When one tool won't do

[HeyBub]

Use another. And another.

My current project is to cut sections out of the soffits and add screening with a view toward increasing the airflow in the attic.

After marking off the position of the new hole (8x60") on the 3/8" plywood soffit, I limbered up the power saw.

Power saw was too heavy to hold upright and very difficult to maneuver correctly.

Okay, try the HF Multifunction tool. After cutting a bit, I computed it would take several hours per hole.

Damn! Break out the itty-bitty B&D battery-operated mini-saw. Been so long since I used it the batteries were junk.

Angle grinder with diamond blade - more smoke than cutting.

By now, I have about three hours invested in one stinkin' hole! Time to take extreme steps.

I limbered up my electric chain-saw pole trimmer.

Damn thing went through the project like a silver bullet in werewolf's butt. In two minutes I had the hole I wanted and a LOT of sawdust I didn't especially want but didn't mind.

I've got four or five more holes to make, but it won't be much of a job now that I've found the right tool.

------- Aside:

Here's an ad for a shooting range in Kentucky. No, it's not photoshopped. It appeared on the back page of a free weekly newspaper.

I'd describe it further, but frankly, words fail me.

[hrhofmann]

Just don't cut thru the joists, those pole trimmers can go pretty fast.

Seriously, is the soffit fairly open to the attic. I had to make some spacers to push the insulation back a couple of inches from the soffit/ joists to get adequate space tor the air flow into the attic. You've posted here enuf that I am pretty sure you know what you're doing.

Loved the Kentucky ad, what else is there to say???

[Jim Elbrecht]

I used a 2.5" drill bit.

-snip-

Am I getting too old, or have I just gone to too many gun safety classes, or did Parris Island & VN just take the 'fun' out of guns for me? Is anyone else bothered by promoting a range as a party place?

Paintball is fine if that floats your boat- but I want to share the range with folks who are thinking about the business at hand.

I got to hand it to them though-- if it wasn't for the party packages, they sound like a great place to hang out-

this line; "You heard right, 100 YARD TUNNEL of ballistic perfect INDOOR RIFLE RANGE right in Kentucky! Sight your rifle in but beware: once you sight in with our perfect ballistics you?ll have no excuses to miss that shot"

And rent a 50cal!!! Tossup if that or the 106RR is my favorite weapon.

Jim

[Mike Paulsen]

This would have been a good time to remember that you own a jigsaw.

(snip)

[Nate Nagel]

A Sawzall might have been an appropriate choice, as well.

nate

[ransley]

And I thought the punchline would have been you used your gun

[Chuck]

Or a Roto-zip. I have two and use them a lot. chuck

[HeyBub]

I have known jigsaws. Nasty creatures. At 2" per minute it would take an hour (and several blades) to cut one hole.

The sawzall was going to be my next attack - I was concerned about how to handle the 2x4s it would encounter. As it turned out, the chain saw easily skipped over the rafter extensions.

If the reciprocating saw wouldn't work, there was dynamite.

[Red Green]

"HeyBub" wrote in news:5qKdnZPSVN8-robXnZ2dnUVZ [e-mail]:

Can't be using those Harbor Freight jigsaw blades! A decent brand name coarse wood blade in an electric jigsaw. Heck, I even used a blade from a B&D pack to cut a 16" dia circle in 3/4" subfloor. Didn't take an awful lot of time.

[Mike Paulsen]

You must have been trying to cut 3/4" ply with a broken saw and a dull, metal-cutting blade installed upside down and backward. Any jigsaw with a new wood-cutting blade will cut faster than you'll probably care to go.

[aemeijers]

2" per minute? Is your plywood made from seasoned oak or something? Was the blade in backwards when you last used one? Agreed, typical worn-out wobbly-when-new 20-buck jigsaws are an irritating pain to use. I think many people remember them as the first 'power saw' they ever used, and think they are all like that. A modern non-toy jigsaw would have made short work of the holes, and a fresh quality blade would not have broken or smoked unless you ran it across a nail or something. It would have been the second tool I reached for, after the drill to make the corner holes. Typical 1/4 or 3/8 ply used up under an eve would be trivial cuts for them. Only tool I can think of that may work better would be one of those baby cordless circular saws- this would be one of the few apps I can think of where a 3/4 scale saw would be handy. (I wouldn't want to try holding my ancient Skil 7 1/4 upside down for five feet at a time either, even with a good stage and plank to walk on. From a ladder? Forget it.)

I've never used a sawzall for finish cuts like that, much less a chainsaw. I have heard of those that did, but I try to limit the sawzall to demo work. I did use a chainsaw to cut a house in half, once (pre-move), though. That was kind of fun.

-- aem sends...

[fftt]

Porter Cable "Saw Boss" small / light circular saw...perfect for this application (originally sold as a panel saw)

cheers Bob

[RicodJour]

Even better, the Makita 5090DW.

I love the thing when I'm up on a ladder and don't want a cord in the way. It's much smaller than a Saw Boss, which I also have (tool junkie and hoping never to recover and will ignore all intervention efforts). With two batteries and the typical 1/4" or 3/8" soffit material it would make short work of it.

I also use it with a diamond blade for cutting tile for little trim jobs and fussy cuts.

I'm taking it to the grave with me - planning on cutting my way out of the coffin. ;)

R

[George]

Thats where the price vs value thing comes in. Put a quality blade in the saw and you can experience how it is supposed to work.

[fftt]

Rico-

I had one of those but it never worked very well....... but I was using the steel blade that came with it and figured even with a decent blade the thing would still lack the power.

I sold it on ebay, maybe I should have given it another try with a decent blade?

cheers Bob

[RicodJour]

Yep. The steel blade that comes with it is okay if it's new and sharp. The carbide blade is much better and the diamond blade works well with tile. I like it as a generalist tool. It's not the fastest, strongest, etc., but it's useful for lots of little jobs and awkward places.

R