Bosch PMF180 vs alternatives

[Bob]

I have a few jobs that I think the PMF180 and its ilk might be ideal for. The main immediate one is to allow me to lift some sections of floorboard in awkward locations and with minimal damage. In particular I am hoping that the plunge blade would allow a neat cut across the width of the floorboard as well as dealing with the tongues.

I can get the Bosch relatively cheaply at the moment - about =A360 with free delivery from Amazon - but I wonder how it compares to the alternatives. I'm not interested in the battery models, so the alternative ones I have come across that I would consider are the blue Bosch one, which I have seen for about =A3100, and the Fein obviously. Now the latter can be had for about =A3120 for a basic kit, and quite a bit more for variations with extra blades and attachments. Also I have seen the PMF180 with a bigger than standard attachment kit for about =A3120.

What to do? I guess the main question to ask is how the basic tools compare - the DIY Bosch vs the blue Bosch vs the Fein. I haven't seen any reviews of the blue Bosch. Then: is is worth paying more to get extra attachments at the outset given that they seem to be quite expensive to buy later on? I've seen cheaper clone blades available on ebay - are they up to scratch?

Thanks for any recommendations or experiences.

[John Rumm]

Its a common question, but difficult to answer at the mo, since most don't appear to have tried more than one. I am guessing from what others have said, that the Fein is more comfortable to use in that it transmits little or no vibration to the user, whereas some posted have commented on vibration wrt other versions. Sorry, not much to go on!

If the set has things you are likely to use then possibly. I got the multimaster "Top" box and have found a use for most if not all of the add ons over time - so probably worth it.

Based on the set I tried, they seem ok actually. Note you can also get OEM blades at a fair discount if you are prepared to pay for 10 at a time...

[Ian Stirling]

It does.

I can't really answer the latter part of this, but it's worked well for me to do just that.

It is not fast. It's moderately noisy. The blades last reasonably well.

[The Medway Handyman]

They all seem to work. The Fien is apparently the dogs, but at that price it should be. The Bosch PMF 180 works very well and is more affordable for DIY use.

They all IMO suffer from the blades being mega bucks & not lasting long.

A very handy tool, but I only use mine (PMF) as an absolute last resort because of the blade cost.

The PMF would do the job you describe very well.

[tinnews]

You can find a Faithfull set of 9 (or is it 13) blades for around £20 which is a lot less expensive than manufacturer's ones. I have a set on order, we'll see how they last. (They fit all the tools apparently)

[The Medway Handyman]

More like £30+ where I've looked - Amazon & EBAY. Apart from which I don't want a 'set'. I never use the carbide tile blades for example.

[John Rumm]

You can pick sets with nothing but 15 narrow plunge cut blades if that is what you use.

(the carbide disk is actually quite handy I find - great for chopping shaver socket sized rectangles out of the middle of a tile in place, or removing dirty grout). The rasp makes a nice job of removing any tile adhesive prior to replacing a damaged tile.

[tinnews]

The blades arrived today, they certainly *look* OK and come in a very neat little aluminium case. It's 9 blades for £23 including delivery. The set comprises: scraper, 4 plunge cut blades of different widths, a standard 270 degree blade, a thick blade that I don't quite know what it's for, a triangular TC grinding plate and a 270 degree TC cutter.

[tinnews]

£23.32 including delivery from Bexpress.

I agree to some extent about sets but I'm not at all sure what I'll find useful and at that price it's a good place to start. You can buy the Faithfull blades individually for £2.50 upwards.

[The Medway Handyman]

Not heard of Bexpress, useful looking site. Can't find that set. Do you have a part number by any chance?

[Bob]

Thanks to everyone who replied.

It has convinced me to go for the basic PMF180 package as it seems to be up to the sort of job I need it for, no one has said anything about it that has put me off, and it seems is possible to get relatively inexpensive blades for it by shopping around.

[GMM]

The one thing I've found with my PMF180 is that for some reason the straight plunge blade seems impossible to secure properly and shakes loose after a little while (15 - 30 secs sustained use). Not a difficult thing to fix (tighten the screw) and perhaps it's just me/my example, as nobody else seems to have mentioned it! Of course, if anyone has a solution to that, I'd be glad to know it. Apart from that minor irritation, I wouldn't want to be without mine now: I don't use it very often but when I do, it's to solve something that I can't think of any other way to tackle.

[tinnews]

Here's a link:-

found it simply by using Froogle (that's Google 'shopping') and searching for "faithfull multi function tool blade set", then sorting by price low to high. That's my standard approach for finding low prices, not always perfect but usually pretty good.

[<me9]

They seem to be only 4 hole fitting, unsuitable for PMF180. Other (individual) items seem multi fitting. Is that correct?

[The Medway Handyman]

Didn't know that existed - thanks. Very handy.

[tinnews]

>

No, they fit the PMF180 fine, they have four holes *and* a radial slot, so they fit Bosch, Einhell, Fein and others.

[Ala]

Cool. I am sending this to myself at work to check out the web.

Thanks for the info .