Makita Hypoid Circular Saw - Review 

"If you aren't doing good work with it, it's not the saw's fault." Words to live by.

I've got this Makita and have been using the crap out of it for a year, it's fantastic. The gizmo on the cord is a ferrite core to reduce the introduction of noise to the rest of the electrical system. Ever been listening to the radio when your neighbor kicks on a saw and you hear it in the speakers? That's what it prevents.

5:34 "...listed in the minus column." *Makita engineer reaches for his pencil*

I've been watching a lot of your videos not so much for "how-to-do-it" info but more for your wisdom and outlook on things. People like you demonstrate that there's honor in being a tradesman. Thank you, and I hope all is well with you and yours.

P.s. my son 10 year old is watching your videos and I appreciate your influence. Quality.

I love how you build into your review you experience bias into your review it is so refreshing and gives you so much more credibility when reviewing products. We need to see a lot more of that kind of content creation on RU-vid. Keep up the Great work!

I really like your fair tool reviews. That bit of self awareness and humility in your opinion is really rare from product reviewers.

Dad always used to say, “Weight is what broke the wagon down.” I know that my Mikita has been pretty durable for many years. There are a few things I might change but over all I’ve been happy with it.

I love my skilsaw, I even use it to cut my lawn

I wish I would have found a saw like this years ago! It does everything that we have asked of it so far. Works great ru-vid.comUgkxjpBI8OOeUXib_iT7UomCrQ-uauwZJ62c on cutting composite siding and plywood sheathing. I probably would not try to use it all day cutting 2X boards, but it's just the right size to throw in a job bag vs. your conventional heavy circular saw. Operating instructions very clear. Came package well. I would definitely recommend you buy this for a friend!

I love that you are well aware of your biases and you are very wise man that gives good advice to young aspiring carpenters or craftsmen on a whole. Love your channel immensely.

Great info as usual. Love the channel. Your ability to communicate your vast knowledge is second to none. Looking forward to the next episode.

I think AVE called it “anti-theft blue”

Glad to hear the Makita is on the same level as the Skil. I'm going to need my first framing saw soon, and I can't handle anything more complicated than "walk into the big orange store and head straight to the ugly teal section." It's never let me down before! Thanks for the short, sweet, and thoughtful review.

The most honest tool review I have ever watched in my life!! Subscribed!

I love that he watches AvE! Watching AvE got me to this channel a year and a half or so ago now.

I've had this saw for 5 years, I absolutely love it. I've even used it to cut an egress window opening, with a diamond tipped blade of course, but still works as good as the day I bought it. I won't ever use anything other than a worm drive, matter of fact, my next saw will be a Skillsaw worm drive.

"If your not doing good work with it, it's not the saws fault." great words to live by @Essential Craftsman

I picked up a Mag 77 after I watched your review and I absolutely love it. Its my first worm drive saw and I really like the ergonomics and function of it over a circular saw.

Patiently waiting for that mag 77 review. A few weeks on mine and I love it. Thanks for sharing ALL of your knowledge. You've definitely helped me hone my craft. Scott Marshall Illinois

I've used my dad's mag 77 since I couldn't hold it. Still using the same one today. At this point I hope it out lives me, and one of my kids will love it as much as I have.

Bought me the Makita last year after seeing your original Mag 77 video. She's a haus!

Love my Skill saw! I never owned a skill saw or worm drive until just last year and I'm 58! I kick myself every time I use it now, wondering why I never had one years ago. Always enjoy your videos!

I've got an older model Makita hypoid, no fancy bling. I love it, had it for about 10 yrs now.

I grew up on a Classic 77 then a Mag 77...I have used Porter Cables, DeWalts, and Ridges...I have owned my Makita 5377mg Hypoid for 15 years and it is the best saw I have used in terms of comfort, weight, power, rip fence attachment...love it!

I have that saw. Bought it a couple years ago. I’m on the east coast so sidewinders are the most common around here. I love it! Way better than a sidewinder! Especially for a right hander like me. The torque is awesome! The weight took a little getting used to but I have learned to let gravity help out with that and under downward toward the ground whenever possible. I’m a hypoid/worm gear convert now.

These are the kind of honest precise reviews I come here for. 👍

Thanks for the great vids you put out, ive been a carpenter for over 40 years in the uk and ive been trying to get a hypoid saw for a few years now but have been unsuccessful so i recieved delivery of the makita 36volt rear handle saw today. Haven't used it yet but the reviews on it are great. Would still prefer the hypoid version but ill see how i go with this one. Ive followed most of your vids and look forward to the next. Stay safe and keep workin 👍👍👍👍

I just bought my first used mag77 then I saw this title and my heart sank a bit. Good thing I watch till the end every time. 😉👍

"If you are not doing good work with it, it's not the saw's fault" 🤣 love that quote.

Thank you for continuing to put out great content during this covid19 mess.

It's always nice to hear someone state their own biases and being humble in their own humanly imperfections. It makes it more believable and trustworthy.

Why is it that every time we realize the saw isn’t plugged in, we bump the trigger at least three times

I've got the dewalt worm drive, things a beast, I think you'd love it

I for one want to thank you for sharing your decades worth of knowledge over the years with us young(er) guys so that we might learn something helpful from you or avoid a pitfall that you have already tripped over. I like the Skill and Makita but also the DeWalt 60V worm saw and I buy one of those if my 20 year old porter cable sidewinder saw ever dies on me. Anyway, I hope you might test some of the cordless saws one day in a future video. Be safe and God bless!

I have been watching your videos for skittle over a year now and I I ever wanted a house built by anyone it would be you and vcg construction your knowledge and ability to still work is amazing man I hope I can keep up when I’m up there in my years

An honest review. Nice. Cheers from Tokyo!

I'm a young electrician and every time I pick up a fancy new tool it makes me think about how much harder work used to be... I can't imagine ever being on a job site with a hundred different cords going to every contractor before battery powered tools existed. It's a really good time right now to be in a trade just because of all the cool tools you get to play with every single day.

This is an excellent review, really helped me make a decision on Makita's hypoid vs. worm drive saw.

I've had the same Makita reciprocating saw for 28 years. The cord has been the only problem and I've only replaced it once. Good tool.

When I'm cutting plywood or other sheet goods, I prefer the saw having a bit of weight. I think it helps the saw sink into the line and hold steady as it cuts. Same for rip cuts on beams or stacks of framing wood

this is the first saw i used when i got into framing. i love it. ended up working in finish carpentry so i haven't used this saw in a few years and obviously can't find a reason to get it as i'll never use it in my field

Reminds me of my Grandpa who was a carpenter, Sure do miss him! Great review.

Good review. I've been using the Makita for about three years now and don't have any complaints. I've used it for framing lumber, composite siding, control joints in concrete and even wet timber from an old dock I pulled out. It will put up with a lot of abuse.

I liked getting AvE's take on the manufacturing side and Scott's take on the functional and actual application side. Ultimately I think I'll side with the skil saw. Both seem well made with their own fair share of nuances. And of course, the red looks way cooler

I think you are on point with this review, however, you need to try out the 36 V rear handle cordless Makita. It is impressive. We rarely roll any cords out any more. The batteries usually last at least half the day on a full charge. The only task I've found that wears the battery out quicker is cutting stair stringers.

Haven't used this one yet, but my "old" metal saw from Makita has never failed me. I use it for wood and metal and it's a beast. Heavy sucker, but the thing cuts through anything i point it at. The moment i understood that underneath the metal saw "mode" is a regular wood saw, things were changed for me because the difference between having to carry two saws, is clear cut with the Makita, and it's in changing the blade and putting on or removing the face (the glass reinforced and metal cover that catches all the super hot bits when you're cutting metal).

I have a few circular saws, prefer the Mag 77 over all others . Really do love my DeWalt DW 346 (AKA Black and Decker Sawcat)sidewinder as well. But this doesn’t mean someone can’t be more efficient with Makita or any other brand they prefer. Always enjoy your videos look forward to them !

Anybody that watches AvE is a well-learned RU-vid consumer.

The most important info. It's not the saws fault. Lol

Impeccable truth, thank you. For me, a while back, I chose Rigid out Mikata, Skil, and Bosch because when doing small ripping cuts the other three jerked too hard. The Rigid started out the smoothest.

Difficult to understand why someone would thumbs down this video. Clearly a seasoned professional giving an unbiased review of a tool. Nicely done.

Thank you for an honest and balanced review. AvE would be proud of you. The lump on the cable is a Ferrite, designed to reduce noise induced on the mains power line. Normally a capacitor is fitted inside the machine but these fail with age. Personally I'd put a new flex on (the one supplied probably isn't long enough anyway) and not worry too much about suppression, it's not as if your using the thing continuously somewhere where line bourne noise could be a problem.

The cordless version is awesome my self, brother and many other guys in the trades have at least one. It’s strong, not super heavy and NO CHORD!! They are great for things like rafter tails and whatnot ,when you don’t want to be dragging a chord. Great content as usual!👍

The Makita is the one I use. Given to me by a close friend and it has that same appeal that you talked about many videos ago Scott.

I would love to work for him and what an education. We need more men like this teaching the building trade .

"If you're not doing good work, it's not the saw's fault." I've heard a statement with a similar sentiment elsewhere, but in a more general form. The one I repeat is "A poor craftsman blames their tools." Just about any wrench will turn a bolt or nut. The nicer ones might feel better in the hand, but they'll all get the job done when used right or they weren't tools to start with. As an example of some "tools" that it turns out weren't tools, I got some "screwdrivers" from the dollar store once (I was young and dumb), and they stripped out on the first screw I used them on. Yes, I was using the right size screwdriver for the screw. No, the metal wasn't up to the task. Screwdriver tip was cut right, but the metal was soft. On the other hand, if someone was to give me a toolbox full of tools from Harbor Freight or another low-cost tool supplier, I wouldn't turn my nose up at it. I don't "need" Snap-On or another top-end brand to do my work effectively, all the extra features the top-end brands have are only incremental improvements to the baseline tool that will get the job done. Maybe if I worked on aircraft I'd be able to justify a full set of Snap-On tools, but I'm not an A&P. I'm just an auto mechanic. Pretty much any set of tools that has the right elements will do the job, and you can get 90% of that to fit in your trunk. Which is why I think everyone should have a set of tools in their daily driver. Even just a nice long breaker bar with a socket that will fit your lug nuts (or lug bolts if you drive a Volkswagen). That's gonna be a big help if you get a flat. If your vehicle has no spare tire (compact or otherwise), you should get a tire plug kit and a 12v tire inflator. That's the bare minimum you need to get to a mechanic from the side of the road. Don't use the 12v tire inflator with the engine off, because it draws a lot of power and therefore you need the engine running to keep the battery from going dead.

I have the Makita. It's hard to beat the saw you already know, it's like shaking an old friend's hand.

Love y’all’s videos and podcast!

I've had the green hypoid saw for a couple years and as far as I'm concerned it is a beast of a saw and does everything that I could possibly expect. I also like the fact that it has low wear steel gears and long life lubrication.

Actually I am getting older too but in skilsaw I actually like a bit of weight.....it stabilizes the saw and if you cut smart you can use the weight of the saw to your benefit....but sometimes its just heavy.....as you said if you haven't done it for awhile it feels like a tank....but few weeks into it feels 5 lbs lighter cuz your a bit stronger

The black sliding thing on the cord near the plug is a ferrite choke. They are used to suppress high frequency noise from the saw that could interfere with other electronics on the same power circuit. It would be safe to take it off as you don’t have TV’s and computers etc on the building site operating at the same time.

I started using a Skil 77 (non mag) back in 1982. It was a little heavy for me at age 16 but I got used to it pretty quickly. About 5 or 6 years ago, since I wasn't doing much framing anymore, I started using a Makita cordless saw (which I love). I recently had to bring out the Skil for a job that was too big for my little Makita cordless and I really felt the difference. I probably made about 300 cuts that day. The saw was just warming up but my right hand, forearm, and shoulder were beat.

I'll say again... You Scott, are an Amazing Teacher!!! If you ever opened up a construction school for old guys who are approaching being out of their prime... I want to be first on the class sign-up sheet!!! :-)

You should try the 36 V Makita, I was slow to try them but as heavy framer and form carpenter I can tell you that they do hold up.

That gizmo on the cord has a security tag in it. I took mine off and verified that it wasn't a ferrite bead.

I thanks for your channel. I bought my skill based on your reviews. Thank you so much! I love it!

So well articulated. Thanks.

"Carpenters are detectives" !!! Lol 💯

I've not tried Makitas version of the Skill saw . And we don't really get Skill here in the UK . But I do have Makitas 18v cordless rip saw , which is amongst the best tools I have ever owned . I bought one 12 years ago , and a new one mid last year . Not because the first one was broken , but because it had some upgraded features and I got a good deal on it . There is a huge thing in our trades just now , and I've seen friends fall out over it 😮 and it's that DeWalt is best , no Makita , no Milwaukee is better . Guys can't just realise , or admit that we are super lucky now , to have these great tools , that are improving constantly . Look at the oscillating multi tool , wow ! They are brilliant and I wished I'd had one years ago . So don't get hung up too much on the colour of your tools , or if you think Estwing beats Vaughan . It does not matter , as long as you can make money from them , and they keep you productive on site , and help make the job easier and more efficient . Thanks for another great video Scott , I so wish I could swing a hammer right now , but stuck in week 7 or 8 of lockdown here in Scotland . Stay safe , everyone .

"It belongs in the kitchen " that was funny 😄 😆 🤣 😂. I'm interested in watching your review of that new skillsaw.

Great review- love your vids. here my two cents, I also do carpentry but small to medium jobs. I bought the Makita Hypoid last year to replace a skill. its done its fair share and not had any issues on lack of power or deck bending.. It is heavy but works nice-- However I bought straight 7-1/4 circ makita saw for smaller jobs and out of box the deck was bent and not cutting straight. Returned it and second one motor burned up about week in. Third one has survived but it fell off my saw horse and the aluminum deck is garbage. I dont abuse my tools as they keep me fed and clothed however very disappointing in the Makita saw. I have since gone back to Skill brand as one I just replaced had over 22 years before it died. As you put it, the Makita looks like it belongs on kitchen shelf. Its just not Makita, lot name brand manufacturers trying save money using sub-grade materials and plastic have dress up the tools. Thanks again on advice, vids and stories. Love em

"It's not the saw's fault", perfectly stated.

In the Eastern US, most guys use a circular or ‘sidewinder’ type saw. The guys over in the west and most all form carpenters (E or W), like worm drives. You’ll produce the best work using the saw you were ‘raised’ on. It’s similar to running an excavator. If you learned on an ISO control pattern, you’ll probably have a little difficulty switching over to an SAE control pattern and vise versa. You could also make the surfing comparison. If you learned goofy foot, you’ll probably always prefer goofy foot. 🏄

Really love Makita products! That’s why I’ve been using them for forty years!

You said you were going to review the M77 6 months ago when you were going to Texas. I do miss the craftsman shows too. But you have a big project to do and you're doing it well. I seemed to have strayed from here and just remembered that I haven't seen one of your videos in a while. Almost always enjoyable. Thank you. :)

Any chance you’d take a look at the cordless version of either of those saw. I think you’ll be surprised 👍

Like my mag 77. At this point, my current one should outlive me. Noise reduction coil. New cord will fix that problem lol

Ive used a ten year old version of this beast for 4 years, rodding 1/4" rods into the underside of granite. It's called the Blue Ripper Jr. , a pretty cool tool. Just replaced the saw for the first time in at least ten years. Mind you its slinging abrasive granite dust and water when in use.

Frig yeah! Ive put off a new saw purchase for months waitibg fir this video!

I have the 36V cordless version of this saw and love it! I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on it.

1:40 Sudden kickback can happen to even the mightiest. Keep tight hold!

Thanks for the great great teachings over the years, really.

I've been using a Makita sidewinder since the late 90s. It's been very good. If I decide to get a hypoid geared saw, I'll probably get this one.

I can't complain. I am just happy the blade is on the left where it belongs

Makita has similar cordless with 2 batteries. Good if need to make some cuts without cords

Great teacher / instructor , thank you!

Thanks for posting this. I’ve been looking at this versus the Mag77.

Me: a new saw would be cool, wonder if I should get a wormdrive? Oh neat, a Makita saw review on EC! EC: If you're not doing good work with it, it's not the saw's fault! Me: eh, my old direct drive still cuts alright...

I hope you make more money on RU-vid and selling merchandise than you ever made in your life.

If only I would have had a father like this guy, to teach me things to become a better man. Life would have been different. But instead he bailed. Now I have my own construction business and have kids of my own, and I struggle teaching them about life and how to use logic vs emotions when dealing with life changing decisions. I do truly admire this guy and I listen to every word he says. He has helped me, believe it or not, in my own business :) by just watching and learning from his videos. Thanks man!

I've used both those saws and they both work very well. Makita has always had more plastic on them than I like but they hold up.

The think you do not know, is a Ferrite coil. It is used to reduce EMI.

I wish we could buy these weapons in Australia, they just never took off, not sure why because they are great to use.

After 45years experience and being right handed I have always used a left mount blade saw porter cable has always been my favorite because once upon a time you could buy one with a left or right mounted blade,sadly no more I would also install a new 25’ cord any time I bought a new saw , long time fan , being a old school yankee I enjoy the way you just get down to it thanks

Super input and review!

"If your not doing good work it's not the saws fault" WORDS TO LIVE BY! It's funny, I recently went back to Makita for my battery tools. My first cordless drill was the Makita 7.2 drill. First circular saw, Makita and palm sander Makita. Dewalt then came out with the 18v that EVERYONE had. then I went to Porter cable (after BD bought them) they were just awful. Recently. I needed to upgrade my drills, I found a deal on Ridged Nice power tool but the feel and trigger was all wrong. I then went to Milwaukee Shortly after (fuel one key) amazingly powerful. The problem with the Milwaukee was too heavy and the balance of the tool is all wrong (for me) Then I went back to Makita. For me it was something familiar. The balance, power, smoothness and ergonomics that I started on was back. This is exactly what you found with your saw, nothing wrong with the Makita, nothing wrong with the Mag 77 but, when you go to pick one up over the other, something is familiar with the Skill, an extension of what's in the mind that you wish to create. Oh that weird thing on the cord is a ferrite bead it helps keeps the "angry pixies" happier to give AVE a nod! Great review as always wonderful content as always. thank you for putting forth so much effort in production.

The thing around the cord near the plug is called a ferrite bead. It's used to reduce high frequency noise that is produced by the device. I'm not an electrical engineer so that's my understanding of it according to resources.altium.com/p/how-ferrite-beads-work-and-how-to-choose-the-right-one . Hope this helps.

I really appreciate this review. I'm currently looking to buy my first circular saw and most reviews out on RU-vid are just advertisements in disguise (I also watch a lot of camera and tech reviews and that is true out there as well). The kid in me wants to buy the top of the line cordless circular saw but the rational responsible adult part of me says either buy a good used saw or good corded saw and upgrade down the line if you find the tool is not cutting it for you (ok that pun was seriously not intended but I am leaving it in). If your other videos are like this then I am sure the channel is worth a subscription.

Bought one of these at Christmas pretty happy with it