A regular miter saw only moves up and down at a 90 degree angle to your wood. You can pivot the blade left to right (allowing yourself to make cuts that are across the wood at any angle -- so the ends of your wood piece can be triangle shaped, not just square across) but you can't tilt the blade side to side -- your cuts are always straight down through the wood. A compound miter saw lets you tilt the blade itself so that instead of cutting at a 90 degree angle through the wood, you can cut any angle. This lets you make, for example, 45 degree bevel cuts through the short side of the wood. It also lets you make the complex angled cuts you need to do crown molding. A sliding compound miter saw does everything a regular compound miter saw does, but also the blade can slide back and forth, which lets you cut larger pieces of wood. We just upgraded from our 10" compound miter saw (purchased at Lowes on black friday for $99 about 10 years ago) to a 12" sliding compound miter saw that can cut up to 16" wide pieces of wood. We did this mainly because I wanted to make a shelf that was 13-14" deep and I didn't want to have to deal with the table saw to make the cuts (plus we got a great open box deal on the demo model at Costco!) If you are just making picture frames and regular board and batten type molding cuts, a regular miter saw will do you just fine. To do crown molding or cuts that are angled throught the depth of the wood, you will need a compound miter saw. And to do any piece of wood wider than 8-10", you will need a sliding compound miter saw. HTH! Oh, and I will say that we are tricked out for power tools thanks to parents who buy my dh a new toold for every holiday. And the one we use the most, by far, is the miter saw (well, excluding the drill, which I don't really count as a "power tool).

If you want the look of a sprayed catalyzed white finish (think Ikea) then you may not be happy with a hand-painted result. You will almost certainly have imperfections in the surface. That said, with a little care it will look quite good. 500-600 grit sanding is vast overkill for either paint or stain on wood, you can't get that kind of resolution on wood, it has more structure than that. Those grits are only useful on metal or for polishing out very high gloss finishes. 220 or 320 max is plenty. If you are using a waterborne finish (and even if you're not) as a last step I'd go over the surface with a damp sponge, let it dry, and then lightly final sand with the same grit. Wetting the wood will also show up any sanding scratches or areas that need additional attention. Sanding compresses the wood fibers, when you dampen the wood it will "fuzz up" and then you can knock the fuzz off with a light sanding, producing a very high quality surface. I've used the Ben Moore enamel undercoater and impervo enamel to good effect, I'm a throwback so paint with a high quality bristle brush, but a roller would probably be easier, especially on large flat surfaces. If you like the look of the bare maple then poly produces a durable finish. Use oil-based for an easier application but some yellowing over time, water-based for a completely clear finish. Seems a shame to get a high quality real wood product then paint it, but that's just me.

Stained cabinets with a proper water resistant/proof seal coat are much much less upkeep...but I too, get weary of encouraging folks to love the wood. Somehow laminate Ikea MDF board has taken over the youth who are building or flipping homes,and I am certain the paint factories are just loving it. Example: For 7 years, a good friend I have known. In 7 years, she has painted her cabinets 3 times! 'because they needed it'. For the First 30 years the house had stained cabinets...3 coats(more than that)3 painting events later, she just HIRED someone, to come in and replace the doors, and have them painted. In 7 years, 4 painting events in a kitchen. .. Would DRIVE ME CRAZY. Painting doors and drawers and hinges or removing hardware etc etc ....eliminate the kitchen totally and just have open stainless steel shelves(which you can dust weekly)with drawer under the stainless steel work surfaces. LOL. Red oak is very pretty and there is ALOT of it in this area, stained cabinets...WHite oak is nicer, BUT, harder to find for the export market gets most of it. Red Oak floors are very pretty. BUT you have to SAND IT SAND IT SAND IT. Oak is the most common wood in homes the past 40 years, with a sprinkling of ASH, Birch, and hickory, also, so that was news to me. And you do not want to finish it with a red tinged stain, likely... But, at least you did not have your cabinets built with 'stain grade' wood to 'save money'. THAT is a mess to paint. Voids and knotholes about, and if you are going to use 'paint grade' wood for your cabinets, than just plan on enjoying the rustic look in your home, which alot of people do enjoy. But few cabinet makers will reveal what those folks are really getting themselves into..

No, seriously, you DO NOT WANT MILK PAINT. I am old enough to remember when folks who had a cow (or two, or three, or herds) might still use milk paint. It was a leftover from pre-refrigeration days that hung on in the more long-lived of that last generation that knew true deprivation. It wasn't good paint, it was just a way to use up spoiling milk and get something slapped on the woodshed so it might not fall down until NEXT year. Plus nobody makes milk paint now the way they made it back then. The stuff was pretty toxic. It was lumpy. It flaked off rapidly. It was ugly. As I recall the "recipe" could include anything from unboiled linseed oil to kerosene. But possibly you are not talking about real milk paint, but the canned stuff they pass off as milk paint today, that is basically casein that has been chemically altered and mixed with other chemicals. It probably lasts a bit longer than real milk paint, but it seems to share many of the less desirable attributes of real milk paint. It is ugly. It flakes and chips. It is often used by people who think "shabby" actually goes with "chic". Be prepared to strain it often because it lumps up easily. While its probably not LESS "eco friendly" than many modern paints, it isn't really any MORE "eco friendly" than any other low VOC paint. You'll just end up sanding it off. Stick with something that wears like iron, or at least as close as you can get. I wanted to paint my cabinets with a high gloss enamel but (1) they don't make real oil based high gloss enamels anymore; (2) the stuff they pass off as enamel is still just as smelly and hard to clean up after and (3) it is no better than the water based "hybrid" cabinet paints such as Benjamin Moore Advance anyway when it comes to wear and how easily it can be cleaned. After painting my entire interior with Kilz Original to cover up lingering smoker smell (and yes I DID thoroughly wash down every single flat surface with TSP, then bleach water, then a double rinse before even THINKING about priming, do not EVER let anyone tell you you can just slap paint up over nicotine stains on your walls because eventually it will peel) I just can't face any more cleanup involving any solvent stronger than plain ol' water. I got to the place where I just started throwing brushes away rather than have to clean them. But I am old and decrepit so YMMV on that issue. You will be happier with a long-wearing paint such as the BM Advance. You don't have to get it in a gloss or even a semi-gloss. You can get it in a satin. I wouldn't suggest dropping below satin because cleanup gets harder and the paint doesn't wear as well. The BM Advance and similar paints will give you a long-lasting, attractive, non-glossy or about as glossy as you want it to be (or not) finish that is easy to clean and won't chip at the drop of a ladle. Kitchens build up grease at an amazing rate, and grease comes off a good hard finish way easier than something as fragile as so-called "milk paint".