Rockwell RK7138 15 Amp 10-Inch Sliding Miter Saw

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Product Details

Shipping Weight: 50.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
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Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
ASIN: B002CJLUY2
Item model number: RK7138

By : Rockwell
Price : $219.99
You Save : $145.01 (40%)

Product Description

From the Manufacturer
Now you can have your own 10" sliding miter saw in your home workshop! The Shop Series RK7138 miter saw delivers great features and exceptional performance making it one of the best values in miter saws. It comes equiped with a 15 amp motor for maximum power, a laser guide for accurate cuts and a transparent moveable guard for excellent visibility. The 10" blade is a thin kerf, tungsten carbide blade that spins at 5000 rpm's (no load speed)for precison cuts everytime. There are preset miter detents at the most popular cuts between 0 and 45 degrees, both left and right. The bevel capacity is 0 to 45 degrees. The base is cast aluminum for lightweight and the whole package includes the spanner wrench, blade, dust bag, a work clamp and two extension rails.
Aluminum base with laser and transparent movable guard. Bevel capacity=0-45 degrees; Mitre capacity=0-45 degrees (Left and Right); Max cutting miter/bevel=0/90: 12"x3-1/2"; Max cutting miter/bevel=0/45: 12"x1-5/8"; Max cutting miter/bevel=45/90: 8-1/2"x3-1/2"; Max cutting miter/bevel=45/45: 8-1/2"x1-5/8". Accessories include: Blade Spanner; Dust Bag; Work Clamp; Extension Rail.

Technical Details

Lightweight and easy to transport
Cast aluminum base
Laser guide for accurate cuts
Bevel capacity 0 - 45 degrees
Powerful 15 amp motor

Rockwell RK7138 15 Amp 10-Inch Sliding Miter Saw

Customer Reviews

The Rockwell sliding compound miter is an excellent saw for the price. It has a few quirks that keep it out of the Dewalt league, but at roughly half the price, I wasn't expecting it to be a Dewalt. And given my experiences with Dewalt miter saws, the Rockwell is not all that far from the mark. The biggest difference is that you have to work with it the same way you would work with a Dewalt that's seen about six months of professional full time use - ie. you have to check square and calibrate the miter gauge fairly regularly.
I also noted that we really need to adjust the laser - something I have yet to do because it is a pain and I didn't have the time mid-project. But when the project we bought it for is done and it gets set up in the shop, that will be dealt with too. I really don't see that as much of a problem though, given I have only once used a saw that had a pretty much perfectly calibrated laser out of the box - one that needed to be recalibrated after a couple months use. That is just the nature of lasers, so I don't really mind it not being perfect. Indeed given that I have used miter saws without lasers far more often than with, it really doesn't bother me.
The Rockwell is not without rather irritating problems though. The major problem is dealing with the guard when changing out blades. I would daresay I have never dealt with a saw that was such a pain in the rear for changing blades - including table saws and band saws. Another issue is that the fence to the right of the blade is recessed for an inch, about an inch up from the table. This makes ensuring your material really is tight against the fence rather difficult. It isn't a deal killer, but it does really annoy me. The last significant problem is that the clamp on the right isn't usable because the body of the saw runs into it. There is just no good reason for not setting the clamp further out on the fence. This won't be a problem when we get the saw set up in the shop, as I intend to recess it in the bench and extend the fence. But for portable use this can be a rather significant irritation.
All in all though, the Rockwell sliding compound miter saw is a great saw for the money. It is solidly constructed and none of the calibration problems are any different than you would expect from a higher end saws that has seen a fair amount of heavy use. There are also a few ways one can compensate - the same ways one can compensate on higher end saws that have begun having similar problems. For a $200+ difference in price, I am willing to deal with the inconvenience.

I bought this saw thinking it would cut accurate miters. Was I wrong. It isn't an expensive saw so I didn't expect a lot of bells and whistles. All I wanted was something that would cut accurate miters. I spend three hours zeroing all the angles and the fence and then tried to make a picture frame. I wasn't successful. The detents are not solid. The table will move about 3/4 degree when the detent drops in place.
The rotating table is lower than the frame of the saw so the work piece is laying at an angle. I returned the saw after using it once. I do not recommend this saw to anyone doing picture frames or trim work.