Need a new recip saw

[Anthony Whitesell]

My recip saw was a hand me down from my father. I'm not one to look a gift tool in the blade. I used and took care of it. It made hundreds and hundreds of feet of cuts for me after my father used it for years. Unfortunately it died this weekend. Surgery was attempted to revive it but it was to no avail. The autopsy showed several points of failure, all broken metal parts that are just not repairable. Unfortunately we have no paperwork and the labels are long worn away, so I have no idea what the model number is to attempt to locate replacement parts.

I'm now in the market for a new recip saw. I stopped at HD this morning to check out what they had. The standard Milwalkee and the Dewalt on display caught my attention. I found the Milwalkee very heavy, but it looks like it has a metal case compared to the Dewalt's plastic one. This is as far as my research has gone so far.

Which recip saw do you have and why don't you like it?

[michael a nelson]

the dewalt is crap the blade release dosnt work well and its not powerful at all and very sloppy my old milwalkee work very well though

[Dave Lehnert]

Milwaukee has always been the standard. Not sure what they are like now since the parent company of Ryobi owns that brand.

I own a Milwaukee($200) and it is a great saw but kinda sorry I purchased it. It is way more saw than I need. I bet I have not used it 3 times in 5 years or more. A $50 job would have worked for me.

[Rick Lizek]

My 18 volt Makita is my prefered saw. Quick release blade change is the best and also have the Makita 6-1/2" circular saw and mating drill and impact driver. Have corded versions of these tools but hardly ever use them now. The convenience is just too good. Allso have access to a Ryobi and Milwaukee recip. For the budget minded homeowner, the Ryobi would be a good option. I'd seriously look at Harbor Freight. For the money, I've gotten some great deals there and considering the cost of the tool versus sending it out for service, it's a good deal. I know of some contractors who will buy HF for a job and if it breaks or gets lost they still are ahead.

[Larry Edgerton]

I assume you are talking sawzall?

I have two Dewalts. One is commercial grade and one is Borg grade. The commercial on is good, the other not so exciting.

I also have a PC Tiger saw, not so precise but just about as fast as a chain saw, a Makita, again a quick purchase so I did not have to go to the shop. It is a Borg model and not so spectacular. I have an older Milwalkee, not very aggressive but very controllable. When I need to do some scribing on log homes it is my choice as I can plunge cut to a line with a metal blade with amazing precision with this saw.

If you are talking jigsaw, buy a Bosch. Best value period. I bought the Dewalt copy of the Bosch, and I gave it away after I got it back from repair. It broke the first time I used it, and it did not have the balance of the Bosch. I'll never give up my worm drive PC, but most times I want the Bosch.

Larry

[Jerome Hanby]

Maybe I just don't have a good saw to make a comparison. I thought the Dewalt I got from Lowe's was pretty nice and worked well...especially compared to the 18 volt B&D Firestorm that wasn't cutting the mustard (or anything else).

[Paul Steiner]

I have a corded and cordless dewalt, I bought them both used and I am very happy with both. The cordless saw is light and still cuts the mustard. If I were going to buy new I would get the high end Milwaukee with the head or grip you can pivot. All the name brand saws are pretty good, the big quality difference is in the blades.

[Anthony Whitesell]

Doing some research now. What is the orbital motion for? Is it worth the expense?

[Jerome Hanby]

In general orbital motion on saws reduces the heat buildup and increases cutting speed (says so when you Google it), but it introduces vibration. Think that's why many jigsaws give you the option of disabling the oribital motion. Since Reciprocal saws are generally for carnage and destruction, orbital motion sounds like it would let you cut faster and make your blades last longer...

[Larry Edgerton]

Some saws like the PC Tiger have a switch to make it orbital or not. Orbital for ripping stuff up in a hurry and non orbit for steel and stuff that you want a little more control over.

Look at the stroke as well. If you want it for demolition get a long stroke orbital unit, if you need control get a shorter stroke, especially if you are going to have to do plunge cutting. The old Milwalkees only had a 7/8" stroke so they were slow but great for delicate situations.

Larry

[Don Morris]

I have an old Bosch. A beast, but does it work well.

[fRED mCnEILL]

The best feature, and the only good one, of A dewalt is the color, Had one that had a bent arbour. Huh?? How would that happen. All Dewalt stuff I had was crap.

Bought a HF unit for 25 bucks. If/when it packs it in I'll do the same as with the Dewalt-throw it in the trash. Difference is I will have only lost $25 vs 150 for the dewalt.

[Larry Rasmussen]

I have one of the 18 volt Makida Cordless models and really like it. I use it in the yard for smaller tree work. Have also done quite a bit of work on the rafters. The builder originally left these 2x4 rafters overlong- about 18 inches out past the gutter. I am partly through cutting them off and doing some additional cutting in many areas while up on the ladder. The cordless Makita is really handy for the ladder work. Unless you do demolition day in and day out it should handle most jobs that come up.

Regards,
Larry R
Seattle

[Jay Jeffery]

There are a lot of features to look for in a sawzall. Don't underestimate the blade change mechanism. The Harbor Freight saws typically use an Allen head screw. It requires a tool, and there are pieces that are easy to loose, the hole can sometimes strip if you get a lemon, but it is straight forward. It's tedious, but it works. Blade-free designs range form pretty good to downright useless. I used a DeWalt a while ago that required the user to spin a spring loaded nut with itty bity wings over 180 degrees inside the cage area. My Ridgid cordless sawzall has worked perfectly, but the mechanism that telescopes the stop is pure junk. The keyless blade change on my Ridgid jigsaw only holds the blade in half the time, and rarely straight. I'm sure you will find something with the right mix of power, weight, ruggedness, and value; just make sure the blade change mechanism works for you.

Be sure to check Craigslist. The market seems to be flooded with lightly used sawzalls of all varieties.

[Anthony Whitesell]

My old Craftsman had the allen head screw. It was helicoiled atleast twice in it's life time. Dewalt has to blade change mechanisms on the market. A twist-lock which is similar to many others, except that I noticed that the holder pulls back far enough into the saw body that you may not be able to get a hold of it if it stops near the end of the pull stroke. The other mechanism is a lever on the side of the shoe which activates the lock on the holder. I may be more partial to the twist-lock style (just not on this Dewalt) as it may provide more of a positive lock that the lever actuated one that appears to be a spring-loaded lock...springs wear out.

I have figured out that I want atleast 1" stroke, tool-less blade change (I hate looking for the correct size allen key), and an adjustable shoe. The driver for the movable shoe is two fold. It allows the depth to be reduced when you can't cut through what happend to be behind the workpiece (like a concrete wall in one job I did here at the house). Secondly, if cutting lots of thin stock, the shoe can be extended to use another (still sharp and used) portion of the blade. You can get twice the life from 3" blade and a 1" stroke by using two different regions on the blade after you extend the shoe.

[ian maybury]

Must say I think it depends a lot on what you need the saw for. They aren't exactly a precision piece of kit, and there's a huge range of prices depending on the brand. I recently bought a cheapie mains powered model (but with a blade quick release) since it was only for occasional light work (cutting some hard to get at roofing timbers), and couldn't justify paying x3 for a posh brand. It works very well with the right choice of a decent quality blade in - which latter is the case with any saw...

ian

[Rich Engelhardt]

The other (DeWalt) mechanism is a lever on the side of the shoe which activates the lock on the holder
IIRC, that's the 4 position head. @ least that's the same type release I have on my 10 amp DeWalt DW304PK.
I've used mine for a couple years now and the only time I've had issues with that release is when I push the saw too hard and it gets too hot.
I swap blades a lot - swapping between a demolition blade and a more aggressive wood blade - depending on what I'm cutting.

I also have a slightly older Bosch RS20. Mine has the 13.5 amp motor, not the 13 amp motor on the present RS20. It has an adjustable foot ( a bit funky and you have to get used to it - but - it does work just as you desire since I use that trick myself), twist style release and more power ( a lot more power) than the DeWalt.

Despite having more power, the Bosch sees very limited use.
It's not happy at the end of an extension cord and/or being on the same circut as the twin 500W work lights.
The lower draw DeWalt doesn't mind either situation.

If I had to replace either, I believe I'd pick up the 12 amp Milwaukee with the swivel handle. The DeWalt 4 position head really spoiled me. It 's a lot more comfotable to make horizontal cuts with that head. The first time I used that saw, I had to cut through an old 2.5" galvanized steel vent pipe. It went right through it w/out any fuss & because of the way the blade & handle were oriented, keeping the cut straight was pretty easy.
IMHO, the 12 amp swivel handle Milwaukee would be a good balance of power w/out too much draw and offer the ability to attack horizontal cuts easily.
@ least that's my thinking.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I knew there was something else...I'm going to stick with an AC Corded model. When I use it, it is really short (like cutting a nail), or really long like spending half a day breaking down scrap to send to the dump or cutting saplings too small for the chainsaw. So I don't think battery power is going to work.

I'm going to have to stop at the BORGs and see which has the rotating head or handle. I don't think I would use it much, but it may come in handy if it doesn't increase the price too much.

I'm looking to get one step up from the cheapie. I want one that will last when used more than the average homeowner, but not as much as a construction crew. So I'm looking inexpensive name brand.

[Jerome Hanby]

Good call on the AC powered unit. For all the real work where I needed the saw, run time on the battery models was crippling. having both on the other hand is nice. For little spot jobs here and there,no power cord is nice.

[Tom Ewell]

If you see one, check out the Milwaukee Hatchet, not as "robust" as it's big brothers for the heavy stuff but it's features can be handy and it will do all that you mention.
I have the corded version and it's my first grab on the jobsite.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I'm going to have to stop at the BORGs and see which has the rotating head or handle.
I could swear I saw a Milwaukee the other day on the web that swivels - but - I must have been mistaken since I can't find it now.
Anyhow - FWIW - HD has a real good price on one of the Milwaukee saws right now. The HD website is down @ the moment though so i can't say which one.
I believe it's a 12 amp unit that going for $84 or $89.

[Anthony Whitesell]

HD has two Milwaukee 12A models, one at $99 one for $149 and a 15A for $199. The extra $50 on the 12A models is for the orbital action.

ToolKing's daily special is for a reconditioned 12A with orbital action but a different model than HD (6520-81 vs 6520-21) but that may be because it is reconditioned.

I've opted for the TooKing deal. Reconditioned Milwaukee 12A with orbital function for $70 shipped.

[David Thompson 27577]

(You said a bunch of stuff, then continued with..)..................I found the Milwalkee very heavy, but it looks like it has a metal case compared to the Dewalt's plastic one. This is as far as my research has gone so far.

Which recip saw do you have and why don't you like it?

I am a woodworker by hobby for decades, and a small-jobs contractor for about 9 years now. My first recip saw was a Milwaukee that I bought at one of the big box stores. It had a model number that was (I thought) the same as the Milwaukee that I had seen at a specialty store -- a contractor's supply house. But the one at the big box was WAY less expensive.

It lasted less than one year, then it quit reciprocating -- the motor ran, but nothing else moved. I learned from others on that jobsite that mine probably had a plastic gearbox, and that the model number was just a bit different from true contractor's model. (Like maybe mine was a 203A, and the good ones were model 203K. All of the external elements of mine looked just like the good ones -- but it was built much more cheaply.)

I went to a supply house and bought a Bosch. It's a beast, a wonderful tool, has more power than I've ever needed. And it has a nice tool-free blade mounting method.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I noticed the same thing years about about the BORG model numbers. I believe they have done this for two reasons. First lower quality parts to reduce the price. The two models meet the same specs but not the longevity. Second, some times two BORG stores don't even have the same model numbers. I believe this is to avoid the competition pricing as well as reason #1. It have been my experience that if the model numbers they are likely identical. If the UPC is the same the they are probably the same tool. Obviously online I could not check the UPC, but the models were the same number and listed on manufacturers website (often I have found the manufacturer does not have a listing for the BORG models). So I believe they were the same tool. In the case of the reconditioned versus new, I'm hoping the model number change is just so it is "easy to inventory". All of the searches for the model number turned up as reconditioned, none listed it as new.

[Paul McGaha]

Mines at least 10 years old. A Milwaukee Super Sawzall. I think the stroke is 1 1 /8".

It's a beast. Highly recommend Milwaukee.

PHM

[Anthony Whitesell]

Mines at least 10 years old. A Milwaukee Super Sawzall. I think the stroke is 1 1 /8".

It's a beast. Highly recommend Milwaukee.

PHM

Got one on it's way. Not the super, but the middle one. 12A reg, then 12A with orbital, then the super 15A with orbital.

[Peter Quinn]

I have the smaller sawzall and a bigger PC tiger. I like em both, the PC packs more punch, for when you want to get medieval on some demo, go caveman style and just rip &&%^ up, the milwaukee has a bit more finesse, or at least as much finesse as you can reasonably attribute to a sawzall! I like them both. The milwaukee was given to me by my father who though it was broken and bought another, the PC I bought because it was the cheapest thing at the supply house I walked into the day I needed one on a job immediately. I guess you have already bought yours, but if you should want to ever get the meanest reciprocating saw ever look to the bosch bulldog for "Honey, I just cut the carrying beam o accident" power. Heavy, but strong.

[Mark Ashmeade]

I have a Bosch 18V Litheon job. I'll give a mixed review.

The battery is outstanding. No, OUTSTANDING. Cuts through 2x6, nails, steel plate, screws, you name it, for hours on end.

However, the plastic case is showing stress, and it's not quite a year old. By stress, I mean the blue plastic is showing white at a couple of stress points on the handle. It hasn't broken yet, but it wouldn't surprise me if it did.

I suppose I can get it fixed under warranty if it does, I have another 2 years on it.

Great saw, I'm just nervous on the handle breaking.

[Charles Wiggins]

I have a Ryobi P510 (http://www.ryobitools.com/catalog/power_tools/all_saws/P510). The main reason for buying that one? Because I already had several other Ryobi One+ tools. I haven't used it a lot, but it's done well with everything I've asked of it, especially with a Lithium battery. I would definitely put it in the homeowner class. It's heavy enough to hack through some 1" threaded rod used in the wall anchor system in our old basement, but light enough to use for tree trimming on the limbs that are too big for pruners but too small or too close for the chainsaw. My main complaint is that sometimes the trigger lockout is hard to depress to get it started, especially if I have gloves on. I imagine if I used it more I'd have more complaints.

[William Burgess]

I have the 12 amp Milwaukee Sawzall. It has done everything I have asked it to do. The Super was tempting but i'm just a homeowner and didn't really need anything that nice. It has done everything I have asked, from tree limbs/roots, cutting up an old metal picnic table and ripping up a bathtub. I'm not a huge fan of cordless tools (except for drills/impact drivers) as anytime I have used a cordless saw, I have needed it for more than 1 battery. I also am never somewhere where I don't have access to a outlet.