After much reading the posts from fellow woodies I have finally decided on the mitre saw that should suit my needs. I could not use a sliding version, as I am setting the saw up on some cantilever shelves running down the length of the shed. I also found that a 10" would not give me the width of cut I needed. So after much contemplating I placed an order for the 12" Hitachi, model C12LCH. I live in Tassie and so was somewhat limited on suppliers of 12" saws, in the end I went into NUBCO in Devonport - and there it was! I paid $555, plus $95 for a 60 tooth Dewalt Tungsten blade.
I was tempted, I must admit for a nanosecond with the GMC 12"- for $199 ! But on closer inspection it was obviously an inferior build quality, plus reading some of the posts from other users convinced me to go Hitachi!. I did consider the Makita, but for $200 more it was no contest, considering the Hitachi comes with digital angle display and laser guide.The only plus for Makita was the electric brake.
Any way I am hoping to pick up my new toy on Friday, so I will post some photos and my first impressions. By the way for those interested the cut on the Hitachi is -
at 90 degrees - 63.5mm x 200mm
at 45 degrees - 63.5mm x 140mm

regards, Bob Wiseman.