Makita 5007MGK

Solid, powerful and good quality, though rather loud – I bought one of these in March 2020 for $349 at Total Tools, though I used the same model extensively before-hand because my housemate owned one. I didn’t have a drop saw so to make straight cuts, I would set up a piece of timber as a guide on top of the piece I wanted to cut on the table, make it square with my square, clamp it down and make the cut with the circular saw. The method works fine, but it’s way slower than using a drop saw, and I should've just bought a drop saw to start with.

Nonetheless, the Makita circular saw has performed flawlessly. I’ve mostly used it with hardwood, which of course is generally more demanding than softwood, and has been no trouble for this saw. I used it to build about 20 garden wicking beds, a loft, a greenhouse, a solar dehydrator, a teeterboard, etc, as well as for cutting up firewood.

At 1800 watts, the saw has plenty of power - more than my Makita mitre saw in fact, at 1430 watts, and with a higher blade speed of 5800 RPM versus 4300 RPM. It’s reasonably heavy at 4.8 kg, but comfortable to hold and easy to use. The base seems flat and solid and can easily be tilted for bevel cuts or lowered to adjust the depth of the cut. It can cut a decent depth: 63.5 mm, or 45 mm with a 45 degree bevel. It also features an LED to light up your cutting area, which I’ve found useful at times. By the way, I believe the “MG” in the model name designates that it has a magnesium base/shoe, which helps save on weight while being very sturdy and durable. And I believe the only difference between the 5007MG and the 5007MGK is that the latter comes with a carry case.

I liked the saw enough to buy my own when my housemate moved out and took his with him. Unfortunately though, my saw hasn’t seen much use, because I ended up buying both a Makita sliding compound mitre saw and a 5-piece DeWalt Flexvolt kit which included a cordless 54V circular saw. I’ve hardly used my 5007MG saw since then. That’s because, as with other corded tools, I’ve found the main shortcoming of this saw is that it has a cord, and it’s just rather an inconvenient thing to have on a circular saw. The only other minor shortcoming is that it lacks an electric brake, which I’ve become accustomed to on my cordless circular saw and my mitre saw. It also seems reasonably pricey for a corded circular saw, but it seems you get what you pay for.

If you’re doing a large volume of sawing in one spot with good access to a power point, you need heaps of power, or you don’t want to invest the premium in buying batteries for a cordless version, then perhaps this saw would suit you? I can confidently affirm that it’s a solid saw.