Laminate flooring is a go-to option when it comes to home improvement projects. It has a classy final look, a flexible installation, and is super light on pocket making it a complete package for DIY enthusiasts as well as professionals.
While installing laminate flooring, it is really important to take good care of the saw and select it according to the need of the cut.
The point that our workers tried to make after several attempts and projects is that some saws are highly recommended for getting straight cuts but they fail to perform when a craftsman tries to get an angled cut with that.
Similarly, few saws work best to produce angled cuts but they are not recommended for making precise cuts.
This calls for thorough research into the types of saws for laminate flooring before you finally decide to buy one. Here is a complete list of saws with their characteristic specifications for laminate flooring.
Types of Saws for Cutting Laminate
| Jigsaw | Can cut curves, angles, and various shapes |
| Circular Saw | Can make straight cuts |
| Miter Saw | Can make precise cuts at different angles especially 45 degrees |
| Table Saw | Can make precise cuts especially large pieces of laminate flooring |
1. Jigsaw:
Jigsaw is an amazing type of saw also known as a saber saw is an amazing tool when it comes to cutting irregular shapes of laminate flooring. It has a remarkable adaptability to cut curves and make irregular shapes out of laminate with splendid perfection and accuracy.
It is highly recommended for cutting notches without damaging the material, decking plywood, and masterfully cutting laminate into a desired shape.
Many jigsaws are somewhat similar to circular saws in a way that they have handles, blades, and adjustable blade plates. However, a jigsaw has a straight blade, and unlike circular saws, its blade cannot be altered to fit the depth of a cut.
Cutting Laminate Flooring with a Jigsaw:
- Place your laminate flooring evenly on a surface and make sure to take all the precautions. It will help you go through everything without any hassle.
- It is always recommended to roughly mark your areas with a pencil and then start your jigsaw. It helps you cut the laminate without any fear of mistakes or material damage.
- Once you are done with rough work, make sure you know the teeth’ sides, the type of cut you want, and the speed at which you wish to cut your laminate.
- Turn your jigsaw on and slowly move it across your chalked points.
- It is reported to have produced the best results for getting broad curves, tight curves, cutting circles, squared and other shapes in the middle of laminate (and other materials) without nicking it.
- Also, it is excellent for nibbling away the material and is widely used by people to get plunge cuts as well.
2. Circular Saw:
Well, you can find a complete guide on circular saws and how they can be used to cut laminate flooring.
3. Miter Saw:
Miter saws can be safely regarded as one of the most thoughtfully designed tools for woodworking, sheetworking, etc. Some people find them complex, tricky, and difficult to use but they are worth it.
These saws are specially designed to give angled cuts and are one of the most recommended saws for getting perfectly angled cuts in laminate flooring.
Cutting Laminate Flooring with a Miter Saw:
- Grab your machinist square, speed square combination squares, etc.
- Adjust the detent plate as per the requirement of your angle for that specific project.
- Adjust the fences if you have a saw with fixed detent plates and adjustable fences.
- Make sure that you have unplugged the tool before you begin to adjust it. Taking safety measures first is the most important step in any project.
- Now, if you have an adjustable detent plate, adjust the screws that usually are present one at each extreme point and also one in the middle.
- Loosing screws will allow detent plates to move and you can adjust them at your desired positions by fixing angles.
- Next in step, put it down take your square and make it flush up against the fence and then slide it blade. Make sure there is no gap left.
- Once in place, tight all the screws and it will be fixed at the desired position.
- After this, adjust the bevel. It’s pretty similar in almost all the saws having some bolts. All you need to do is to adjust these bolts as per the requirements of your project.
- Finally, test it against a square off the table and see if there are any gaps left. Make sure you do not rest your square against any of the carbide teeth because it may mess up the whole measurement.
Several other types of saws are also used by professionals as well as DIY enthusiasts to cut laminate flooring. They include table saws, cross-cut saws, etc. It is important to note that getting the desired cut out of the saw greatly depends on the mastery of the carpenter.
Some craftsmen can get a round cut from a saw that is meant to produce straight cuts only. Similarly, they can get angled cuts with very basic-looking saws as well.
However, all the saws are designed to serve specific purposes. This guide aims to help you choose the most accurate saw that best complements your cut demand while cutting laminate flooring.
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