Hi All
Its often been said on this group that the one tool worth paying more money for is a jigsaw.
The difference is like chalk & cheese apparently.
If there is that much difference, could someone recommend a specific brand/model they have experience of please?
I've got one of these
I got mine from screwfix
In message , The Medway Handyman writes
One desirable feature, not available on my ancient Bosch, is something to clear the sawdust from the cutting line:-(
It does have an adjustable *rocking action* which gives much faster cutting in softwood.
Metal cutting is a bit iffy as it is very easy to overheat the blades without some coolant/lubricant.
regards
I bought this:
The barrel-bodied blue Bosch. Prices from 40 quid to 160, depending on power rating and whether it's last years model on a discount. GST 135 is current, the 40 quid was 110V on damaged-box clearance.
Well, that was my experiance anyway.
I have this one:
Cut quality is supurb when required, and cut speed on full pendulum is surprisingly quick (i.e. cut the end of a 8x2" joist in under 5 secs)
I have also used one of the blue bosch GST range - it was an older model
- no longer made, but similar to:
Easy one.
Any of the Bosch blue GST series.
That is unless you are minded towards a Festool.
If I were buying a new one not having one, I would buy the Festool. However, having got a GST, I wouldn't replace it with the Festool.
Controllability, accuracy and comfort are really good with the GST and you would be pleased with it.
You have all missed the point with these grossly overpriced -if very good, tools:
The cheap ones have zinc alloy die cast parts that wear out very quickly. At the amazing expense of a few pennies extra the pricey stuff is fitted with steel working parts and some have rollers to minimise wear.
No doubt at great expense to the environment and a free prison workforce, the Chinese are remedying the situation as I write.
They are not grossly overpriced, simply well engineered and supported.
That costs money.
There is a lot more to it than that....
Complete with spares and service no doubt.
Give me a break....
Priced according to what the customer will pay, same as everything else.
Most professional power tools are in the =A3100-200 range, jigsaws are no different. However whilst some cheapy grade tools may do a similar job for occassional use (e.g. mini-grinders), cheapy jigsaws are significantly less capable tools.
I have an 18V deWalt DW933 which I'm pretty happy with. I abuse it horrendously (e.g. taking the shoe off, turning it on its nose and using it as a reciprocating saw for cutting through floorboards in situ). It cuts pretty straight when I use it for its intended purpose. Cons are the blade change mechanism which is a pig: you have to pull out and turn, several turns, a stiff knob designed so that you're likely to break any thumbnail you have; and if you leave the clear plastic guard off the front of the tool and get your fingers in the wrong place it can nip you very painfully (blood blister).
I got it for £200 in a kit with 2 (2Ah) batteries, charger and case from someone on eBay (new).
I previously had a PPPro (Ryobi rebadge I think) 18V which had a good blade change mechanism but wasn't so accurate cutting.
I have had both the old 18V dewalt and now have the new far improved 18V dewalt jigsaw and they are the mutt's
And for what it's worth, the =A315 thing that Focus are selling looks pretty capable.
Perhaps things have already improved over there.
One wonders what the entire British mechanical and engineering industry might have accomplished if the management instead of the workforce had been commies.
of what?
Even less.
40 quid? for a GST135? you jammy bastard!
You want spares and services on a =A315 machine?
How much is a packet of blades for a Bosch?
Your ethos need realigning with this millenium old chap. One does not pay through the nose for a machine to do the same job that you can get a cheap one to do just as well. And having a cheap machine break down means you know exactly where and what to get in the next hour or so that you need to replace it.
Spares and repairs cost time, money and aggro and you only get a second hand machine back for all the trouble. Sometimes the repair wasn't done properly, sometimes another problem persists.
(I freely give this bereak to you as a favour, don't abuse it.)
No I don't because I don't want a £15 machine or its poor quality and reliability.
No it doesn't.
With jigsaws it is well known and understood that cheap products simply don't produce the quality of work that a decent one will. That's my view and that of a number of others who in the past bought cheap jigsaws and thought that all were crap. Take a look through the group archives on that point.
Buying a decent one means that it will be engineered and designed for a long lifetime and conservatively rated, ergo is unlikely to have a break down in the first place.
Incorrect. On the very small number of occasions that I have needed to use a repair service, the original product has been returned with worn parts replaced and to original spec.
Never in my experience.
I also have the option to purchase spares and effect the repair myself.
No need because it has no value.
If you want to buy things on price, that's your choice. I prefer to buy on value with all factors that are important to me taken into account.
Assuming it actually *does* do the same job. And in my experience, cheap jigsaws simply don't - unless all you use it for is cutting firewood.
Or more likely a different one - the design of these cheap ones tends to change by the month, as the manufacturer discovers a way of saving another penny or two.
It really depends on your priorities. I've bought many a cheap power tool in the past, but once used to it often replace with better. Examples would be cordless drill, jigsaw, router, compound mitre saw. And in each case the improved performance has been worth the outlay.
No, they were 80s for that price. For plywood it makes no difference though.
Quite. A =A315 outlay for something I'd seldom use and not need an excellent result from is plenty.
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