Possibly buying a cordless circular saw

samih · 06-03-2019 5:29pm #1

I'm thinking of buying a cordelss circular saw after my old 18 yo corded Skill 155 mm saw died last weekend. Have been getting good use from it but still suprised it just suddenly stopped without a warning. Most likely could be repaired with new brushes but not going to bother with that.

Anyway, I tend to do quite light duty DIY cutting, biggest cuts have done in the past were lopping off a worktop a few times in the life of the old saw and then splitting 2x4 every so often etc. etc. I have a sliding chop saw for heavier cuts and I expect this one will be used for cutting ply for shelving and such. Converting a camper van atm. and cordless too would be extra handy for wall board etc.

I have some ryobi drivers and a car buffer and have been very happy with the brand for DIY use. Has anybody tried Ryobi R18CS7 or R18CS? The first one looks a nicer saw as it has a brushless motor and a larger blade for a bit extra oomph and capacity but not for much more money. But are the cordless circular saw any good in general? Just thinking the last time I have used a corded drill and it has been a while...

listermint · 06-03-2019 10:37pm

They're alot cheaper than I thought they'd be. I'd be going brushless anyway especially for a skilsaw. more power less risk to motor.

And there is a tener in the difference.

I've a few Ryobi tools and can't fault them .no problems buying them.

They look decent but I doubt you'd get heavy work done with them. As long as you feel it's light enough

samih · 07-03-2019 3:22pm

Thank you for the feedback. I will probably end up ordering from UK as I can't find a local supplier for the brushless unit. I have ordered form mydiy.ie in the past and find them helpful but unfortunately they don't stock it.

colm_mcm · 07-03-2019 10:20pm

I don’t see the point in these, it’s not like you’ll be using them up a ladder or out in a field. You can’t come close to the power of the cheapest mains saw unless you’re spending huge money.

FrancieBrady · 07-03-2019 10:26pm

colm_mcm wrote: »

I don’t see the point in these, it’s not like you’ll be using them up a ladder or out in a field. You can’t come close to the power of the cheapest mains saw unless you’re spending huge money.

I have been using a Milwaukee one on a large project on scaffolding for the last two weeks.
I had no interest in one as I thought the battery life/power would be rubbishy enough.
Suffice to say, I am in the market for one now. Absolutely game changing tool imo. No leads, lightweight and cutting 6x2 and 9x2 timbers with ease. Long battery life too.

Big Words · 08-03-2019 1:31am

Mrs Nugent was lucky she didn’t see the milwaukee m18

jhenno78 · 08-03-2019 1:56am

I've got one.

10/10 for absolute handiness.
You'll find yourself using it a lot more for small bits that you just wouldn't bother getting a corded one for. As above, light weight and easy to use.

It is pretty hard on batteries compared to other tools. If you're making long cuts you'll notice the difference. I'd still take out the corded one for ripping sheet material or trimming a length of timber but for most stuff it's great.

Lumen · 08-03-2019 5:33am

Brushless and thinner blades gives better battery life.

Roen · 08-03-2019 9:01am

Have a 36v Makita cordless. Godsend.
Might not have the power of a mains but it has enough power.
I got it at a time I had no power to the shed a couple of years back, but to be honest I'd still go cordless even if I did have sockets there.

JustJoe7240 · 08-03-2019 9:06am

FrancieBrady wrote: »

I have been using a Milwaukee one on a large project on scaffolding for the last two weeks.
I had no interest in one as I thought the battery life/power would be rubbishy enough.
Suffice to say, I am in the market for one now. Absolutely game changing tool imo. No leads, lightweight and cutting 6x2 and 9x2 timbers with ease. Long battery life too.

Yes, but you’re comparing chalk and cheese with a Milwaukee and a Ryobi

Teddy Daniels · 08-03-2019 9:15am

JustJoe7240 wrote: »

Yes, but you’re comparing chalk and cheese with a Milwaukee and a Ryobi

I have a ryobi circular saw that I was given and it’s much weaker than a corded but handy for outside work. I can imagine a Milwaukee or de Walt would be great but serious money especially if the op hasn’t got batteries already.

Teddy Daniels · 08-03-2019 9:16am

samih wrote: »

I'm thinking of buying a cordelss circular saw after my old 18 yo corded Skill 155 mm saw died last weekend. Have been getting good use from it but still suprised it just suddenly stopped without a warning. Most likely could be repaired with new brushes but not going to bother with that.

Anyway, I tend to do quite light duty DIY cutting, biggest cuts have done in the past were lopping off a worktop a few times in the life of the old saw and then splitting 2x4 every so often etc. etc. I have a sliding chop saw for heavier cuts and I expect this one will be used for cutting ply for shelving and such. Converting a camper van atm. and cordless too would be extra handy for wall board etc.

I have some ryobi drivers and a car buffer and have been very happy with the brand for DIY use. Has anybody tried Ryobi R18CS7 or R18CS? The first one looks a nicer saw as it has a brushless motor and a larger blade for a bit extra oomph and capacity but not for much more money. But are the cordless circular saw any good in general? Just thinking the last time I have used a corded drill and it has been a while...

The brushes will be very easy to replace and cheap to get .

FrancieBrady · 08-03-2019 9:17am

JustJoe7240 wrote: »

Yes, but you’re comparing chalk and cheese with a Milwaukee and a Ryobi

Horses for courses and correct tool for correct job.
OP has stayed his/her needs are 'light duty'.
Ryobi would be ok for DIY occasional use I would have thought.

FrancieBrady · 08-03-2019 9:19am

Teddy Daniels wrote: »

I have a ryobi circular saw that I was given and it’s much weaker than a corded but handy for outside work. I can imagine a Milwaukee or de Walt would be great but serious money especially if the op hasn’t got batteries already.

Seen a Dewalt body only one for 150 Euro on Screwfix. I thought that was tempting value.

Kevin Finnerty · 08-03-2019 9:25am

FrancieBrady wrote: »

Seen a Dewalt body only one for 150 Euro on Screwfix. I thought that was tempting value.

Theres no point putting a 4 ah into that. I know Dewalt have a different battery system but the equivalent Milwaukee would need at least a 6 ah which is minimum 200 euro. Most of the bodies seem and are good value, the batteries are the making of them and dont come cheap.

colm_mcm · 08-03-2019 11:06am

You’re talking €550 for the Milwaukee one though vs around €100 for a corded Skil saw.

FrancieBrady · 08-03-2019 11:14am

colm_mcm wrote: »

You’re talking €550 for the Milwaukee one though vs around €100 for a corded Skil saw.

I wasn't advocating that a DIYer buy the Milwaukee one. I was responding to your thinking that these are of no great benefit.

After using the Milwaukee hard for 2 weeks I would pay 550 for one in a heartbeat TBH. Complete change of mind on them from me.

If the RYOBI is even half as good it would be worth it too imo.

colm_mcm · 08-03-2019 11:43am

I can see why a tradesman would use one, but there’s no point in. DIYer buying a cheap one as they’re useless, and there’s no point spending €550 if you’re not getting the use out of it.

Lumen · 08-03-2019 12:56pm

I love my plunge saw, although it does occasionally struggle through thick material unlike my cheapo Woodies circular saw, and for some reason I have to fiddle with it to get it working at exactly 90 degrees.

FWIW it's a Makita DSP600ZJ Twin 18V Brushless Plunge Saw LXT (Body Only), £359.00 with free delivery from the UK. Irish prices are nuts. I got the Makita mostly because I've loads of their 18V stuff so three batteries does me for everything.

listermint · 08-03-2019 3:58pm

colm_mcm wrote: »

I can see why a tradesman would use one, but there’s no point in. DIYer buying a cheap one as they’re useless, and there’s no point spending €550 if you’re not getting the use out of it.

There are various posters in the thread who said they got plenty of use out of them . So enough of that guff

colm_mcm · 08-03-2019 4:25pm

listermint wrote: »

There are various posters in the thread who said they got plenty of use out of them . So enough of that guff

I see recommendations for DeWalt, Makita, Milwaukee, I see one
poster that has the Ryobi they got for free and says it’s much weaker than a corded one.

jhenno78 · 08-03-2019 4:28pm

colm_mcm wrote: »

says it’s much weaker than a corded one.

Makes no difference for 90% of jobs.

There's no perfect tool out there. Better in many ways, not as good in some.

colm_mcm · 08-03-2019 4:29pm

jhenno78 wrote: »

Makes no difference for 90% of jobs.

Point taken,and I missed your earlier post when totting up the recommendations.

samih · 08-03-2019 5:10pm

Wow, lots of good info here.

If I had unlimited funds Milwaukee would be great but defo wouldn't ever get enough use for one. I think what I'll do is to get that brushless Ryobi as my track record on the drill/drivers has been good so far and as I said I have already collection of batteries and chargers for the One+ system. I suspect that I would really need to get also 4/5 Ah battery so we are talking about GBP 160 for the set (109+52). It's about the same price in EUR in B&Q where I looked at them yesterday for the brushed 165 mm version + 4 Ah so very tempted to pull the trigger on the import. The cordless saws do seem quite flimsy in construction compared to corded models but that's expected as they don't need to withstand so much torque. The weight difference between 80 quid Ryobi 1150W and 109 quid cordless is quite something.

Yea, brushes for the corded Skill would be easy I think and I'll probably repair it too when the inspiration strikes. I lost the guide and blade cover for the saw years ago so it's a bit lethal to use. And funnily enough both my 2000 vintage Skill sander and circular saw both died within a month of each other.

Kevin Finnerty · 08-03-2019 8:07pm

Had you a power cut or surge do you remember?

listermint · 08-03-2019 8:33pm

samih wrote: »

Wow, lots of good info here.

If I had unlimited funds Milwaukee would be great but defo wouldn't ever get enough use for one. I think what I'll do is to get that brushless Ryobi as my track record on the drill/drivers has been good so far and as I said I have already collection of batteries and chargers for the One+ system. I suspect that I would really need to get also 4/5 Ah battery so we are talking about GBP 160 for the set (109+52). It's about the same price in EUR in B&Q where I looked at them yesterday for the brushed 165 mm version + 4 Ah so very tempted to pull the trigger on the import. The cordless saws do seem quite flimsy in construction compared to corded models but that's expected as they don't need to withstand so much torque. The weight difference between 80 quid Ryobi 1150W and 109 quid cordless is quite something.

Yea, brushes for the corded Skill would be easy I think and I'll probably repair it too when the inspiration strikes. I lost the guide and blade cover for the saw years ago so it's a bit lethal to use. And funnily enough both my 2000 vintage Skill sander and circular saw both died within a month of each other.

Make sure get a decent thin blade as per lumens post. Good blade night and day. The DeWalt ones aren't big money. I've one in my cordless table saw. Beautiful cut

samih · 09-03-2019 6:43pm

Kevin Finnerty wrote: »

Had you a power cut or surge do you remember?

Don't think so, can't at remember one, and anyway I think a saw should be able to take quite a jolt before dying unlike some electronics.

It was interesting, I split a length of 2x4 the last time I used it and it was running as new and it didn't smell or anything. Then next time I plugged it in not a sign of life. I tried to rotate the blade and gave it some taps to reseat the brushes but nothing. The sander on the other hand suffered from a bearing failure but electrically it's still alive.

Ryobi ordered I'll review once it arrives. Hopefully by next weekend as I'd like to put it in good use cutting some 6 mm ply.

lgk · 11-03-2019 3:16pm

Kevin Finnerty wrote: »

Theres no point putting a 4 ah into that. I know Dewalt have a different battery system but the equivalent Milwaukee would need at least a 6 ah which is minimum 200 euro. Most of the bodies seem and are good value, the batteries are the making of them and dont come cheap.

Unless you're doing extended work, 4Ah will do just fine. I've a ~15 year old DeWalt cordless that came with 2Ah nicads, that worked perfectly well cutting 2" oak for most jobs I did on a single charge.

The Ah is the battery capacity, so just relates to runtime. A 6Ah battery will just run for 50% longer than a 4Ah before needing to be recharged, it has zero effect on power output, so it's all down to the nature of work being done.

FrancieBrady · 11-03-2019 3:32pm

samih wrote: »

Don't think so, can't at remember one, and anyway I think a saw should be able to take quite a jolt before dying unlike some electronics.

It was interesting, I split a length of 2x4 the last time I used it and it was running as new and it didn't smell or anything. Then next time I plugged it in not a sign of life. I tried to rotate the blade and gave it some taps to reseat the brushes but nothing. The sander on the other hand suffered from a bearing failure but electrically it's still alive.

Ryobi ordered I'll review once it arrives. Hopefully by next weekend as I'd like to put it in good use cutting some 6 mm ply.

You did check the fuse in the plug?

:o

Kevin Finnerty · 11-03-2019 7:31pm

lgk wrote: »

Unless you're doing extended work, 4Ah will do just fine. I've a ~15 year old DeWalt cordless that came with 2Ah nicads, that worked perfectly well cutting 2" oak for most jobs I did on a single charge.

The Ah is the battery capacity, so just relates to runtime. A 6Ah battery will just run for 50% longer than a 4Ah before needing to be recharged, it has zero effect on power output, so it's all down to the nature of work being done.

Never said it had anything to do with output. I've an 18v Milwaukee with 2 4Ah batteries and bought a 6Ah because they were being gobbled up mostly drilling m10 m12 masonry.The difference is night and day. I'd recommend anyone buying afresh to buy bigger unless they're coming as a set at value.

Tenshot · 11-03-2019 11:20pm

lgk wrote: »

The Ah is the battery capacity, so just relates to runtime. A 6Ah battery will just run for 50% longer than a 4Ah before needing to be recharged, it has zero effect on power output, so it's all down to the nature of work being done.

Since the 4Ah and 6Ah batteries are outputting the same voltage, the 6Ah's extra capacity is usually achieved by using more cells wired in parallel. When a tool draws power, the load will be spread over a larger number of cells in the bigger battery, and so there is less voltage drop on the individual cells. Power-hungry tools like circular saws or drills with large bits will be less likely to run out of steam with the larger battery pack.

This video has some tests with DeWalt 2Ah, 4Ah, and 6 Ah battery packs that show modest but noticeable differences.

I've seen it myself comparing a 2Ah and 4Ah battery in an impact driver driving large screws into hardwood without a pilot hole (for test purposes). It's an emotive subject, so I suggest people investigate it themselves if they're interested. I'm mentioning it only because until recently, I didn't believe there was any difference either.

Possibly buying a cordless circular saw

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