Skil SHD77M 15 Amp 7-1/4-inch Mag Worm Drive Saw

Manufacturer: Skil List Price: $360.22 Our Price: $178.00

Great saw This is the saw. I'm a carpenter and framer and use my circular saw every day. I bought a mag 77 5 years ago and it has performed flawlessly every day since. Order a framing hook and replace the factory cord with a 50' heavy-duty extension cord. The Pursuit of Happyness This is the son of the saw that built America, aka the Skilsaw. Notice that it's Skil and not Skill, and Happyness vs. Happiness. Today this saw has more variants than a 60's Corvette. The most recent upgrade includes a magnesium housing, aluminum foot, higher temperature motor wiring, and 2 more amps of current usage (hopefully translating into more power). Like many of you who don't own a worm drive Skilsaw, I was confused and am still confused about which one to buy. When in doubt, buy the most expensive model in the line. Ha ha. There are variants built out of steel, those with a removal cord, and even one that sits on wheels. This is not a joke. I saw one with an accessory plate that had 4 wheels on it. I ordered this just to have a saw that could ride atop concrete. The accessory was priced at $62, and is not offered by Amazon yet. Stay tuned. Anyway, the version of the SHD77M you should buy is the SHD77M-22. That version has a cloth bag. Now let's get to my evaluation of the saw. Power corrupts absolutely. There is no substitute for power. Once you get used to power, you don't want to go back. If you are cutting moist 2 x 12's or are building a deck with Ipe or Tiger Deck materials, a smooth and powerful saw is your only ticket. Another thing this saw does is score concrete. I use this term lightly because a 1/4" depth of cut is almost like scoring the material. That's Skil's recommendation, but you might want to plunge 1/2" with the right blade. Make sure it can take the rpm of this saw. They also recommend successive cuts, which I like to do just to keep the heat down. Okay, now that I have described the power and smooth sound you get out of this saw, let me get down to precision. First, the included carbide blade is disposable. The tips, when viewed closely, have chips on the side. But it cuts and it came with the saw, so use it until you have need of a better blade. Others have noted that the base plate is not exactly level. It bows in the middle looking front to back. You don't even need a precision level to see this, as it is off by around 1/32" or so. On a large flat surface, maybe 20% of the plate is resting on the wood. This might be a design or manufacturing issue. I could theorize how this could be good, as it reduces the friction/drag as you slide across wood. There is a saying in woodworking that you should measure twice and cut once. However, when you build a house, there are instances where you measure once and cut twice. The second cut is with the wood nailed in place. You want the saw to slide smoothly and not get snagged anywhere. A swirl or gouge on an edge can ruin the piece or pieces. So, I have to assume that Skil designed the plate based on a lot of hands-on experience. As for fit and finish, the plate is rugged (thick) but not a perfect rectangle or even a parallelogram. I tried using the left and right edges against a metal fence to determine which one gave a cut parallel to the fence. The right side won. Lefty was a little off (I'm picky). The amount of metal on each side is sufficient if you want to machine it square, but why bother? Out of the box, the blade cut at 90 degrees along the vertical. This is good, and should save you from having to shim the saw (you have to loosen some Torx screws to accomplish this). The two v-notched cutting guides are accurate, and acceptable for this type of tool. The handles are made of a plastic or composite. Since I did not subject this to a drop test, I can't vouch for their longevity. But plastic worries me. Too much plastic in a Bosch saw cheapened it. Luckily the two most stressed user adjustment points on the Skilsaw, the depth and miter screws/levers are both metal. Overall, I am pleased with this saw. It is not perfect, but then it does not cost as much as a Hilti. Nor was the Skilsaw designed for precision finish woodwork. That's what my table saw and miter saw are for. This is a carpenter's saw. I hope the new generation is as reliable as the old. Great saw This is the saw. I'm a carpenter and framer and use my circular saw every day. I bought a mag 77 5 years ago and it has performed flawlessly every day since. Order a framing hook and replace the factory cord with a 50' heavy-duty extension cord. The Pursuit of Happyness This is the son of the saw that built America, aka the Skilsaw. Notice that it's Skil and not Skill, and Happyness vs. Happiness. Today this saw has more variants than a 60's Corvette. The most recent upgrade includes a magnesium housing, aluminum foot, higher temperature motor wiring, and 2 more amps of current usage (hopefully translating into more power). Like many of you who don't own a worm drive Skilsaw, I was confused and am still confused about which one to buy. When in doubt, buy the most expensive model in the line. Ha ha. There are variants built out of steel, those with a removal cord, and even one that sits on wheels. This is not a joke. I saw one with an accessory plate that had 4 wheels on it. I ordered this just to have a saw that could ride atop concrete. The accessory was priced at $62, and is not offered by Amazon yet. Stay tuned. Anyway, the version of the SHD77M you should buy is the SHD77M-22. That version has a cloth bag. Now let's get to my evaluation of the saw. Power corrupts absolutely. There is no substitute for power. Once you get used to power, you don't want to go back. If you are cutting moist 2 x 12's or are building a deck with Ipe or Tiger Deck materials, a smooth and powerful saw is your only ticket. Another thing this saw does is score concrete. I use this term lightly because a 1/4" depth of cut is almost like scoring the material. That's Skil's recommendation, but you might want to plunge 1/2" with the right blade. Make sure it can take the rpm of this saw. They also recommend successive cuts, which I like to do just to keep the heat down. Okay, now that I have described the power and smooth sound you get out of this saw, let me get down to precision. First, the included carbide blade is disposable. The tips, when viewed closely, have chips on the side. But it cuts and it came with the saw, so use it until you have need of a better blade. Others have noted that the base plate is not exactly level. It bows in the middle looking front to back. You don't even need a precision level to see this, as it is off by around 1/32" or so. On a large flat surface, maybe 20% of the plate is resting on the wood. This might be a design or manufacturing issue. I could theorize how this could be good, as it reduces the friction/drag as you slide across wood. There is a saying in woodworking that you should measure twice and cut once. However, when you build a house, there are instances where you measure once and cut twice. The second cut is with the wood nailed in place. You want the saw to slide smoothly and not get snagged anywhere. A swirl or gouge on an edge can ruin the piece or pieces. So, I have to assume that Skil designed the plate based on a lot of hands-on experience. As for fit and finish, the plate is rugged (thick) but not a perfect rectangle or even a parallelogram. I tried using the left and right edges against a metal fence to determine which one gave a cut parallel to the fence. The right side won. Lefty was a little off (I'm picky). The amount of metal on each side is sufficient if you want to machine it square, but why bother? Out of the box, the blade cut at 90 degrees along the vertical. This is good, and should save you from having to shim the saw (you have to loosen some Torx screws to accomplish this). The two v-notched cutting guides are accurate, and acceptable for this type of tool. The handles are made of a plastic or composite. Since I did not subject this to a drop test, I can't vouch for their longevity. But plastic worries me. Too much plastic in a Bosch saw cheapened it. Luckily the two most stressed user adjustment points on the Skilsaw, the depth and miter screws/levers are both metal. Overall, I am pleased with this saw. It is not perfect, but then it does not cost as much as a Hilti. Nor was the Skilsaw designed for precision finish woodwork. That's what my table saw and miter saw are for. This is a carpenter's saw. I hope the new generation is as reliable as the old.