Blew $200 on a cheap tile saw that couldn't cut straight

I picked up a budget tile saw from a big box store last month thinking I'd save some cash on a bathroom remodel... biggest mistake. The blade wobbled right out of the box and every cut was off by at least 1/8 inch. I ended up wasting half a box of $40 subway tile trying to make it work before I gave up. Had to rent a proper saw from a local tool library for $60 and finished the job in one afternoon. Anyone else get burned by a tool that seemed like a good deal at first?

2 comments

2 Comments

lee_bailey6521d ago

Wow, that's rough. I had a similar thing happen with a cheap circular saw I grabbed from a flea market for forty bucks, blade bent right on the first cut and kicked back so hard it scared the crap out of me. Ended up costing me more in wasted plywood and a trip to urgent care than if I'd just bought a decent one from Home Depot. Have you ever used a tool library before, how did you find the experience?

martinez.anna21d agoMost Upvoted

Jumped on the tool library bandwagon last year after a similar disaster with a used drill that nearly caught fire. Honestly, it was a game changer. @lee_bailey65 It makes you realize how much of buying cheap stuff is just a gamble, like you're betting your safety against a low price tag. They had a nice circular saw that worked perfectly, and I only paid like five bucks for the week. Ngl, it kind of shows how we're all trained to think owning a tool is better than just borrowing a good one when we need it. The stuff we think we gotta buy is just a trap sometimes.