the one for you. It’s powerful 15-amp motor and 5,300 RPMs can power through virtually any material. It’s 7 ¼” blade can bevel up to 56 degrees, allowing you to make complex compound miter cuts on rafters and other framing materials. One of the lightest full size sidewinder saws on the market even comes with an on-tool multi-function wrench for blade changes and brush maintenance. And best of all, the blade is on the left, so you can see the cut line.
The Good: Light weight – 8.95 lbs, Great power
The Not So Good: Nothing, zero nada, zilch
SKILSAW
SPT67M8-01- 8.95 lbs
- 15 amps
- 5,300 RPM
- 56 degree max bevel
- Sidewinder
- Blade Left
- Mag/ Magnesium
BOSCH
CS5- 10 lbs
- 15 amps
- 6,200 RPM
- 56 degree max bevel
- Sidewinder
- Blade Left
- Aluminum/ Resin
DEWALT
DWE575SB- 8.8 lbs
- 15 amps
- 5,100 RPM
- 57 degree max bevel
- Sidewinder
- Blade Right
- Steel/ Resin
MAKITA
5007F- 11.1 lbs
- 15 amps
- 5,800 RPM
- 45 degree max bevel
- Sidewinder
- Blade Right
- Aluminium/ Resin
SKIL
5280-01- 9 lbs
- 15 amps
- 5,300 RPM
- 51 degree max bevel
- Sidewinder
- Blade Right
- Steel/ Resin
CIRCULAR SAWS WORTH CONSIDERING - SIDEWINDER
BEST SPEED
BEST SPEED
Bosch CS5
The Bosch CS5 has the fastest blade speed (6,200 rpm) of any circular saw in our lineup, which will make quick work of most any job. The blade speed will also help with smooth cuts on paneling and other finish materials. It’s a little heavy at 10 pounds, but if you’re looking for a high quality tool with super-fast RPMs and the blade on the left, this might be the one for you.
The Good: Fastest RPMs – 6,200, Great power
The Not So Good: A little heavy, Price
BEST VALUE
DeWalt DWE575SB
Dewalt came up with a winner when they designed the DWE575SB. Weighing in at a mere 8.8 pounds, it’s the lightest full sized sidewinder. If one of your big concerns is safety, the electric brake that stops the blade after you release the trigger might just make the DeWalt DWE575SB your best choice.
The Good: Light weight, Electric brake
The Not So Good: A little slow on the RPMs, Blade on the right
BEST BOAT ANCHOR
Makita 500F
With the trend towards building circular saws with the same power, yet lighter and easier to maneuver, I’m not sure what Makita is thinking with the 5007F. Nothing wrong with the performance, but at 11 pounds, it weighs almost as much as the SKILSAW mag77 worm drive and the maximum bevel is only 45 degrees. I suppose it would make a good boat anchor the next time you go fishing.
The Good: Fast RPMs – 5,800
The Not So Good: Weighs 11 lbs, Blade on the right
BEST BUDGET
Skil 5280-01
For a consumer grade model, the SKIL 5280-01 has a powerful enough motor (15-amps and 5,300 RPM) to make the cut. At 9 pounds, it’s light enough to use for extended periods of time without fatigue. The gimmicky nonadjustable laser sight line is virtually worthless, but if you are looking for an inexpensive saw for a few small projects, it’s a good value.
The Good: RPMs – 5,300
The Not So Good: Weighs 11 lbs, Blade on the right
Why Trust Me?
I always chuckle when I see the websites with the reviews of tools when they say “we spent over 20 hours evaluating these tools, trying to simulate real world conditions in our test lab” and that is somehow supposed to convince you that that makes them some kind of authority on the subject. And because they’ve spent all that time, you therefore should trust them to recommend the Best Circular Saw.
I guess maybe there is some value in knowing that a brand new tool with a brand new blade was able to cut 143 2 x 4s before the tester person’s arm got tired, but you might want to know how well that tool performs after it’s a few years old. Or you might want to know if the tool can hold up to daily use and abuse like it is subjected to in the actual real world.
Over the last 30 plus years as a general contractor, I’ve been making my living using these tools at jobsites day in and day out. My crews and subs make their livings using these tools too. And we all talk. Word quickly gets around about an innovative new design, and probably even more quickly when someone made the mistake of buying a piece of junk.
There’s nothing worse than spending your hard earned money on a tool that you are expecting to make it easier and faster to tackle all kinds of projects around the house, only to find out that the tool comes up miserably short of meeting your expectations. My goal here is to keep you from buying that piece of junk.
Why You Need A Circular Saw
Everyone needs to have at least one circular saw. It’s versatility, portability and ease of use make it an essential tool for both Do-It-Yourselfers and professional tradespeople alike. Everything from cutting lumber for framing a fence or shed, to siding, cutting plywood for a roof or bookcase, a circular saw can do it all.
There are three types of circular saws- a worm drive has spiral gears that transfer power to the blade providing the most power and torque. Worm drive saws always have the blade on the left side of the saw, allowing a right handed user to see the cut line easily. A sidewinder has a spur gear with the motor alongside of the blade. Typically smaller and lighter than a worm drive, most sidewinders have the blade on the right side of the saw, which is great if you are left handed. As battery technology has advanced many manufacturers are producing cordless circular saws, usually in the sidewinder variety with varying degrees of power and performance.
In a perfect world you would have one worm drive for framing and tough jobs and a lightweight sidewinder for trimming fence boards in place or other jobs that don’t require the power of a worm drive.
Circular Saw Features- What’s What and What’s Important
Power
Power is one of the more important features when deciding what is the best circular saw, but unfortunately most manufacturers don’t publish all of the data on their circular saws. The amp rating indicates how much electricity a motor draws. Most professional grade circular saws will be rated at 15 amps. Blade speed is measured in revolutions per minute or RPM. The best circular saws will be in the 4,500 to 6,000 RPM range. Torque is how much force acting on an object causes that object to rotate and is the one specification that manufacturers don’t publish. That being said, a worm drive circular saw will always have significantly more torque than a sidewinder due to the design of its gears.
Blade Left or Blade Right
Which side of the saw the blade is on will have a lot to do with determining which saw is the best circular saw for you. Disclaimer: I am right handed, so my perspective comes from this side. If you are left handed, you can just take the opposite of my advice here.
A blade right saw (meaning the blade is on the right side of the saw) is the traditional arrangement for circular saws. The only advantage to this setup is that usually the keeper side of the work piece will be on the left of the blade where the larger portion of the saw’s base shoe is located, which makes it easier to keep the base shoe flat on the work piece. The downside to this arrangement is that it is very difficult to see the cut without contorting yourself around and over the saw, making for an extremely uncomfortable time.
My preference is a blade left saw because having the blade on the left side of the saw allows you to clearly see the cut line. To state the obvious, it’s always easier to execute a perfect cut when you can see the cut line. Worm drive circular saws always have the blade on the left side while typical sidewinders have their blades on the right. A few models of sidewinders are offered with their blades on the left.
Cut Depth and Depth Adjustment
The maximum depth of cut translates into how thick a work piece can be cut. With the base shoe set at 90° a 7 ¼ inch saw can cut around 2 3/8” deep and a 6 ½ inch saw can cut about 2 ¼” deep. You might not be cutting 2 x 12 rafters every day to stick frame a hip roof, but there are many instances where you will need to make bevel cuts by tilting the base of the saw to an angle other than 90°.
A 7 ¼ inch saw has no problem cutting 2 x material at angles exceeding 45° in one pass. The maximum depth of cut of a 6 ½ inch saw at 45° is barely 1 ½” so it’s probably not the best choice if you see yourself doing lots of projects using bevel cuts. Smaller trim saws are useful for cutting sheet goods like plywood and paneling but lack the capacity and power to deal with framing materials.
When setting up your circular saw before making a cut, you’ll want to set the blade roughly ¼” deeper than the wood you are going to cut. Most saws have a locking lever and a sliding mechanism of some sort to adjust the depth of cut. The best circular saws make it easy to adjust the depth of cut with one hand.
Bevel Capacity and Bevel Adjustment
A bevel cut is a cut where the blade is not perpendicular to the work piece. Cutting compound angles on rafters and simple miter cuts on trim pieces are examples of cuts that can be made with bevel cuts. The ability to tilt the saw’s shoe is a feature that all the best circular saws have but a saw’s maximum bevel cut angle can limit your options. The best circular saws will exceed 45° by at least a few degrees, some go all the way to 53°.
Cutting a 45° bevel through 2x material requires a fair amount of power and torque because the blade is essentially cutting through the equivalent of a much thicker board. Worm drive saws are the clear winners here with their extra torque compared to sidewinders, many of which struggle to make these type of cuts.
Most saws have a locking lever and a sliding mechanism of some sort to adjust the bevel angle. Positive stops at common angles are a nice feature that some saws have, but an easy to read scale is mandatory on the best circular saw.
Electric Brake and Blade Guard
An electric brake reverses the current in the saw to stop the blade once the trigger is released. This is a nice safety feature that a few models have instead of the standard of just having the blade spin its way to a stop. All circular saws are equipped with a retractable blade guard that covers the blade when the saw is not engaged with the work piece, so after making a cut you can set the saw down even before the blade has come to a complete stop.
Laser Guide
The latest gimmicky feature to start showing up on circular saws is the laser guide. A hi tech laser beam projects a red line onto your work piece to show you where to aim the saw. First off, you only need to be looking at the notch in the saw base shoe and the blade while making a cut, and even more dumb is the fact that these laser beam guides aren’t adjustable to account for different thickness blades. These things are pretty much worthless. I agree with Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers movies that “sharks with frickin’ laser beams on their heads” would be awesome, but they don’t belong on saws. The best circular saw doesn’t have a laser guide on it.
