Darned Near Perfect Miter Saw Stand

DeWalt DWX723 Heavy-Duty Miter Saw Stand

For years, I had my beat-up old Delta chop saw bolted to a piece of plywood, which I would then clamp to a couple of 2-by-4s set on a pair of sawhorses. Besides tying up my sawhorses when I was using it, this arrangement provided crappy support for anything more than a couple of feet long. That’s probably why some of my cuts are just a little beveled…

That was before I received a DeWalt DWX723 Heavy-Duty Miter Saw Stand, though. Once I’d set up the saw, this stand proved to be pretty much the greatest thing since sliced bread! Here’s what I mean:

• Folds down form to a single, compact “beam” a bit over 5 feet long, with a handle on the underside for toting it around
• Legs unlock and unfold quickly for easy setup
• Comes with mounting brackets that adapt to (almost) any power miter saw, either stationary or sliding.
• Extension with “outriggers” on both ends to provide support for up to sixteen-foot stock.
• Outriggers double as stops for repetitive cuts when you fold up a hinged metal stop.

When I first got the stand, I had the Delta. That saw’s frame had mounting holes, but they were not in a straight line (the holes at the rear were closer together than the ones in the front). I mounted that saw to a sheet of ¾-inch plywood through which I'd drilled four holes, and used those holes to attach the saw to the mounts. Now I have a Dewalt DW717 sliding miter saw, which mounts directly to the brackets.
The stand is a rock-solid I-beam style, and all the adjustments – extending the support arms, adjusting the height of the support blocks, even moving the saw side-to-side on the stand – can be made without tools. Mounting the saw to the stand after the brackets are installed can be a little tricky, especially if the saw is big and heavy (like the 717…), but once you figure out that you just hook the front of the brackets on the stand and let it settle in place, it becomes easy. Those brackets, by the way, have little rubber or plastic feet so the saw doesn’t slide around and mar the floor when it’s off the stand.

You can buy additional sets of the brackets, by the way, so you can mount a second saw or another bench tool that allows motion parallel to the long axis of the tool, such as a planer or a drum sander.

The stand isn’t perfect, of course – nothing is. I find it rather awkward to move around (it sure seems to weigh more than the stated 35 pounds), and – while it will fit most saws – the “piece of plywood” workaround for some brands is pretty clunky. Other than that, however it’s a great stand.

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