recomendations for a tile saw

[Rkh]

Remodeling bathroom and looking for advice on a reasonable prices saw tile for just this one project. For a straight cut, does the tool that scribes a cut in the tile work good?
 

[Determined]

I can not comment on the scoring style cutter but I did do a bathroom in ceramic tile and a kitchen in glass tile.

Did it all with a diamond blade wet saw.

Nothing fancy just a cheap plastic version cost around $60

They cut clean and straight, I have not wore out the original blade yet.
 

[marloweg]

harbor fright tools
 

[steve terplak]

Had a $40 cheapie from lowes about 10 years ago. Did 3 kitchens, 7 bathrooms and a few entryways. Loaned it to someone and they lost it.
So I bought a cheapie from Harbor Freight. Has done 5ish bathrooms so far.

No complaints about them. Have used better pro-style models. For what I do...this one is totally worth the money.
 

[farmerjohn]

Those score and snap cutters have never worked for me. Get a diamond blade wet saw, I have used both a table type and an overhead with sliding table, I prefer the table type. Check Craigslist, some people buy a new tool for a job, use it once and sell it when they are done.
 

[MarkB_MI]

Having used both, I will never do another tile job with a scoring cutter. I bought a Home Depot tile saw which has been good 'nuff. If I was doing tile work for a living I wouldn't think twice about dropping a grand on a saw. You get what you pay for; my HD saw has a flimsy fence and you have to be careful to make a straight cut.

The scoring cutters are OK if all the cuts are at ninety degrees or the cut edges will be hidden by trim.
 

[Ultradog MN]

Rent one!
Those cheap saws have no power, they vibrate and don't cut straight. Makes for frustration, cracked tiles, rough edges and waste.
If you want to spend a bit of dough look into a Clipper. They are outstanding small (7") machines. I just bought my second one this fall. Last one lasted about 10 years of hard use. Made me a Lot of $.

 

[Stan in Oly, WA]

rkh; The tool that scores tile for breaking does work, but not well. If you have enough spare tile to practice with, as well as backup tile for when cuts go wrong during the job you might be able to get by with that. As several people have already mentioned here, the inexpensive wet cut saws work well enough to get you through the job. I bought one of those but never used it because I also have a medium size tub saw and a large brick/tile tub saw, both from Harbor Freight. I used the large saw on a brick and paver project that went on for weeks. The $300 cost was negligible compared to what it would have cost me to rent a tub saw for that amount of time. I had no complaints regarding its performance. When my brother-in-law was tiling his bathroom, I gave him the small unused saw. He said it worked perfectly. The technology is dead simple; you could buy a 7" diamond blade and make your cuts with a circular saw, dribbling water at he front edge of the cut---or cut dry and go through blades faster. My other brother-in-law could cut a tile that way with a Skill worm drive saw, holding a wet rag against the blade to catch the dust, and shaking his head to keep the smoke from the cigarette in his mouth from getting in his eyes. He's a third generation tile and marble man in Seattle, though, so that's a "don't try this at home, kids" kind of thing for me.

Stan
 

[steve terplak]

That description of your other brother in law is fantastic. I know a few guys like that in different fields.
 

[sammydwm]

For straight cuts a score and break tool will work just fine but requires a bit of practice.
A cheapie electric one from HF or Menards will work well also for a homeowner.
Have laid a lot of tile from thick dairy tile in dairy plants to marble and granite to thin bathroom tile in homes with a cheapie and have never had a problem.

If the project was with 18" or 24" square tile perhaps a bigger saw would be needed
 

[DR. EVIL]

I bought a $100 wet diamond saw at Menards, bet I made 500 cuts with it putting porcelain tile in our kitchen, hallway entryway and closet. I bought a replacement blade but never used it, the original blade was getting really slow. I bought a 4-1/2" diamond disk for my angle grinder to make freehand cuts, bevels, etc.
I suggest cutting tile in a garage, porch, deck, etc. Keep a 5 gallon bucket of water close to rinse cut tiles and save your pieces you cut off, you will find places to use most of them.

I actually wish the wife wanted more tile work done, back splash above counters in kitchen, etc, It was a fun project.
 

[Stephen Newell]

I have a remodeling business which I don't do a great deal of tile work so I bought a #69230 tile saw from Harbor Freight for about 50 bucks with a coupon. The fence on the saw is a little irritating but it will get the job done.
 

[bjb in TX from Ne]

I like my DeWalt but it I think it was a few hundred dollars.