I've had my Makita LS1221 miter saw for almost a year now. To say the least, I am very happy with my purchase. The cut was perfect, right out of the box, and continues to be so even now. The blade was a better quality than what I thought would be on it and it still gives me the cleanest miter cuts I've ever seen. This saw is smooth and powerful enough to go through any of the hardwoods I use. My only regret is that I didn't spend the extra money and purchase the LS1212 (sliding compound).

I found the Makita LS1221 to be very accurate and powerful. The miter table to the base were near perfect alignment and the fences were very square to the table. The saw is in no way flimsy. Adjusting the bevel and the miter angles are fairly easy. The miter gage is very easy to read. The bevel gage however does not offer enough contrast, especially after the smallest amount of saw dust gathers on it. The lever for locking the bevel gage should be in the front of the saw. The motor makes an annoying sound when it is first started and is positioned directly on the right side of the saw making it difficult to see what you are cutting as the cut proceeds through the wood. Changing the blade is very difficult because there is no way to support the blade fence out of the way to clear the arbor nut.This however, should not be a problem for anyone who has three hands.

First saw arrived with a cracked base. I found this a bit shocking since it was very solidly built. I attributed this to a lousy packing job which could not tolerate a drop from a truck ( I assume this happened)....Replacement was fast and no hassle -LOVE AMAZON !!! SAW IS INCREDIBLE...cuts wood like butter, accurate scale of degrees, easy to adjust, heavy but not too heavy to move to site of cutting. Manual is not detailed enought you will need to get a wood trim book.
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br /All in All a great saw and great value....
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br /David - Interior Designer

This a great product with only one flaw. It is strong, square, and very powerful. Using the stock blade it zips through PTL without a hitch. The cuts are very clean with minimal chipping (again with the stock blade). All of my friends who've seen it want one.
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br /The one flaw is, as a previous reviewer noted, the blade change. You have to depress the blade lock with one hand, pull the shield out of the way with another hand, and loosen the nut with a third hand.
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br /Overall, though, this is a fantastic miter saw. One might complain about the lack of a laser, but the Irwin $30 add-on works just fine.

I'm almost completely satisfied with the saw. Plenty of power, positive detents, easy to handle knobs, useful side extensions, and easy to change blade. The horizontal handle is much better that a vertical handle. I'd have given it 5 stars if the table had a little more friction. Smooth hardwoods tend to slide on the nice smooth table when doing angle cuts. A 100 tooth ATB blade helped minimize the problem.

I'm not a professional carpenter, but I've used this saw for projects around the house for a while now and can't get enough of it. The cuts were right on straight out of the box. It's a clean design and easy to use. I would recommend this saw to anyone...even family members!!

I have used this saw now for 3 years and it has held up wonderfully. This is one of the best tools I have owned.

I have owned this saw for about a month now and I love it. I have used it to trim out my house with perfect results. There is absolutely no play in this saw. Every cut is identical to the last. It is easy to set up and use. The motor has ample power. My only complaint is that the motor is not angled up for easier viewing of the work.
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******UPDATE******
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br /Of course it had to happen. I wrote the original review below based on the Makita saw I bought a number of years ago and a second one that I purchased for my workplace. I recently took another job and, because of my experience with those saws, I purchased another for the new shop. Unfortunately, the saw arrived out of alignment. That does happen sometimes but not often with an item at this price point. We set about trying to align it properly but no matter how much we tried to adjust the fence, the saw would not cut at 90 degrees. Our machinist believes that it is due to blade wobble caused by improper machining of the arbor. Even after putting an expensive, high-end blade on it, it is still inaccurate. I guess it comes down to luck of the draw, however, I can't recommend the saw for precision use anymore.
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br /I'll tell you right now, I've tried ALL the other saws on the market: miter, compound miter and sliding compound miter in all sizes, and this saw is the best. I think the sliding saws are over priced and more-apt to run out of alignment and bog down in heavy materials. They also require dedicated work stations that make them as unwieldy as the radial arm saw you are probably trying to replace. The 10" compound miter saws, while more affordable, lack the cutting capacity and, frankly, are not getting the design and build attention that the bigger saws are. The 12" compound miter saws fall in the middle. (And in the middle the value is always best). They get attention to build and design because they are aimed at the contractor, they have a decent cutting capacity, and they are solid, yet portable. I chose this one out of all the other 12" saws because it has a zero-clearance throat plate (a must to eliminate tear-out), excellent miter detentes, and a solid motor. It also comes with stock extensions (that actually work) as standard equipment. The upgraded blade is top notch. I even bought a second LS1220 for the professional shop where I work. If you're going to pay a lot, make it count!