Hello folks,
I got one of those blue makita's about 8 years ago -- it works like a champ.
Bought it after the cheapo one I had prior failed, the 5th time I used it. The cheap one probably made about 30 cross cuts total before the clutch bearing assembly siezed things up.
I got the makita at PJ Currier Hardware in Amherst.
Currently have it set up in a log slabbing assembly; tried making some birch planks with it this fall. Despite my inexperience, they look alright
Now that chainsaw winch is a beauty! (All sorts of uses for a tool like that!) When building my camp on rattlesnake, I used a harbor freight 8000lb rated jeep winch, bolted to boulders, to help pull the trees in the building site the right way before cutting them -- that worked great, too.
Gotta love tools...
Andrew