Clarke Mitre Saw A “Must Have” for Trade or DIY?


Independent Review by Peter Brett


There is hardly a building trade or workshop that couldn’t use a decent mitre saw (sometimes known as a chopsaw) nowadays. With all the choice of sizes, price ranges and blade configurations to cut metals, plastic and even timber the mitre saw has been a “must have” in my workshop for over ten years, replacing my radial arm saw without a regret on my part. Part of the reason why


these saws have become so common, apart from their sheer usefulness, is Far Eastern manufacture. They have become relatively affordable. But, compare a new 2012 model with one from ten years ago and the words “chalk” and “cheese” spring to mind. Looking at one now you will see crisp and accurate castings, play-free guide bearings and safety guarding that is not just an afterthought. Increasingly, manufacturers are also providing a decent TCT blade with the kit, the one single way of improving a mediocre saw in my view. The Clarke CMS10S2


arrived in a big box, because all mitre saws are hard to pack safely for transit, but it took only a few minutes to get it out of the box and set it up. Once set up, at only 17Kgs, it is actually light enough to carry around the building site by using one hand on the built-in carry handle on top of the motor and the other on the sliding bars. The safer option for the workshop is to fix it onto


a stand or bench top. To this end there is a variety of countersunk fixing holes to fit custom stands or to one of the many excellent mitre saw benches on the market. Indeed Clarke offer two mitre saw stands, both compatible with the CMS10S2. Looking over the saw the first


general impression is of clean lines, accurate castings and a good paint finish. Safety warnings are prominently displayed in the right places and the cast alloy and plastic blade guard is very robust and the mechanism works well. The controls follow a familiar


pattern, with a pull-out knob to release the blade head for use, an unscrewable knob to release the sliding bars and a metal safety trigger that has to be pressed to the left before the trigger can be pressed, the blade guard released or the saw head can be moved. In other words, you have to make a conscious decision that you are going to cut, there should be no accidental starting of the motor. I was pleased to see that the other controls are


easy to use and adjust too. It is in the nature of the construction of these saws that they will take knocks in daily use and therefore become inaccurate. It is therefore very important to be able to restore


22 ToolBUSINESS+HIRE


original, accurate settings quickly and easily with a minimum of time, hassle and tools. On the Clarke, both mitre and bevel settings can be done with an engineers’ square and a hex key, and once you are


lock the table firmly should you want to retain a setting when cutting demanding materials. The fence, although it is quite slimline in design, is


high enough to be supportive and is easily adjustable for accuracy using a hex key. There are also a couple of points into which the hold down can be slotted. This is a simple screw-down design, but is quick and effective to use and therefore more likely to be used than some of the clunkier hold-downs I have seen. Two U-shaped extension


support brackets can be slotted into each side of the mitre base and are held in place with a quick twist of a screwdriver. The Clarke CMS10S2


comes with a laser guideline that is actually pretty good. I have been underwhelmed with some of the laser guides on saws like this, but this one has the advantage of being simple to use and effective. There is a small plastic battery case nestled between the sliding tubes that takes the two AA batteries supplied. A simple on/off switch means that you can select it when you want to use it. It shines a thin, and therefore more accurate laser line, down the path of the blade against which


familiar with the process it takes very little time. I was impressed with the fact that the factory settings were indeed accurate when I used the saw for the first time.


you can line up the material you want to cut. In use, the saw is simple enough to use safely. As I


have mentioned, the safety lever to release the trigger and blade guard is effective and the spring loading on the saw head is not too fierce, allowing a smooth push through the material. The bearings on the sliding bars are tight enough to allow no play, but smooth enough to allow free movement of the saw head. In common with most brush motors, the motor on this one is noisy, but I didn’t ever make it the motor struggle even when cutting hardwood up to 60mm thick which is close to its 78mm maximum recommended cut. I always fit a name brand blade to any circular saw I use because it is the quickest way of improving the cut, but the standard one here still gives a very reasonable finish. There is a dust collection bag that is


fitted behind the blade guard, and like all mitre saws I have ever used, is only moderately good at collecting the dust. The best solution is to use a vacuum collector (again available from Clarke),


Setting the saw up for mitre cuts is pretty easy,


just release the big locking knob in front of the base and move the saw easily through the detents at common angles to the correct setting. I found that it was necessary to give the locking knob a bit more of a tweak to ensure that it was tight enough so that the setting did not move when I was cutting. There is also another knob on the right side of the fence that will


but even that is not 100%, so but a dust mask is always a good idea, particularly in the workshop. It may be a sign of the times when consumers are


watching every penny, but I had to do a bit of a reality check when I looked up the price of this kit. For a retail price of about £155 including VAT, this could be yours – seems like very good value to me.


Reply No. 227 www.toolbusiness.co.uk


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