What is the major differences between compound and double bevel miter saw

Hi, I plan to purchase a meter saw. But I want to know what is the differences between compound and double bevel miter saws and their pros and cons. Which one would be better? Thanks

Hi Frank,
I thought I knew the answer to your question, and this Lowes article confirms it. https://www.lowes.com/n/buying-guide/compound-miter-saw-buying-guide

A compound miter saw is one that can swivel left and right to cut angles and can tilt in a single direction.

A double bevel or double compound miter saw is one that can tilt in both directions. It make it a little easier to make various cuts. You can make all the same cuts on a compound miter saw, but you may need to flip the wood around when cutting the opposite angles.

In my opinion the double compound is not needed and I would not specifically look to get one, but if the price was the same or close, it would be handy to have.

I've done a lot of woodworking and I always use the first compound (left/right) adjustment.  I very rarely use the second compound (flopping over to the side) since the markings for it aren't very reliable and I just don't need it hardly ever.  IF you're going to cut a lot of crown moulding I've heard it comes in handy but there are easy ways to make due with a regular compound saw if you need to do crown.

Another issue with cutting bevels on a miter saw is when the boards are cupped. It cuts through the cupped board but doesn't follow the line. When you go to install the board you either have to leave the cupping and try not to flatten it out while nailing it (and the cupping will likely change with humidity), or flatten the cupping out which pulls the straight cut into a curve. It's much more problematic building decks with wet pressure treated wood as the sopping wet wood will cup worse than something kiln dried and flat to begin with. I'm glad my deck building days are behind me.

I had better luck going freehand with a circular saw on badly cupped boards. For stop cuts I couldn't make with the one way bevel of my saws I would use my cheap Harbor Freight backsaw. I have horribly abused that thing and it still cuts really well. I've also pinned the guard back on my circular saw and ran it backwards, but that is outrageously dangerous. The backsaw cuts fast enough that it is a great tool for the job if you only need it a few times a day. They make a bunch of different pull type saws which use thinner blades that are better suited to the task than push type hand saws.

If you are doing trim all the time then hopefully you aren't working with terribly cupped stock and the double bevel action could save time. It probably isn't worth paying extra for it as a weekend warrior, but if they were the same price it could be a handy feature on occasion.