Remember Stanley Motto: The Tool box of the world... They were on a quest to become Tool maker's to the world, with a product for everyone at every price points. A well tuned saw gives a very smooth cut, and it should be the sharpest saw in your quiver. If you know a good sharpener, this is the saw to spend the money on, at least so you know the goal. for most of my career the company paid for my sharpening. 290 teeth is a lot of sharpening. That was to "grip" the MB to the surface and more importantly, to correct an out of square, level playing field... so to speak :-) Look around the shop before you leave. I’m not an expert on Stanley boxes. I used em, but never owned one. The Miller Falls was a little lighter, would break down smaller for travel, and had very few settings that could go out of adjustment. It seems the Stanley guys were always adjusting their angle settings. ( hint, it’s an eccentric cam under the pivot point), either that, or they needed something to blame their open joints on. 😉 Ahhh, the quietness of using a good old Mitre Box without having to wear a dust mask or ears defenders... Bonus !! But I digress :-)

Features such as etched measurements or magnified windows can help promote accuracy and ensure precise cuts. Etched measurements indicate where the saw blade should be positioned while magnified windows allow visibility when making delicate adjustments or fine cuts. Support Features The thinner the set, the less wood you are removing. The limiting factor is friction in the cut. You don’t want that, but you do want the set even on all the teeth. And stoning removes any burrs left from sharpening. Before I started honing, I would only have the saw set every 3 or 4 sharpenings. The saw ran smoother on the 2nd or 3rd sharpening. So i honed My saws before I actually sharpened them myself. ( since I retired I sharpen them all myself) Once you lower the saw, don’t try to lift it. Just let the saw and gravity do the work. Concentrate instead on keeping the work still. Keep in mind you only have to worry about the central 60% or so of the saw plate if you only use the saw in the box ( a good idea) you still have to joint and file the whole plate.If you look around, you will find other fine craftsmen, who either used them in the past or are still using them, so yeah, they would do. And lots of framing shops (as in picture frame) used those Nobex for years. Mine, incidentally, came at auction in a lot from a picture frame shop. A sturdy base with non-skid feet helps to keep the miter box securely in place during operation, minimizing wobbling and providing smooth cuts. Look for heavy bases that provide adequate support while cutting larger pieces of wood. Precision

But this question is about the various Stanley's Mitre Box (MB) that came and went thru the years. I can so understand the confusion trying to navigate your way thru it, some models came and went, while others soldiered on until 1984. Here is a picture of my 26” saw for my Miller Falls, and the 28” Stanley model note the angle on the rear of the plate. Since it was behind the front post, teeth there make no sense on a miter box saw. You shouldn’t have to flip any lever with your hand with either style. The system is designed so you can load the work with both hands while the saw is up, then hold the work with one hand and work the saw with the other.

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The ability to adjust the miter box for multiple angles and cuts can make projects much easier and more efficient. Look for models that allow for adjustments so you can get precise results without having to constantly reposition the box every time you need to change the angle or depth of your cut. Number of Compartments I already scare people. My “dovetail” saw is a 14″ Disston. Someone had a new fancy dovetail saw, light and precise, so I ran a cut with it, then pulled out my big honkin’ saw, and mine had just as fine a cut….but it cut about three times faster. Today Electrons spinning mitre saws are seemingly designed to be made Cheaper, Faster, Noiser, Scream Louder and Spew saw dust everywhere... By the way, the sloppiness in the 358 may simply be that the saw plate is thin for the setting of the uprights and they just need a slight twist. The sloppiness is small…I can wiggle things a bit, but it doesn’t really seem to matter (affect the angle). I just noticed there was zero of this wiggle in the 2358.

I used a Miller Falls box for 25 years and only went electric in the 1990’s because the company I worked for paid half, and the fellows I had to share my box with weren’t very careful. A circular saw blade is disposable and the boss paid for them. Depends how many cuts you are making, of course. For a hobbiest, it’s a luxury. For somebody trying to feed his kids, some sort of miter box multiplies labor tremendously.

Buying Guide: Miter Boxes

Something else to know is that they used the suffix A to denoted their first Aluminum model and the Suffix M indicated a Metal cutting MB. With two exceptions, the No 109 and No 2360 were metal cutting MBs but they never sported the suffix M. Confused yet? Lets try another riddle... If the box has 6” posts, you need a 6” saw. I have both size posts for my box, but I never bought the 6” saw. I figured I could get one used if I needed to. Never did. THose saws are heavy beasts. The length of the saw mostly had to do with lots of cuts at a steep angle. A longer saw took fewer strokes. A sharp saw matters more.

As to the tension on the slide, there were two things I remember. Some saws had a hole that you could puta brad in a hole to prevent the tapered pawl from slipping into its notch if you were close to a predetermined angle but wanted to be just off it. And underneath that area was a screw to adjust the tension or drag on the swing arm. You could make it stiff or loose. And when you get it you can haul the saw out when people start bragging about their big dovetail or tenon saw. If he took care of his tools, I’d get every tool of his I could afford. Be fair to the heirs. Carpenters of that era weren’t very rich. I got a lot of my tools from guys just retiring. If you low balled them, everybody in town would give you the stink eye. I made sure I wasn’t put in that position. If it is is decent usable shape, go for it. If its a rusty clunker with missing parts, let it go. Hand boxes last more than a couple lifetimes. I think he misspoke on the saw. It usually was the tooth line length that mattered. My Miller Falls saw is marked 26” and is 33” OA. The Stanley 28” saw is actually 35” long.

Comparing the Top Miter Boxes of 2023

Don’t worry too much about the numbers. With Stanley boxes they mostly described the saw that came with it in depth and length. I used my saw once without the box as a dovetail saw to cut the pins and tails on the tail vise assembly of my workbench 45 years ago.those are 3”+ tails. It’s the only time I ever used the saw without the box. That was before I had a bandsaw- it’s actually what helped make me decide to buy a used bandsaw – LOL. Hardwood fences or clamps offer strength and stability when working with long pieces of wood that may be prone to shifting during operation. Additional features, like aluminum extrusions, offer reinforcement against any unexpected movement that may occur during cutting. Cost Notice the Models Nos ressemble strongly the 244, 246 and 358 with an added 2 in front? There was also a relatively short lived 2360, but it was a metal cutting saw and bear no ressemblance to the 360 which was a wood cutting MB. More on these later.