Jigsaw Choice Dilema

[Jamesc]

Ok, I am about to have a birthday (21 again ) and my lovely wife has sanctioned replacing my somewhat worn jigsaw.

I have narrowed my selection to two, the budget won't stretch any further so Festool or my personal choice of Mafell are completly out of the question.
The work the saw will be put to is generally cutting oak up to 1", both square cuts and curved (scribed joints). My trusty Bosch Milenium is more than man enough but is showing its age and wear.

My choice is between the Bosch http://www.axminster.co.uk/bosch-bosch-gst-135-bce-jigsaw-prod29669/

And the Makita BJV180 http://www.axminster.co.uk/makita-bjv180z-cordless-jigsaw-18v--body-only-prod821736/

I have other Makita 18V tools and am very happy with them, the reviews I've found seem very favourable and I like the idea of cordless. On the other hand my Bosch has been a real workhorse and the new blade guide looks pretty good.

Any horror stories, don't do it or thoughts would be welcome

James

 

[mailee]

Go for the Bosch James. I am on my second GST model and the only reason I changed it was to convert from 110V to 240. I would say they are pretty much bullett proof. :wink:

 

[goldeneyedmonkey]

I work in a workshop and I used to have that Makita, although it was a good bit of kit I sold it as I found that the batteries didn't last long enough in it. PITA to be honest. I, like you, was a fan of the cordless aspect of it, and if you don't mind changing the batteries a fair bit then go for it. I went for the 'body-grip' version of the Bosch you linked to. As Mailee says, bullet proof, maybe even bomb-proof

Hope that helps mate. Ta. _Dan.

 

[greggy]

i have the metabo, and that is bullet proof. worth considering.

 

[chrs_666]

Got a dewalt 18v one find it lovely to use had no problem with battiries seems a better weight distribution and smaller handle diamiter than the bosh which is more comeforatable for my little hands maybe its just what im used to.

 

[Dibs-h]

i have the metabo, and that is bullet proof. worth considering.

+1.

 

[Jamesc]

Thanks Guys, you have pretty much confirmed my thoughts/fears. The makita cordless looks to make a great second saw but I think the fustration of changing/charging the bateries would be too much. The Metabo Looks good but I think I will go with my previous choice of the Bosch.

Thanks for all the input guys

 

[Blister]

I have a Bosch Jigsaw

And am happy with it

does what it says on the tin

Jigs and Saws :wink:

 

[NikNak]

Hi James

I ditto the cordless too...... used the 18v NiMh'd one where i used to work. Was good, but again the batts would drain fairly quickly. I notice that you said you want to cut 1" oak.... you may need an army of batteries...!!

I've got the previous model to this one (a bit less rubbery handled)......

http://www.axminster.co.uk/makita-4350f ... rod656297/ and it does all i can chuck at it.


Nick


oh, forgot to say.... it's got a 'soft start' too, dont know if the Bosch has..?

 

[Steve Maskery]

+1 for that model Bosch. Superb.
S

 

[Jamesc]

Thanks Steve, I hope it is. I ordered it today from Axminster with 40 free blades so I'll let you know tomorrow what I think of it

James

 

[Steve Maskery]

I hope that the free blades are good ones. Like any cutting tool, the quality of the blades matters. The Bosch blades themselves are excellent, too, you just have to use the right one for the job.
S

 

[Jamesc]

Yes I found that out many moons ago. I once had a no name jigsaw that cost me the princely sum of £12 inc VAT from Macro. I actually bought it for the switch (a good tip here many of the middle of the raod brands use exactly the same switches as the ceapies and it is much cheaper to canabalise one than find a spare). When I put a Bosch blade in it it cut superbly and remarkably true. I then proceded to cut and scribe the decking for a swimming pool with it with excellent results before the blade guide completly disinegrated.

James

 

[Mike Wingate]

Bosch for me.

 

[Jamesc]

Thanks for all the help guys, the Bosch turned up yesterday (useual Axminster inpecable delivery) and its a beuty. I haven't used it in anger yet just made a few odd scraps a bit shorter to see how it goes. I love the blade guide it seems to work a treat. As for the free blades this is a great deal. They are Bosch ones in bulk packs, 25 finecut for softwood, 25 finecut for hardwood and 12 fine crosscut, all good useful blades so I am well pleased. No photos I'm afraid as there is nothing to show yet. Still I am hoping to tacklle a couple of projects soon and will try to mend my ways and take a camera with me. My wife and I are terrible, we launch into projects and are all but finished when we think - we realy should have photgraphed this before we started!

James

 

[Anonymous]

My wife and I are terrible, we launch into making a dirty film then forget to turn the camera on

James

realy?

 

[theblindwoodturner]

i have the metabo, and that is bullet proof. worth considering.

I fully agree with you there. a top product.

I have the body grip and the new cordless 18V which is part of the carpenter's li ION kit for shows and trade work.

lew

 

[marcros]

Are Ridgid power tools available in the UK? The jigsaws get some good reviews in the USA and are made by Metabo.

 

[theblindwoodturner]

Rigid UK only supply specialist pipework equipment for plumbing, inspection and contract maintenance of drains and waterways.

a shame really.

Perles seem to be a bit of a dying breed as well which is a shame. we don't see much of them here.