Please recommend me a jigsaw

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Sawdust

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Arghhhhhhh....

I've just ruined a piece of work because my old B&D jigsaw will not cut perpendicular to a board no matter what I do. The blade is new and sharp, fastened in properly and I was cutting a piece of 3/4 inch ply so not exactly taxing.

The cut always starts straight and then the blade starts to deflect. It doesn't seem to matter whether I'm cutting a straight line or a curve, it's always the same effect.

Is this just 'the way it is' with jigsaws?

If it's not, can someone please recommend me a good one and give me an idea of how much I will need to spend to get one worth having. I would rather splash out (especially as it's almost my birthday!) and buy something good. I was wondering about a Dewalt as I have a SDS mains drill and a battery drill from them and both are brilliant.

Thanks for any help or advice

Mike
 
hello mike, as a rule most jigsaws dont cut square, its a bit wierd for it to be showing over 3/4 inch though. I have the Dewalt jigsaw with the quick release cutter changing thing, i wouldnt reccomend it though as there is lots of movement in the blade. A friend of mine has a Bosch GST135 with the blade support clamp and says its brilliant even on 40mm worktops. A bit pricey though. Try usig a downcutting blade, from expericnce i find they tend to cut straighter but if your jigsaw base plate is out of square with the blade then nothing is going to help it really.

tom
 
Bosch or Makita, or Festool if you have extraordinarily deep pockets.

Jigsaws are one of those tools where you have to spend quite a lot - £100 or so - to get something that works properly.
 
Mike

Forget the new jigsaw and buy a good quality blade first. you might save a lot of money

I have experienced the exact same problem until I picked up a Festool blade from a show. WOW, the difference is amazing. I believe that Newbie Nel uses pretty much the same blades made by Lennox and purchased from protrade.

This blade rule is true for bandsaws (dure edge blades) and table saws (I use Freud) too - buy a good quality one and the machine is transformed

Having said all of that, a jigsaw is not a precision cutting device when working on anything other than pretty thin boards as the blade is only supported (not very well) at the top
 
Thanks..

hello mike, as a rule most jigsaws dont cut square, its a bit wierd for it to be showing over 3/4 inch though. I have the Dewalt jigsaw with the

It even shows over 1/2 inch which really makes me think it's just a junk jigsaw

Bosch or Makita, or Festool if you have extraordinarily deep pockets.

Pocket depth may extend to Bosch or Makita but Festool - now that is one deep pocket!

Forget the new jigsaw and buy a good quality blade first. you might save a lot of money

The blade I was using was a Bosch and was brand new so I don't think it would be to blame. It is a very cheap B&D jigsaw I've had for years so I think it's time to buy a better one.

I do like the look of this one:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/recno/7/prod ... -31020.htm

Has anyone tried it?

Cheers
MIke
 
I replaced my Bosch (Green) with a Makita about 4-5 years ago for exactly the same reason. Absolutely love using my Makita. Even with a dull blade it stays true and is dead easy to control. The only disappointment is the dust extraction arrangement; however, I've only recently invested in a vacumn so have yet to truly experiment with solutions.

I also know a chap that fits bespoke kitchens for a living and, since investing in a Bosch (Blue) says that he hardly ever uses anything else (altho I did see him using a cordless DeWalt mini circluar to trim some doors once!).

If I had to replace my Makita I would be tempted to try a Bosch on his recommendation; although I sincerely hope that I'll have my Makita for some time yet!
 
I would stay away from the dewalt, have a tendancy to shake themselves to bits :shock:

Makita and bosch are good choices. Hitachi have a new jigsaw out which seems pretty feature packed, at a good price, but it's a bit to new to have any good or bad reviews yet.

Another worth checking out is the metabo STEB 135 PLUS, excellant machine, we have been selling them for a few years now, and never had one break down. Expect to pay between £130 -£150 ish.

Matt.
 
I have a Makita (mains powered) and comes with a built-in light...useful on dark days :D . I'm very happy with it ...just wish it was battery powered.
 
Mike,

When my old Black & Decker jigsaw (which was awful) fell apart I bought an Elu ST84EK (now DeWalt something or other) which has been a joy to use. However, you can never guarantee a vertical cut because so much of the blade is unsupported. Whenever I need to guarantee a vertical cut I use something else, such as a router.

Paul
 
I dont know if I'm the exception when it comes to black and decker jigsaws but I have one of these :

340300_KS888E_1.jpg


and to be perfectly honest I cant fault it. It does everything I'd expect a jigsaw to do, it cuts straight and true, quick blade change, blade storage on the side of the tool, and the sight line feature which enables you to see right down the front of the blade when cutting is excellent.
 
Hi Mike,
I tend to agree with your first judgement that maybe you need to replace.
'cause it shouldn't go off the vertcal at those limits, I myself have a
Bosch ind. Vari-speed jigsaw GST60PBE (blue) I have had it now for about 20 years (or there about) maybe more. and I have to say that it has never let me down at any time in all those years.
But I do agree with the other comments about the quality of blades. Personally I use the Bosch blades but unless I am cutting something which is not too important. I always use a new blade.
My Bosch cost me about £170 and that was a long time ago. What they are now I'm not sure. But I do believe that you get what you pay for.
I have been a D-I-Yer all of my life. But I have always bought the best that I can.
Believe me it is far cheaper in the long run, I am still using tools that I bought over 40 years ago, and I am over 60 now.
I do hope in some way that this helps. I'm sorry to go on so.
All the best anyway.
Trev
 

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