The spring-loaded lever that holds or releases preset stops takes some getting used to. It seemed as if it might snap back against one of my fingers like a mousetrap, but it never did. With the lever in the detent-release position, it was simple to adjust for and hold nonstandard settings with the large, threaded knob. The knob holds the rotating table securely. The cutting action of the Freud is different from the sliding compound saws I'm used to.
Most saws mount the cutterhead on an axle at the operator's end of sliding tubes.
The cutterhead, held up and away from the work by a spring, has to be lowered to the work by the operator. The cutterhead then springs up and away from the work when the cut is complete. On the Freud, the cutterhead is fixed in place at the operator's end of the sliding tubes. The pivoting mechanism is at the rear of the saw, just under a block that guides the supporting tubes. I think of the Freud as a small radial-arm saw with guide tubes that pivot both vertically and horizontally.