Sawdust on the Floor

With the start of the new decade, the pundits have all come out of the woodwork making their predictions for the coming New Year.  Not surprisingly, most are based on the world economic issues.  That being said, I wasn’t surprised when MSN had a posting about companies that may not be here at the end of 2010. Some of the companies on the list didn’t really come as a surprise to me; however, one that did surprise me was Sears.  There was a time that Sears, or Sears and Roebuck was the only game in town, for everything from clothing to tools, but like most things in life that too has changed.  Large discounters like Target, Wal-Mart and even Kmart, which is the parent company of Sears, have siphoned many of the customers away from Sears.  And I hate to admit it but I also tend to go else where when shopping, unless it is for a tool.

I will be the first to admit that the “Craftsman” name on a tool doesn’t hold the same high esteem that it once did.  And that over the last 5-10 years Sears has come up with some less than perfect tools, or maybe I should say tool adaptations that should never have left the drawing boards. But there are some tools marketed by Sears that really are outstanding tools.  The one that comes to mind immediately is the Sears MiterMate Saw.  

Cutting a straight 90º angled cut with the MiterMate or any other miter saw on the market is about the same.  What separates the MiterMate from other miter saws is how it works on angled cuts, such as when installing crown molding into a corner.  Ideally the corners would be at a perfect 90º, however you will very seldom find a perfect corner.  So what most woodworkers do is to measure the angle of the corner

with a protractor.  Take that measurement back to the miter saw and set the angle of the saw to be ½ of the angle read. And cut the first half of the corner molding.  To cut the other side of the angle, you would adjust the saw to the opposite side of center, again to ½ of the angle read, and cut the second side.  And if you’re lucky, when you go back up on the ladder to check your work, the angles are perfect.  If not you would tweak the settings on your miter saw until you get the perfect angle. 

The MiterMate takes an entirely different approach.  Instead of using a third party protractor to find the angle of the corner, the MiterMate comes with a specially designed protractor made just for the MiterMate Saw.  You take the spring loaded MiterMate protractor into the corner, release the springs and the protractor opens to the exact angles of the corner.  All you have to do then is lock the protractor at this angle, before returning it to its built in holder on the base of the MiterMate saw. And this is where the magic of the MiterMate takes over. 

On a conventional miter saw, the saw head is adjustable left or right of center, while the fences are held rigid.   On the MiterMate, the saw head is held rigid, but the fences are adjustable.  To figure out where to adjust the fences to, simply insert the special protractor into its holder on the face of the saw, and adjust both left and right fences until they touch the protractor.  Once that is done, all you have to do is remove the protractor and cut your angles.  No math, no tweaking the angles, just move the fence to the protractor angles and you’re done.  Man it can’t get any simpler then that. This saw takes all the guess work out of inside and outside corners. 

Is the MiterMate the perfect miter saw for every woodworker?  Not by a long shot, but then I can’t think of any other miter saws that would be perfect for every woodworker.  Since each and every woodworker has his or her own unique requirements for a miter saw there never will be a perfect miter saw.  But if you want to cut tight miters in corners, and don’t want to be bothered with a lot of math and fine adjustments then this is the saw for you. 

But here is the rub.  Sears is the only manufacturer of anything like the MiterMate.  No Sears, no MiterMate.  And that would be a real shame.   Before any of you think I am going soft, don’t worry.  Not all of the tools creations from the folks at Sears warrant a second look, but the MiterMate is the exception to that idea.  This is a product that deserves a real hard look, and perhaps a place in your shop.

Related posts:

1. Woodworking Tools – The New Craftsman Miter Mate Saw
2. Woodworking Tools – Sharpening Tools
3. Woodworking Tools – Nextec Hammer