How to Make a Bevel Cut with a Circular Saw

When you buy through links on sawreviewed.com, As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

In our daily life, we face a lot of chores that we have never done before or inexperienced with. At some point, the situation may arise where we need to bevel a piece of work from around our household, whether to bring in change to design or, for safety reasons, maybe reshaping an item of furniture to prevent itself from tilting.

Whatever the purpose may be, we prefer to have a circular saw among our tools for doing this; so we can get it done by ourselves.

Before we get on to that, we should have some basic ideas about using a circular saw (having little craftsmanship knowledge will always be a gain to your list of skills). You can read this handyman.guide first to know little about compact circular saw.

Since circular saws are portable tools, it makes things easier for your wooden projects to be done. Before operating one, please read the instructions on the label about the position of the safety button (most of the models have one), how to handle it, and other instructions for maintaining it.

See also-

Bevel Cut with a Circular Saw

Cutting bevels at 45 degree is a very common thing among carpenters and craftsmen. Before starting with your circular saw, make sure that the depth is all the way down. The circular saw's adjusted table can be tilted (if you look at the instruction manual properly, you will already know).

First, to make an angled bevel cut, you need to tilt the blade no matter which angle you are aiming for. There should be an angle indicator on the circular saw. Bend the adjustable base on your saw and set it on 45 degree, then pull the retractable guard in its place.

Before getting started with the sawing and chopping down, make sure to mark the exact spot where you are going to cut a bevel. Mark that spot with a carpenter pencil, and to be sure you make a straight line on your workpiece, use a speed square on it to help draw a line.

After marking, make sure to set your circular saw on the waste side (disposable side) of the mark. So after cutting the slope, there should be a thin black line visible from the pencil mark, thus making sure you don't cut your piece short.

While you are going to drive your circular saw through the piece, make sure to hold it down; so it does not kickback. Move aside a little bit from the saw blade's direction to reduce chances of an accident or prevent sawdust flying towards your way to enter your nostrils by any chance.

How to Cut a 60 Degree Angle with a Circular Saw

First and foremost, the thing to keep in mind: no matter what angle you intend to make a bevel, you have to tilt the blade of your circular saw. This is the only way to make an angled cut with a portable circular saw.

Otherwise, it would be very risky and challenging for the user to make accurately desired angled bevel cut with the circular saw.

There will be a scaled indicator for making a bevel on the tilting table of the saw. Tilt the base of the saw using a gradient on the tilting table. Adjust it to 60 degrees with the adjustable knob and lock it at this angle.

You can adjust the blade's depth by adjusting it with your board depending on how thick you wish to cut off (it should be deeper than the thickness of your piece if you intend to make an angle).

Draw the line where you want to make the cut, then run your circular saw through that line. It would be wise to place a guide or fence on the wood for your base plate to make a straighter or accurate cut while making the 60 degree angle bevel.

Remember to keep your fingers away from the blade to prevent accidents. Move aside your body from the blade's direction for accidental kickbacks and hold down the wooden piece with one hand while you make your way through it with your saw with the other hand.

How to Cut a 90 Degree Angle with a Circular Saw

A 90 degree angle is the default angle set by any regular circular saw. Meaning it is a straight horizontal line. So, there won't be any extra effort for adjusting its degrees if not adjusted from the beginning.

You can use a digital bevel gauge to make sure it is a precise 90 degree. Then mark your targeted spot with a carpenter pencil and draw a line on it when you decide to saw.

Use a speed square to make sure your drawn line is perfectly straight and accurate. (Note: a speed square is a triangular shape tool, vastly used by carpenters for measuring and marking basic dimensional lines).

Next, hold down the speed square tightly on the wood and use it as a saw guide for the 90-degree cut. While sawing through the wood, make sure your saw blade is aligned with the line you drew as you charge through the wood with your saw freehand.

If you are a novice, it is advised you cut your piece lower near the ground instead of a higher-up table. This will support you to saw your piece without worrying about it falling off due to weight when you are only half the way there to be done with your sawing.

Safety Advice

For safety reasons, do not position your body directly behind the saw. Instead, position your body a little to the side, which will also be taking precaution for cutoff piece accidentally being through back at you. Keep your fingers away from the blade and hold your piece down against the guide fence (if there is any) to be risk-free from any accidental kickbacks.

Bevel Cut with a Circular Saw

It is advisable to wear a face mask and goggles to prevent sawdust from entering. Also, wear earplugs if possible because the loud sound which the saw creates is very unpleasant and might be harmful to your hearing in the long term.

Final Thoughts

At the end, when you are done making a bevel, you can use a rasp to make the edge smooth to clean off the uneven parts.

There that is, the basic direction for you to start with to give a little idea about how to make a bevel with the most used degree angles. Hope that covered all the basics you were looking for. Enjoy your crafting!!

Leave a Comment