This saw is amazing. I’m a framer here in Oklahoma and we use those saws and they’re an absolute game changer. Powerful, light, no cord hassle, long battery life. 10/10 recommend
Light ? Mate I've been framing for thirty years with a corded Makita that weighs a little over 8 pounds and I'm buggered by days end ,you'd have to be big Arny to cart that bloody rear handle Makita around all day .lol
It's not crazy powerful, I like it but Milwaukee and Dewalt have way more power, makita one is smoother cutting though, "feels like a Ferrari in your hand" gets thrown around quite a bit on reviews of it.
I use one every day, it's my bosses and I absolutely love it. Super comfortable in hand, only complaint is the batteries are a bit awkward to get in and out
Almost 2 years later, still don't need it, still love using it. I think I got some kind of flash deal on it at HD. 199 for saw and batteries/charger. Took the staff like half an hour to find the saw on the top shelf, box caked with dust. Wife and in-laws sitting outside in the car waiting the whole time🤣🤣 Man, I love finding a good deal!
I've had this saw for 3 months now and it's easily become my favourite tool I own. My favourite part of this saw is the blade depth adjustment it's so accurate you don't even need to measure sometimes! If you work with any type of joists, rafters or just normal stick framing it is so handy being able to carry it around the Jobsite to do all your cutting I haven't found anything it won't cut well yet and the stock blade stays so sharp as long as you treat it well. Those on the fence about these style of battery saws don't even think twice just buy it!
Discovered you randomly after searching for some reviews on diamondback toolbelts. I think ive watched every video you got here on RU-vid now! Keep making great content 😁 shout out from a Norwegian carpenter 🇧🇻
This past Saturday I was working with a buddy. He needed to rip about a dozen 2x6 down. I loaned him my makita rear handled saw. He wasn't convinced it was the right saw for the job. After ther job was done he kept saying I am getting that saw. I love mine, I also have other smaller makita saws.
I have had this saw for 2 years. It has completely surpassed my expectations and would highly recommend it. It is so nice cordless tools are replacing my corded tool with similar or better performance without a cord. Thanks Makita!
I’ve got the cordless 36 Miter box, track saw and this one ordered. Someday I’ll get a cordless phone ..😎 Glad to hear it’s still good after 2 years , still going strong?
I work for Home Depot. We can't keep them in the store. They're currently selling for US $249 which includes 2x5AH batteries. And you get another 2x5AH batteries free.
RPM may be similar, but remember the linear velocity of the outside cutting edge will be significantly faster on the 7 1/4" / 185mm blade than the 6 1/2" / 165mm blade. About 14% faster if my math is correct.
What made me decide on the smaller saw was talking to a construction crew that owned both saws. They all said the bigger saw was garbage and rarely used it. One said he built his house pretty much with the smaller saw, miter saw and a table saw. They said the weight was an issue and they said they rarely needed the additional power. Everyone on the crew were older so maybe that was factor. I am very happy with my smaller Makita. I can see for the type of work you do could be a good addition thought. For me I will save my money and plug in my old corded saw. Nice review.
i own this saw, i run two 5amp batteries and it the best it has replaced my corded skilsaw mag 77 as i frame houses for a living in Ontario, Canada. today framing the 2nd floors of 3 town houses the saw lasted over 400 cuts of 2x10 i was shocked at 430 pm it cut out ( started at 7am). awesome saw, depending on what you do!
Picked one up a few weeks ago for $259 USD. The saw w/blade, dual rapid charger (2 batteries simultaneously), nice carry bag, and (4)four 5Ah batteries, ...for $259!!! It was like buying 4 batteries on a sale price, and then getting a saw, charger, and carry bag for free.
I use the 36v sidewinder. It will in no way replace my corded saws. If i was cutting a roof I would burn through batteries. It is just better to be plugged in when cutting rafter after rafter. Saying that I do love the battery saw for smaller jobs.
I've had the dewalt rear handle saw (the flexvolt) for over 2 years... Favorite power tool... If I had to go do a job and could for some reason only bring minimal tools, I'd grab my bags, my framing square, and my rear handle flexvolt
I recently got the DeWalt 60v worm drive saw and love it. Tons of power. It's heavy, but it cuts through timber with no resistance. I used it to build a shed and am happy with it.
Been building houses for 45 years. This is my go to saw. It is powerful enough to do rips. Would be nice to have a built in light for better vision of cut. Change the batteries when one bar on the fuel gauge. Channels in the shoe plate tends to hold sawdust and then empties it into my truck. My Skil mag LT is not used much anymore. Very good saw!
I learned on a Makita saw and I’ve got a fair few myself, but there is no other cordless saw like my DEWALT Flexvolt 7-1/4”! I’ve run it against my corded Skilsaw Mag77 and there is no comparison. If you need a powerful saw to rip old lumber or gang cut 4-by rafter tails, you want the sexy-flexy hanging on your horses! Love the channel and keep up the good work!
@h2s I've seen it. I could easily be convinced to by one. I've use the "77" series skilsaw for 20 years. Just recently switched to the dewalt 60v. I just cant stomach the cost at this moment. The dewalt is running real well
As a concrete form building carpenter I use this saw. I have been building warehouses most recently and this beats wheeling a generator over a 350,000 sq. Ft. Jobsite. Cutting and ripping 15inch rim joist is a breeze. Also when building walls with high density overlay plywood, I can rip two 3/4 sheets at once with with no problem.
So I just recently bought this saw for general construction use. I absolutely love it. Almost everything else I use is DeWalt, but my saws are Makita and I love them. This thing is a ripper forsure.
I've got the newer Dewalt DCS 578, which is the updated 60V max sidewinder. It's not a wyrmdrive/rear handle, but holy crap does it have the power. Like every other battery operated tool, it almost fools you into believing it's a toy until you pull the trigger, it's an absolute monster. Much like you, no fanboyism. I just happened to have other DeWalt tools and decided to go for that. At the end of the day, they're all just tools. They have a job that we need them to do, and most of the modern tools are well able to complete those jobs. Keep up the great content!
I’ve been loving the 6 1/2” saw for a couple of years now, but I’ve always had the mag hypoid saw for backup and heavier work. A few months ago my big corded saw got stolen. Bummer, but it had definitely paid its dues, so I replaced it with this 36v version. It’s absolutely amazing after a few little mods... disable the safety switch (small saw too😉), then I ground a big radius from the front inside corner of the guard to greatly improve the cutting line of sight, and then ground off the end of the acorn but on the bevel lever so it will balance on the front edge of the foot leaned up against your sawhorse 👌🏼. Now it’s damn near perfect. Another favorite feature is that it will balance nicely upside down, which helps greatly when setting up a rip fence.
Hi Scott. Iv had one of these saws for the last 18 month, it’s a great saw but if you cutting pattens on the ground for roofs I still stick to corded but cutting the rafter feet on when up on the roof it’s the bomb. One of The best things is the left sided blade you have a lot better view of cut & you are right it’s great for framing. Keep up the great work, I always look forward to your next videos. Cheer, Rob
I am a DIY, and because of you I am getting in the Makita line... can't say other thing that they are awesome!!! I have worked with a corded skilsaw, very useful and more straight cuts with the rear handle.
I love the fact that were finally getting so much power out of these cordless saws. I remember getting the old 18v dewalt circular saw which was really only usable for small punch out and that was pushing it. I've been using the milwaukee fuel 7 1/4 for the past few years only pulling out the corded when I need to cut stacks of material. A couple weeks ago I just picked up the Skil cordless after the milwaukee decided to drop about 30 ft to a concrete basement which it didn't really like. I was on the fence between the makita, dewalt and the skil. Like you, especially when it comes to tools that are used all day every day, I buy the ones that I think are going to work best, be more productive, and hold up rather than just being in a battery platform or a specific brand. The skil sold me the first day out cutting wet 2x10 yellow pine rafters on a rainy day just going through them like it was nothing. Even though the saw is heavy it's smooth, comfortable, and familiar since I've used the skil 77s for years the adjustments just feel second nature to me. I love seeing what other carpenters around the world are doing it's extremely interesting. Keep up the quality work!
My folks are over there at the moment, said it's bloody wonderful weather at the moment, but we're supposed to be going to South Island next week and apparently the weather is not so hot there at the moment! Thanks for sharing as ever.
Best saw! This saw cuts for hours before you gotta change batteries. I ran it non stop 8 hours cutting siding..every guy that uses it comes over and praises how well built it is. 125$ bare tool.
I’m getting my first circ saw, I’m grabbing this monster. Honestly, I’ve done a ton of research and since I’m going into commercial giant worksights, I want to have the best quality saw with the most power/torque. I’ve already got 4 5amp batteries too. I feel if I invest early into this, if I ever need something smaller I’ll be able to grab a smaller one a lot easier then making a larger investment down the road. And I’m fucking pumped
In my humble opinion; I like the ergonomics of the 36. For things like cutting eaves before hanging fascia. The hind battery loading occupies exactly where your wrist wants to be which becomes very obvious when making repetitive downward cuts. Love your stuff Mr. brown. “Scott brown here” is a common saying on my job sites. 🙌
I wanted a cordless 7 1/4 circular saw. I wanted a smaller version of this saw but this saw was free from Makita, so I got it. I bought 2 5 amp hour batteries and a charger for 240.00 including tax and shipping and Makita sent me this saw and 2 additional 5 amp hour batteries as a bonus. So I have my 7 1/4 circular saw now. I hope I love it.
I use mine for ripping and even in wet treated 50mm it’s a beast, it does jam a bit when there’s tension in the wood but so does my corded one. And with a demo blade it’s even better
that 36v saw kicks ass. I'm coming from the baseline Makita plug in 7 1/4 saw. i bought the small blade 18v Makita saw in 09. my boss at the time told me it was a "gimmick". It became used more often than my drills. The next guy i worked for was a good friend, he realized the awesomeness of the 18v saw. we made fun of my old boss and I named this saw the Gimmie. so many years later I buy this 36v saw you're reviewing now. I named it the Super Gimmie. Ill go ahead and say you cant get a good idea on how powerful it is unless you're running 5.0 amp/hr batteries. Now you're looking at needing the double charger and at least 4 5.0 batteries. If you have that, you'll never want to plug in a 7 1/4 saw again and you wont look back. I was cutting rafters today, gave my employee the 36v for the plumb cut and i used the old plug in on the birds mouth end. Ugh, its been a while since I used this saw. Not as much fun. My only gripe is my 36v saw is the depth gauge is inaccurate and the spring in the blade guard is so stiff it'll push a 2x4 off the saw horses. I've been removing the thumb safety switches and the blade guard return spring on every battery saw since day 1. Once you get into the habit of the wrist flick to drop the guard before you place it down, you'll never want the spring again. plus brushless is already bladestop
Just got this saw, been using the 165 alot but wanted something a bit more capable for ripping, which this 185 is, and it's smooth. I find it a bit heavy on the right hand side for regular cross cutting on little sticks like 4 x 2 so will keep using the 165 for that. I'm a heavy oak timber framer by trade so used to using BIG saws for big work. (Just to help put things in perspective ).
The reason I bought it is because I do Home Remodeling ,, so sometimes I'm working inside an apartment, or inside a home and I need to make my cuts outside,, so depending on what plywood , wood, etc I'm cutting I have to look for a extension cord and set up the plugs and everything ,, so this is really handy that way. You just go outside and cut what you need to. The small makita saw is good also, but depending on if your making long cuts, the framing saw with 18+18 =36 volts will work better..
You're analysis is spot on, Scott. Taped trigger while not cutting won't tell you anything about actual run time. These saws draw a lot more amps as the load increases. It would be like testing your car's fuel economy with the car on jack stands ala Ferris Beuhler. I have this Makita and the Milwaukee rear handle. They are both great saws. The Milwaukee is a bit more powerful, but the Makita runs more smoothly. They both are beasts with plenty of power. They aren't, however, the saw to choose for light work. Being left blade saws, the site line is awesome for right handers like me. Though not a factor for me, the Makita is a great looking saw. Reminiscent of steam trains of the art-deco era I'm happy with both saws. I have a Milwaukee left blade 6 1/2 sidewinder that is the saw I always reach for when big power isn't an issue. For sheer power, I believe the DeWalt FlexVolt, and Skilsaw wormdrive are the most powerful cordless rear handle saws out there. I'm not a fan of right blade saws at all. Keep up the great work, and stay safe.
Jimmy klausner wondering where you’re from. I have never heard of this type of saw called anything other than worm drive. Similarly your higher rpm circular saws are normally sidewinders. That is what we call them regardless of if they have a rear push handle or the top/canted push handles.
I have both , the 6 1/2 with the right blade is capable of cutting stringers out of pressure treated lumber , but it takes longer than the 36 v ,which is a beast.
The 36v is a worm-drive saw. It has a different style of cutting than a 18v sidewinder. The wormdrive is a framers tool and most of the cutting is done "over the foot" using the weight of the tool to guide and make the cut. Add a prazi-beam cutter to the 36v and now you have a cordless beam cutter.
We have had a couple of these for 18 months or so. Scott left a couple Kwerks out about the saw but their a still great saws. Ill be making a video about them soon. We do have a lot of flexvolt tools but not the rear handled saw. I’d like to try one of them.
You need them both if your a pro chippy. The single battery saw is great for cutting sheet material and cross cutting timber. The rear handled one you use for ripping down lengths of timber and framing.
02:16 It most likely turned off since you weren't doing anything. It can obviously sense that there is little to no load and there simply will be a timeout implemented.
I had always used the classic right blade corded makita's for framing etc. It took a little getting used to the little left blade cordless (same one you have), especially when cutting bevels. But that little saw has proven so handy for small jobs and cutting in the roof. I may just have to get the big brother now!
i think the ultimate conclusion is that we need both. I just picked up the 36v because of 2x12 stringers. in order to stay tight to my line I need lots of torque.
I have this saw. It kicks ass. The only downside is the spring on the blade guard is so strong. I pull the spring out so it doesnt push a 2x4 off the horses before the blade eats in.
Hi Scott. Like the channel and your content. No load run-time means very little. You need to compare them under comparable load. You can cut at the same depth and same wood, but of course wood does vary so it's difficult to be precise on that.
@Scott Brown ... I had this 36V Makita saw also but just for two years and during this time I’m used it just few times and I just sold it two months ago ... sometimes i need a deeper cutting saw and i like cordless tools. That’s why I want buy now a cordless saw that can even cut deeper ... Makita has a new cordless saw that can cut 9 1/4 “ but SkilSaw will bring one out here in North America later this year. This new cordless saw can cut even 1” more then the new Makita -
The No-load test may have triggered a safety cut out. I saw this big hand held circular saw once. At least 18" diameter. They were building a trebuchet. Huge timber sections.
for me id buy one just for the ergonomics, the rear handle design with the blade on the left is absolutely perfect for right handers, i already have a 110v version, its worth lugging the transformer around for a saw like that. I dont understand why they make circular saws with the blade on the right and the handle adjacent to the blade, so impractical and awkward.
I have used this saw for a long time and one big thing Ive noticed is that even though its heavier its really smooth and when Im cutting down sheathing or plywood it really feels like its just gliding through the cut its easier to track a straight line and much faster because its not constantly twitching through the cut and needing to be corrected back onto the line like my 6 1/2 does.
Just the video I was looking for! Contemplating buying one but already have the smaller one. Pondering for all the reasons you’ve shown here. Only problem is, I’m addicted to makita cordless kit (and batteries!!! , 12 at the last count😂). I’ll be buying this. 😂😂👍
I bought this saw last year, right after I built my own frame house. It would be great to had one while main building was in process but it si great to have one now, there is still a lot of framing to do. Now I am thinking about buying a little one for smaller works but in my country the price of dhs680 like about 50% more than drs780.
I have that same little one and I had a go on the rear handle one a few weeks ago... The power difference was really noticable. The rear handle is a bit weird though, not used to that.
I've been in construction for 37 years ,I live in Oregon in the US. Framing houses here you need to really have a saw that can handle the work,worm drive skilsaw has always been my go to but switched to the rear handled Makita and absolutely love it, never had any problems so far and it rains quite a bit up here so not having to drag a bunch of cords around is a real benefit as far as time and efficiency is concerned, %100 recommended this for contractors.
I suspect that "runtime test failure" occurred not because of overheating. First, the time was quite round. Second, the motor would not produce a lot of heat with no load. I think it just could be some kind of protection built-in in the saw's controller
There is a strange tradition in the US. On the West Coast, the rear handle models are very popular, while in the East and Midwest, the "side winder" models predominate. I don't really know why this is, but when I lived in California and I needed to do some framing, I was preternaturally drawn to buy my first the rear handle circ saw. It was love at first cut.
So glad for this video. I keep looking at it. Got the big makita 305mm aws mitre saw. Yeah it’s heavy but I’m on that platform. Got a great deal on it too
I've had this Makita DRS 780 saw for about 8 months now. Thought it was great since I only had a small corded Hitachi circular saw with the blade on the wrong side before that. But after having used it for probably 300 hours I don't like it. It's too heavy and drains batteries in no time and for some reason gets stuck even cutting 20mm OSB. There is this new Milwaukee rear handle 7 1/4 that came out last year, it looks lighter, I think I will give it a try or do some more research and find something else. But I've worked with many different circular saws, so far I got to like only only one which was Festool track saw and I used it over 6 years ago last time when I was relatively green. Maybe it's not the saws, maybe I'm just not a good carpenter :D Have a nice day you all.
Just was perusing Amazon they have them for 160. That makes it a no-brainer. The 2x batteries are being fazed out for the new 36V. But for me, the 2X still makes sense. I am going to see if I can run it on my Dewalt batteries with adapters. I don't really care, but for a guy who is paying, not getting paid it would be fun if it worked.
I received this saw kit with the batteries and dual charger as a gift and as an apprentice coming from only using smaller blade right saws I quickly began plotting to sell it. But after seeing guys I admire like @carpentry_bymar, @awesomeframers and @mattbangswood wield it masterfully I put some practice in and grew to love it in certain situations. I still want to pair it with something lighter like the Makita 6 1/2 subcompact and probably wouldnt have bought it myself but given that I didnt have to invest in it and was able to increase my Makita battery count, it earned its place. Great for sheet goods, longer 2x boards (when pulling measurement from the left), and when using saw horses. More cumbersome when cutting boards propped off of your boot and shorter 2x pieces because the cut line falls out of sight on the right side of the blade (when pulling short measurement from the right of the board)
When cutting off your foot with rear handle saws, cut on a steep angle as to let the weight of the saw guide it through the cut. For me, cutting off my foot is a lot easier with a rear handled saw than a normal sidewinder.
Exactly! Being a right hand carpenter it's great for sheathing and cutting longer material to length. I find it just fine for cutting off the ground or off stacks of lumber. Just not sure about shorter 2X and cutting blocking... do they all just look through the blade when material that drops to the right, or possibly add the width of the blade? Could also just cut left handed for shorts but the saw is not as light as a sidewinder.
An electric motor draws power proportional to the work it's doing per second. Performing cuts and spinning up the blade draws dramatically more power than moving around a little bit of air in direct proximity to the blade.
I ran into the airbow rep the other day, he let me try out the new concrete airbow, shot nails through thick solid steel, that things rocks! No saws but...
Ok so I’ve been in the fence about getting this cause most of my cordless stuff is DeWalt and I needed a new circ saw and I hadn’t invested into the flexvolt lineup yet but after watching this I pulled the trigger today and bought it! 199.99 for the saw and 300ish in 2 sets of 5.0 batteries and a double bat fast charger! Used if this afternoon and I’m in love! Thank you.
Been using the Makita XSH08Z (US name) Top handle 36v 6K rpm. Pretty nice piece of kit.. But the depth adjustment is very hit or miss. It's just a nut washer and lock ring that release a little pressure when you raise the handle to allow the depth to be reset. If that nut moves at all then it either jams or makes it so it doesn't lock. Makes me just leave it on max cut as I'm scared if I try to adjust it'll not lock out again. Makita have a great range of tools on their ecosystem so hopefully they revisit that mechanism for the future models and bring it up to standard.
I've got a corded Skil Mag77 so cutting power isn't an issue. But if I had any Makita batteries I probably would've got this saw for the portability and no worries about blowing fuses.
Why does no one talk about the Makita XSH06Z. Spins faster, 600 cuts, and its lighter! Blade right is a perfect addition when I already have the smaller blade left. Best money spent on a circ. saw.
Indeed Scott You are So correct Regardless of Right tool for the Saituation And for different folks That is how they see the best for the task at hand Battrie tool are indeed gettin better and better Even for an old hand like me
Scott, check out the brushless 7 1/4” x2 sidewinder. I got one for a ridiculous price ($100 USD) and it has really put an end to my interest in 18v saws (including the beautiful Mafell KS55). They make a version with a sole plate that runs on the Festool/Makita rails. They also make a cordless 10” model now (and it too runs on rails).
I have both and use the big one on anything over 25 mm it is awesome worst part about the small one is i think it is for a left-hander because the blade is one the wrong side as you wear the sawdust
