The Ryobi product line sure has come a LONG way over the years and their cordless circular saw is a great example of how they are blending the latest technology of brushless motors with smart ergonomics. Today I want to share my thoughts and experiences with you on their latest battery operated circular saw; The Ryobi 18-Volt ONE+ 7-1/4” Circular Saw.
Right off the bat I knew I was going to like this saw simply because of the left side blade arrangement that allows this right handed lady to view the blade and cut line from the left side. For the longest time I never really knew any better since the only saws I’ve owned were “right side bladed”…..but, if you’re right handed and think about it very much, it’s easy to see how a left side blade makes the most sense. A right hand blade forces the user to move their line of sight to the far right side of the saw in order to keep a sharp eye on the cut line and the blade reference on the shoe (or deck) of the saw. Of Course, this is less than ideal since it will bind up your upper body as you move into a better viewing position; especially on long cross cuts such as a 4’ wide section of plywood. If this sounds like nonsense to you, I would encourage you to go throw a grip on the two different options and see which side blade you prefer. If you’re right handed, there’s a good chance the left side blade is for you.
Speaking of gripping one of these saws, Ryobi did a helluva good job on the grip too. This saw offers a pistol grip and pommel handle which are both over-molded with some highly texturized rubber. Safe to say the grip is quite grippy. : ) Once you’ve gripped on, a slight squeeze of the trigger will turn on the LED blade light to brighten up your cutline.
However, in order to engage the blade, the trigger safety gets disengaged with your thumb or index finger. A trigger safety is a very standard feature on all late model saws so it’s no real surprise here. Worth mentioning however is the fact that you can slide the safety switch to the left or the right of it’s resting center position.
I changed the blade on this saw as soon as I got it for the type of work I’ve been focused on although it does come with a thin kerf, 24TPI house blade already installed. The blade change is a breeze; simply depress the arbor lock and back out the left handed arbor bolt using the supplied allen wrench which has its own little nest built into the back of the saw. Did you know that tool nest is only good if you replace the tool when you’re done with it? Ask me how I know – I cant find that damn Allen wrench anywhere! I’m sure I’ll locate it once I clean up the shop : )
The other things that are really worth sharing relate to adjustably. The deck height is adjustable down to 2-7/16” and this saw is the only one I’ve seen to date with a height gauge built in to the back side of the blade housing (which I really like). The gauge is divided into 1/4” graduations which you can easily see from the top of the saw…no need to bend over and look on the underside of the shoe in order to understand your blade height; a nice touch IMO.
Ryobi didn’t cut corners on bevel adjustability either; this saw can cut a bevel cut from 0 to 56 degrees with a respective cut depth of about 1-3/8”. I rarely need a saw to twist past 45 degrees but it is nice know it’s there if I need it. When this saw is rotated to 45, the max depth is gonna be right around 1-13/16”.
This cordless saw weighs in at just 5 pounds which won’t wear you out after a days worth of cutting. I’ve been using it for a few weeks now on my shop build and have really come to appreciate just how easy it is to just point and shoot with this well rounded circular saw. The brushless motor makes great power, it pushes through material very easily, and the cut line is true to the references on the shoe of the saw; all of which are very important to me and help this saw to score well in my book. If it sucked, I’d tell you it sucked.
You can pick one of these saws up for just over 100 bucks which kinda blows my mind in terms of what you get for the money. You’re not gonna get the battery or charger at that price point but this saw would be a great starting point for getting on board with the Ryobi family if you’re not already. The quality per dollar with Ryobi products has really gone up over the years in my opinion.
I appreciate you stopping by to learn more about this saw from Ryobi. If you’re interested in learning more about this product feel free to use this link or one of the links from above. This review was provided in support of the ProSpective Campaign sponsored by The Home Depot. They supply the tool and I supply an opinion. The links in this review are affiliate links and provide a small kick-back to the website which helps to keep the wheel turning. Regardless, I genuinely appreciate your support.
Cheers – April
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