AEG Fibre cement saw improvements?

[Overkill]

Hi all,

I impulse-bought this AEG saw for cutting Villaboard; it looked the best thing for cutting irregular shapes. AEG POWERTOOLS Fibre Cement Saw: MBS30 - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjgt9zlaAQk)

On its first use on 10 mm ply, the dust collection worked even better than advertised, so today I cut up some Villaboard for a new granny flat kitchen. I had the saw attached to a large Festool vacuum and had the blade height adjusted for minimal penetration. Unlike the ply dust collection, a heap of swarf was thrown out - if felt like my arms were being sand-blasted!

Any ideas to improve the dust collection? I am thinking of taking off the rotating blade guard (or just the handle) and adding a polycarbonate cover to the side of the upper blade shroud help trap large particles. Apart from this the saw is excellent - very light, compact, versatile and easy to use.

[Gaza]

We use hitachi 71/4 had it for almost 10yrs
we use a diamond blade not an fc blade
We have duct taped the crap out of the opening with the guard fixed height now
we use a heap self cleaning vac

[Overkill]

Thanks Gaza,it sounds like I am on the right track.

What is a "heap self cleaning vac"? Something from a western movie? :)

[Gaza]

HEPA filter its a very good filter in vac that can be used for fine dusts, the vacum has a rod inside it which pulses every 30sec to shake the filter clean, we run it on a 46L bagless vac but small jobs we use a 35L which has a long life bag in it.

[CPE W&C]

How much was the AEG version?

I use both a Makita and a Hitachi, but find the Makita a much better saw all around.

4105KB-125mm Dustless Cutter (http://www.makita.com.au/products/power-tools/cutting/item/dustless-cutters/4105kb-125mm-dustless-cutter?Prodid=180)

Hitachi Power Tools Australia (http://www.hitachi-powertools.com.au/ProdDetail.aspx?ID=50&CatID=6)

The Makita cost me $699 and the Hitachi cost me around $400 i think

[Overkill]

THe AEG cost $299 from Bunnings and while I don't have a similar saw to compare it to, I am pretty happy with it. Compared to those other saws, it has a larger base plate, dual handles and a built-in vacuum pump on the back of the motor for active dust extraction. The frame is mostly made of magnesium so its quite light. The blade change is very easy as there is a spindle lock and the allen key for the arbor screw stows on the base plate. It comes with 3 blades, a length of vacuum hose and a filter that straps over a bucket, which looks a bit dodgy; I'm using a second vac to get the most extraction possible.

The motor sits a 90 Deg. to the blade, like an angle grinder. as it doesn't overhang the left side of the base plate, its more convenient to use a guide along that side. The motor position also makes the saw well balanced from side to side.

The shroud around the blade isn't nearly as good as the Makita and the duct is smaller than on the Hitachi - I plan to make a shroud like the Makita. The only problem I can see with this saw is the lock for the blade height; its was loose out of the box and needed adjustment to be reliable.

[CPE W&C]

Thanks Overkill...

Thats pretty good bang for your buck imho

[Overkill]

I should have mentioned it only has a 5.5" blade, so it doesn't have the depth of cut those other saws do. It can still cut around 30mm deep - I can measure it exactly if anyone is interested.