Circular Saw Pizza Slicer

How great is this pizza slicer? It is called the Pizza Boss.

Featured Tool: Saws

Grace asked for a run-down of the saws we use on our renovations, and I don't mind talking about tools at all, so here you go.

Reciprocating Saw (Skil - $70)

We did a lot of demolition work on our house, so this saw has been worked pretty hard (I would estimate we've used up 30-40 saw blades). This type of work doesn't commonly get posts/pictures, but we used it to demo every single room, including the old kitchen cabinets and the back steps.

Jig Saw (Black & Decker - $70)

The jig saw comes in handy for tight/precise cuts, like cutting Mackenzie's name out in wood on her shelf, cutting holes for ductwork, creating the curved tread and riser, and installing hardwood floors (cutting pieces around vent holes, cutting pieces in corners and against cabinets).

Circular Saw (Black & Decker - $75)

I find the circular saw to be most useful for doing depth cuts, like cutting out the subfloor without cutting through the joists, cutting a clean line in existing hardwood, and cutting kerfs to make a curved riser. It is also good for making cuts that do not require the precision of a table saw and/or are too awkward for a table saw, such as installing subfloor.

Mitre Saw (Dewalt 10" - $250)

Most mitre saw cuts could actually be done with either a circular saw or table saw, but the mitre saw is much faster and more precise. Some of its many uses: framing (e.g. bathroom extension, kitchen), cutting metal furring strips for the living room ceiling, installing trim on the second floor, cutting and mitering pieces of MDF for wainscotting, installing trim/bullnose on the stairs, installing hardwood floors. If I had to do it again, I might spend the extra money on a 12" mitre saw, as the 10" blade only cuts pieces up to 6" in thickness, which can be a pain when cutting 2x8's and our baseboard trim (which is 7+" wide).

Table Saw (Craftsman - $?)

We have actually been borrowing this saw from Meredith's parents for the last year and a half (thank you Doug!). It is very useful for precise cuts (e.g. cutting wood for the built-in bench seat), for ripping pieces down to size (e.g. cutting down and squaring off doors/frames, cutting down window frames, cutting pieces of MDF for wainscotting, cutting shim pieces to prepare for drywall), and for ripping pieces to the appropriate width (e.g. ripping down hardwood floor to meet height of kitchen tile).

Featured Tool: Palm Sanders

I have been doing a lot of sanding lately, so I decided to buy a new palm sander. The features are pretty much the same for all palm sanders, so I just bought the cheapest one - the Ryobi 1/4 sheet sander. Unfortunately, that was a bad decision as the clamp that holds the sandpaper broke before I finished my first project. I then returned it and paid a little more for the Dewalt 1/4 sheet sander, which appears to have a sturdier construction and has worked well thus far.

Featured Tool: QEP 7" Tile Saw

I just finished my seventh tile job with this tile saw, which I bought about five years ago for less than $100 (the cheapest one available at HD). I considered buying a tile snapper/cutter at the time, but was talked into getting a wet saw instead, and it was definitely worth the extra money. I know there are tile saws out there with better features (e.g. faster RPM's, larger blades, better guide systems, larger reservoirs), but for my DIY stuff this saw works quite well.

Here is a quick run down of the evolution of the tile work I've completed with this saw:

1. House in Dallas - Guest bathroom shower wall patch job
2. House in Dallas - Master bathroom floor
3. House in Dallas - Study bathroom floor and shower
4. Meredith's Parents' House - Upstairs bathroom floor (no pics)
5. Our House - Bathroom floor and wall (angle grinder was used for circular cuts)
6. Our House - Kitchen floor
7. Our House - Front hall and fireplace hearth (pics coming soon)

We have about four tile jobs left (fireplace wall, kitchen backsplash, basement bathroom, basement laundry/furnace room), so we'll see if this saw can last just a little while longer.

Featured Tool: SawStop Table Saws

I had a minor accident with my table saw last winter, whereby I cut through the tip of my left index finger down to the base of the nail. It was an incredibly scary incident, but could have been much worse (the finger healed slowly and after several months I got 95% of the feeling back). I personally know at least three people who have cut off one or more fingers with a table saw, but luckily they were all able to have the fingers re-attached.

I came across this video tonight via finehomebuilding.com: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3mzhvMgrLE&feature=player_embedded. This table saw uses a special blade and stopping mechanism to prevent cutting accidents like these. If the saw blade detects electrical conductivity (such as that provided by human skin), it stops the blade within 1/1000th of a second; otherwise, the saw operates as usual since wood is not very conductive. The video is an interesting watch; at the 3:02 mark the creator of the saw uses his finger to demonstrate the effectiveness of the technology.

Plus, the SawStop website actually has a page dedicated to "finger saves". Imagine coming close to losing a finger, and walking away with a cut barely the size of a paper cut.