By Mark Clement
I'm an East Coast guy and grew up using a sidewinder. We used it for everything. Sure, I checked out worm drives when shopping for new tools, but there was no convincing me that a long, front-heavy, left blade tool could outrun my light, compact, right-blade sidewinder.... until I met some California framers and watched how they worked.
They used the saw's shape and weight to their advantage and it saved them time. That hooked me. It didn't take long after I started a framing project with Ridgid's R3210 before I noticed it was smartly designed, well-executed and dialed-in.
Balance and Feel
Balance on a tool whose weight is 95 percent in front of the handle is a loose term. But the Ridgid saw is as well-balanced as a worm drive can be. It feels compact, which is nice for moving it into position for cuts, but the body is still plenty long for delivering that necessary worm drive reach—either for cutting studs hooked in the crook of your foot or for reaching across a stack of sheathing—that framers love.
The saw's handle, switches and levers, starting with the trigger, are great. It feels good to pull the first time you pull it and the last—in all positions and tasks. It's rubber, round, and has just the right tension for a positive feel. The blade adjustment levers are also overmolded with rubber, which thats make them easy to use for setting depth and bevel. Not all worm drives cover this detail, and it's nice. The handle has an inset rubber grip that's ideal for all day use.
Cutting Action
One of the beefs I have with worm drives is that they can have some reaction torque—they twist in your hand—at start-up. It barely lasts a second, but if you're making a couple of hundred cuts, resisting that torque all day gets old. The R3210 makes it all but vanish. It was easy to hold the tool right on the mark and cut. Sweet.
The tool's motor is also super-plush. It started smoothly and ran like velvet on everything I cut with it: framing, sheet stock and doors. During the framing projects, I had to double check that the unit didn't have an electric brake because the blade stopped so quickly and smoothly without one. This is a great feature; it cuts down on noise and makes me feel more comfortable. While using the saw to size birch ply and a raised panel wood door using a straight edge guide, the unit's velvety operation made it simple to keep the shoe right against the guide and provided me with dead accurate—and very clean—cuts.
When it comes time to change the blade, you need to use the on-board Allen key and arbor lock. They work just fine, but I wish the Allen key was a wrench and the arbor lock a little easier to engage. Since blade changes don't happen every day, though, this really isn't a huge deal.
Guards, Shoe and Extras
The Ridgid's magnesium blade guard rolled nicely over everything I threw at it, from thin ply to sliver cuts in framing to a door bottom. The lines of sight to the blade from different vantage points were also excellent. The notch in the sturdy aluminum shoe that shows the cut line is easy to see and accurate. The shoe is also stamped with measurements. While some carpenters like this, I don't use it that much.
Add to this a stout but pliable 12-foot rubber cord—with a light that indicates it's hot—an overmolded top handle, and a sky hook for hanging the tool on rafters or joists, and that results in a winning tool.
7 1/4" Worm Drive Saw, R3210
Mark Clement is a remodeler and author of The Carpenter's Notebook and The Kid's Carpenter's Workbook, Fun Family Projects! Learn more at TheCarpentersNotebook.com.
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