Review of Laserkerf

by Bill Esposito

Have you been looking at the Delta or Craftsman Laser Miter Saws and wondering how you could have a laser on your $600 Sliding Compound Miter Saw? The good news is that you do have a couple of retrofit options. The bad news is that most of them are expensive, and because they are installed on your blade arbor only operate while the saw blade is spinning. I can only speak for myself but the thought of adjusting the work piece to align the cut while the saw blade is spinning doesn't sound like a safe thing to do. Also, because these laser pointers install in place of the arbor washer, your retrofit options are limited by arbor diameter and clearance under the blade guard. If for these reasons you have been putting off the upgrade, I have some good news for you and it's called Laserkerf.

Laserkerf, by Laserkerf of Georgetown Kentucky, is a reasonably priced ($79 msrp) laser guide retrofit kit which installs external to your blade housing. It can be installed easily on most compound miter saws, sliding compound miter saws, and even radial arm saws. It is also turned on and off by an external switch so that you can make all you adjustments with the saw off, then get your hands out of the way and make the cut.

Another unique feature of the Laserkerf is that the laser doesn't just mark the cut line of one side of the blade, the laser beam is sized to exactly match the kerf of your blade so it actually indicates both sides of the blade at once. This means that the red line is accurately depicting what material will be removed by the cut. Sure, you'll still have to remember which side of the work piece is the waste side, but you will have the flexibility to align your cut mark to either side of the laser line.

For the remainder of this article I will attempt to provide you with enough detailed product information, step by step installation instructions, and product testing to allow you to make a informed purchase decision regarding the Laserkerf. The short answer is that I would certainly recommend the Laserkerf, but read on and make up your own mind.

What's in the Box?

You'll receive your Laserkerf kit in a small box via the US Postal Service. The basic kit without any added brackets is pictured at the right. It includes (clockwise from left) the Laser module, power adapter, on/off switch, two self stick cable retainers and an instruction sheet. (the penny is mine)

The laser module itself is quite small. In the photo at left you can see the business end of the laser. The oblong cutout in the case is so that you can adjust the position of the laser once mounted either left or right by twisting the hex shaped post seen here on the right side of the laser module.

Another interesting thing to note is that the Laserkerf is installed perpendicular to the work and not horizontal as shown here. If you were to hold the Laserkerf in your hand and point is straight down, it would project a line on the surface about 10" long.