Table Of Contents
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QEP Tile Saw
Professional Review
A Budget Tile Saw Aimed At Professionals? How Bad Could It Be!?
Amidst the highly competitive tile saw market comes the QEP Handheld Tile Saw to take its piece of the saw cutting action.
The popular tile tools company has developed a
A reliable and powerful tile saw is something anyone working with tiles lusts after and I am the lustiest of all. (Just ask my wife..)
I work with a tile saw every day, preferring to do a vast majority of my cuts on it and do not even consider using an angle grinder.
To me, it’s a tile saw or nothing!
I will throw this QEP handheld tile saw under my microscope and see if it deserves being included in your tool chest. Can it cut all day without heating up, will it stay sturdy and true – even through the thickest of porcelain tiles?
Will it outperform my Hitachi tile saw and earn the coveted title of Professional Tile Saw?
Read further and find out!
I have been tiling professionally for over 20 years and every day of those years I had a tile saw in my hand.
I have used my fair share of tile saws over the years and know which tile saw will make the cut and which one will get the cut.
Grab a seat, put on your
It may get messy, better get the shop vac plugged in and ready.
Before We Begin The Review
I know you are busy, the business or home won’t run itself.
If you are strapped for time and need to make a decision now then I will tell it to you straight.
I do not recommend the QEP
Top Recommended Tile Saws
HITACHI CM4SB2
• Best overall tile saw
• Wet/Dry Cutting
• Most Versatile
• Most Powerful Motor
•
If you want to read an in-depth review of all these tile saws you can read it here.
I take on the best tile saws on the market today and select a winner based on best value for money and cutting versatility.
If you want your monies worth I truly recommend you giving it a read.
Whether you skip the review or not you can be assured each tile saw is much more suited for your needs as opposed to this QEP 4 hp Tile Saw.
QEP Handheld Tile Cutter QUICK SPECS
Motor Power: 1200-Watt, 11.67-Amps
Max RPM: 11,800 RPM
Arbor Size: 0.787 Inches (20mm)
Max Cutting Depth: 1-1/4-Inch
Weight: 11 Lbs (5 KG)
The Review of The QEP Handheld Tile Saw
First Impressions.
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, gather around and marvel.
It’s okay to point but do not laugh, this tile saw is trying very hard and you might hurt its feelings.
How do I know it’s trying very hard?
Because it comes in a carry case.
No other hand held tile saw comes in a carry case.
At least none of the professional tile saws come in a carry case.
Personally, I never saw the need, my tile saw lives in a tool chest in the work truck and never had I wished I had a special case for it.
Well, this QEP comes with one, if that’s something that excites you then that’s great – it’ll be useful to you.
I personally would throw the thing away as I would never use it.
The case itself is nothing to be excited about anyway. It’s just a plain old square case that keeps the tile saw safe between jobs. It also very big for what it is protecting. Some would say it’s compensating for the small package inside. Eh, that joke was uncalled for.
Or in the bin.
A basic diamond blade is also included in the package.
Our little QEP 4hp tile saw is all ready for work.
How cute.
Just make sure that work is limited to small-scale projects or DIYing around the home. A couple light socket holes for a kitchen backsplash should be the limit of this QEP’s cutting.
This continuous rim blade that comes with the tile saw should ideally not even be used for any cutting and get replaced before any work commences. It is more suited for very soft tile like ceramics and since you know porcelain is the standard in tile material these days that is a problem.
Most users of the QEB Tile Saw reported the blade is inadequate for cutting even ceramic tile and one even reported the blade fell apart after a few uses.
That’s reassuring…
There is much more to be said about the blade and the
Note the word “imitation”.
Even though I had little good to say about the DeWalt in my tile saw
The QEP could pass off as a DeWalt at a glance but closer up you begin to notice the cheap plastics and metal finishes used. This all reflects the price however as the QEP is the cheaper of the two.
If you are very budget conscious this could be a factor but remember you do get what you pay for. Personally, I prefer to pay a few bucks extra for a reputable brand and know it won’t let me down.
Along with the bountiful availability of spare parts. I will touch on all that later, back to the design.
The Qep brand name is simply printed onto a recessed badge area on the front of the saw where it will undoubtedly rub off in time. There are a few things I like, the trigger, for instance, is nice and large.
This allows a more comfortable trigger pull while cutting and accommodates multiple fingers, there’s also a lock button located with easy access to the thumb. I appreciate the raised handle at the end as well.
It helps keep a tighter and more secure grip on the tile saw itself without your hand sliding upwards.
On the whole
Low Budget. Big Problems.
Where should I begin?
While this Qep hand held saw looks like it will do the job at face value, its cracks begin to show very quickly when you begin to use it.
First of all and arguably the deal breaker for you will be that this
It does not come with any wet cutting attachments like the other three tiles saws mentioned so a lot of cuts and materials will be out of the question.
This is a big problem if you are requiring this tile saw to cut natural stone like marble or granite as dry cutting these materials is a terrible idea.
The extended running time required to cut such thick and dense material will cause the blade to heat up excessively.
This will lead to the blade chipping the material or in extreme cases the blade could shatter. Maybe you can do some miter cuts but even those take time and are better off cutting with a wet saw.
Even if you are looking to cut porcelain, an extended length cut can yield the same results.
If you are looking to make any of these cuts or use these materials in your project this factor alone should make you consider the alternatives.
Couple the dry cutting with that delightful QEP blade that comes standard with your
Cracker. Get it?
As in the blade cracking and possibly exploding.
Like a grenade.
In your face.
Another problem, and this one is honestly the biggest deal breaker for me is the QEP 4 hp tile saw’s Arbor size.
For some unfortunate reason, this tile saw comes with an extremely unusual
Okay big drama right, Carl is overreacting again. I know you’re thinking it. Let me tell you how this will affect you.
Finding a replacement blade for this tile saw will be extremely difficult.
The QEP has a much smaller
Unless you manage to buy a lifetime supply of the same blade this QEP 4 hp tile saw comes with, you will have a long downtime as you search for a suitable blade online or around town.
The worst part is you will miss out on the greatest saw blades available on the market, not to mention the versatility of the tile saw is affected as you will only be using one blade type.
I have had one of the turbo blades on my saw for nearly 6 months and it is still going strong, you won’t be able to say the same thing about the standard blade. There should be some blades out there that fit the 20mm
Finding an adapter ring can be an option but will be fairly difficult to find as well. The best thing I can think of is getting a machine shop to fabricate an adapter ring for you.
Sadly the cost of this one-off project could amount to more than just buying a professional tile saw. Also, keep in mind the long-term use of this tile saw and the availability of parts.
Namely the brushes
I go through multiple sets of brushes per year depending on the workload so it’s safe to say you will need to replace yours at some point too.
While brushes for big name tile saws are available at any tool store or Amazon, I haven’t been able to track down a replacement set of brushes for this saw.
Just some food for thought before you shell out your hard earned money on a new tile saw.
It Ain’t All Bad! – The PROS
Okay, let’s touch on some of the positives the QEP 4 hp Tile Saw offers.
We are already giving it a hard time on its first day and its feelings cant take it.
Despite the aforementioned flaws, it is on the whole a decent tile saw that will do the job.
It follows the basic template of a tile saw to a T and functions just like any other saw.
The motor has the same amount of power as big name tile saws have and features similar RPM’s.
A great feature it includes is the beveling and adjustable plate that is attached to the tile saw.
This enables you to set a required depth for specific cuts or setting an angle for mitre cuts on the side of the tile.
It is also easy to use and cuts tile at a decent pace.
I really wish I could have attached one of my usual turbo blades to it so I could really test it properly as I feel the standard blade lets it down.
As the tile saw comes, I would suggest you just use it to cut soft material like:
• Ceramic
• Aerated Concrete (Hebel Blocks)
• Cement Board
• Thin Pave Stones
Availability
If the QEP 4 hp Tile Saw or as QEP calls it, the “QEP Professional Handheld Tile Cutter” sounds like the tile saw for you then I will provide the necessary links below.
In Conclusion – Will I Use The QEP Hand Held Tile Saw for Work?
I use plenty of QEP products as their line up is so diverse and far-reaching for the tiling industry.
When I discovered they also produced one of my
With the difficulty of finding diamond blades, it would make daily use a bigger chore than necessary as I could just use a Hitachi or other big name tile saw.
Also, the biggest thing for me is versatility and by being forced to use one type of tile blade this can’t be done. I need to be able to cut ceramic tile, porcelain and natural stone. With a lack of wet cutting my options of which material I can cut is seriously hindered as well.
As a professional dealing with a diverse range of materials every day I will need to give this
When QEP releases an updated version I will be first in line to give it a try but until then I will stick with my Hitachi CM4SB2 tile saw.
If you are requiring a cheap
In my opinion, the Hitachi is the only
It is a true professional tile saw and one I rely on every day.
I am sure it’ll do the same for you.
Oh boy, I can’t believe QEB calls this a professionals tile saw. It’s far from it. I knew this saw had problems but I never knew it also has that crazy arbor size. That should scare anyone away from using it. Great job on the review and for giving alternatives. If anyone reads this just go with any of those that are suggested instead of the QEP. You pay twenty bucks more and get a proper saw thatll last ya the years.
I saw a joker using one of these at a worksite once. Damn its looks cheaper in real life lol. Best part was he had a helper pouring water on the blade from a water bottle XD I told him to go get a Makita or Hitachi tile saw instead and throw that in the bin. Should have seen his face when he saw me take out my Makita 4101NH and do some wet cuts. I think he got the message after that.