quote:

Originally posted by Woodman:
When you embrace the Zen of drywall finishing you will find yourself far better than you imagine.

A high quality blade with plenty of spring along its edge. A clean pan, fresh compound every time. Add a drop of water or so to the compound. Boogers in the pan? discard it all. And for me, sanding between coats, for all its mess, makes for a perfect job. 120 - 220 with respirator. The dust drops straight down, so if there is no breeze, cleanup is not SIGnificant.

Good drywalling tips.

I use a wet sponge between coats - after the final coat has been hit with a wet sponge (and dried out) then I'll sand it. A lot less mess for me.

your saw's blade guard is the problem.
Learn to use your thumb to tilt it up off your work.
Made a living for a decade as a finish trim carpenter.
My saw was always wedge with the guard up and out of the way.when you set the saw down on its back it is with the blade up.
I also don't need any osha horse shit about this.

In my limited experience another thing that will make a difference, assuming you're right handed, is a worm-drive saw. Not having to contort some weird over the top angle of view coupled with the handle being so far aft gives me pretty decent results.

On anything that matters, I too will clamp in place some simple guide to give better consistency. Can be scrap that's square, or some fancy stuff as mentioned above.

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:
In my limited experience another thing that will make a difference, assuming you're right handed, is a worm-drive saw. Not having to contort some weird over the top angle of view coupled with the handle being so far aft gives me pretty decent results.

What works even better for me (and was less expensive) was to purchase one of the older Porter Cable 'Left hand' drive circular saws. Once I started using it (I'm right handed) and enjoying being able to look straight down at the blade path as opposed to trying to look over the saw and down at the blade (i.e. standard right hand drive saw), things got so much easier. I wouldn't trade that saw for anything.

quote:

Originally posted by Jimbo54:
Our local Lowes will cut boards to your specs for free if you buy from them. I've had them do that a couple of times.

Jim

Ours has a limit on the number they will cut (as does Home Depot). If you happen to be there when they are super slow they sometimes bend the rules.

Make a fence with any good square material. If you can’t cut well with a fence then either practice a bit or give up. It’s pretty foolproof if your saw is true with a good blade.

I have the same problem. even with fences. it's pretty bad. it's genetic which makes it worse. sorry can't help ya. it's a darwin thing, just don't cut off any body parts.

quote:

Originally posted by 6guns:
C-clamp an angle iron to the board and use that as a fence.

This ^^

quote:

Originally posted by cparktd:


Also check that the table of the saw is square / true to the blade... .

I believe I found my issue. I laid a framing square against the blade with it at full depth and you can see that the base isn’t parallel with the blade. Almost 5mm difference between the front and rear edge of the deck to the line of cut. Now to figure out how to correct. I’m think about scoring a line and using a file to true up the edges of the base. I didn’t see any adjustment that can be made with the mounting screws

quote:

Originally posted by KDR:

quote:

Originally posted by cparktd:


Also check that the table of the saw is square / true to the blade... .

I believe I found my issue. I laid a framing square against the blade with it at full depth and you can see that the base isn’t parallel with the blade. Almost 5mm difference between the front and rear edge of the deck to the line of cut. Now to figure out how to correct. I’m think about scoring a line and using a file to true up the edges of the base. I didn’t see any adjustment that can be made with the mounting screws

Better course of action (assuming the circular saw id relatively new) is to return it for another one. Screwing around trying to square up the base as you noted is likely to cause more problems then it will solve.

Here's what I use (with a sharp blade):

https://www.harborfreight.com/...ale+Rank%2Cf&q=56363

quote:

Originally posted by KDR:

I didn't think about the blade being square to the base. What's the best way to check that? I've got a dewalt and just assumed that that wouldn't be an issue.

Screw a short 2x4 guide to a piece of paneling. Set the saw to max depth and make a plunge cut with the base edge to the 2x4. Compare kerf distance to 2x4 front & back. Or mark a tooth at rear & measure to edge of base. Rotate to front and measure to same tooth.

Looks like you found a problem.

Perfect Excuse to buy a new tool!!
Festool Track Saw
https://www.festoolproducts.co...tool-track-saws.html

As someone suggested earlier this paired with heavy foam on the floor you will have the straightest smoothest cuts possible.

I made my own guides. One 4' and One 8'.

Circular saw freehand - nimble, handy, tougher to get long precise straight cuts.

Worm drive saw freehand - less nimble, less handy, but seems to want to track straighter by nature than a circular saw.

When you really want a precise, straight cut - clamp a guide to what you are cutting and use either of the above.

I’m with Black:
The Festool track saw was the original and still the best—and most expensive.
You can combine tracks accurately to cut >96 inches; the saw is a plunge saw and cuts extremely clean and accurate cuts, ripping or cross-cut.
Great for sheet goods—you move the saw on the track, not the heavy sheet.
For me, it makes it unnecessary to have a table saw; I use with a Festool dust collector so there is virtually NO dust when cutting; the safety is another huge benefit.

Warning: one Festool leads to another, and I have most all of them now.

The patent has expired and Mikita and others have come out with track systems which are also good—but they’re not Festool.

“For us Germans the best is barely good enough!”

Festool Owners Group website for serious addicts

I see that they have become more "sophisticated" over the years, with perhaps unnecessary complexity (and expense) but I always used one of the systems that is just two 48" extruded aluminum tracks that can slide together when necessary to get a full 8', and then clamp it to the sheet with wood clamps. Works perfectly. It forms a fence that the baseplate of the saw rides against; not actually a "track" that it sit in.

Like this one at Amazon for only $33
Swanson Tool CG100 Cutting Guide 100-Inch

I’ve got a two piece aluminum fence, I’ve got a real nice rip guide that attaches to the saw base, I’ve tried to make my own rip fences and never had luck. Now I know that the when I’ve been using them, the blade is not in line with the fence causing it to bind and keep me from getting a good cut. I’m going to contact dewalt to see if they’ll do anything for a saw that’s at least 7 years old. I’ll try to “fix” it if that leads no where. If I well and truly f it up, I’ll go get a new saw