The Good Bad & Ugly - Skilsaw Worm Drive 12" Miter Saw SPT88-01

We were very excited to get the new Skilsaw SPT88-01 Worm Drive Dual Bevel 12" Sliding Miter Saw in our shop to put it through the paces. We were incredibly disappointed once we pulled out our square and worked to tune the saw up for use. Flat out, this saw needed all sorts of help to make a 90 degree cut on the flat. Try standing some baseboard up against the fence and we could not get a good cut for anything. We quickly found our fence was not square to the table and there was no adjustment for that. After getting everything as close as we could, we went out to try the saw with our buddy who was trimming a home. After 15 minutes of use, the electrician in the back part of the home came out complaining about the noise. We were aware this saw was very loud, but the tone or pitch of the saw can quickly get to you indoors.
When we looked up the cost of this saw online, we found it to be a $630 saw. We know it is not a Festool saw, but this saw is price higher than most high-end Bosch and Dewalt saws that outperform it in the accuracy department two-fold.
While this saw has power and good miter detents, many parts are lacking. The miter saw category for sales is crowded and Skilsaw knows it. They should have come to the game ready to play or lowered the price of the saw to compete with others at a lesser quality. Just because the saw is gear driven does not mean it commands twice of what it is worth when compared to other saws equal to it on the market.

Skilsaw Miter Saw Specs
Maximum RPM - 4,000 No Load RPM
Maximum Miter Angle - 60° right, 50° left
Maximum Bevel Angle - 48° right and left
Miter Detents - 0°, 15°, 22.5°, 31.6°, 45° right and left, 60° right, 50° left
Bevel Stops - 0°, 22.5°, 33.9°, 45°, 48° left and right"
Weight - 51 lbs
Capacity 0° / 0° - 4" x 14"
Capacity 45° / 0° - 4" x 10"
Capacity 0° / 45° - 2" x 14"
Capacity 45° / 45° - 2" x 10"
Molding Capacity 0° / 45° Left Miter - 6-1/2"
Molding Capacity 0° / 45° Right Miter - 3-1/2"
Nested Crown Capacity 52° - 5-1/2"
Crown Capacity, Flat - 11-1/2"