Jig Saws

[dave harris]

i am in the market for a new jig saw. After reading numerous reviews on various saws i am still undecided. i am leaning toward bosch or dewalt at this time.

The foot of most jig saws seems to be a problem with setting back to 90' after moving., and not cutting straight for some reason seemed to be another complaint.

What are your experiences and what is your preferred jig saw, pros and cons?

[Craig Michael]

I have a Bosch 1591, the barrel handle. Great saw, excellent power, you name it. I've never heard much about Dewalt jigs, everything I've ever seen from users had the Bosch 1590/91 and the Festool as the top two. Some like the Bosch better, some festool. Even if the festool were a little better, for twice the money getting the Bosch is a no brainer.

[Jim Matthews]

I bought the Bosch 1590EVSK.

As with most cutting machines, my tracking problems are generally solved by a fresh blade.
It was expensive, but seems durable and most importantly - it works well every time it gets dusted off.

[Lee Schierer]

You'll love the Bosch 1591, is has plenty of power and is very smooth. If you get the T-234Xblades the saw cuts will be almost as good as a TS cut even in hardwood.

[mickey cassiba]

My go-to is my little Porter Cable 548 worm drive bayonet saw. With a non adjustable base, alignment issues are nil.As a work around, I machined a couple of aluminum wedges that I can bolt to the sole plate for the rare bevel cut. The hook type blades are getting scarce though. I have had some experience with the Bosches, We had a couple at my last job. As previously stated, powerful and smooth. My only issue is the blade mounting system...I always had one in my repair shop due to over zealous employees. That and the brushes were difficult to get to. No experience with the DeWalt offerings.

[David Larsen]

I have a top handle Milwaukee, Dewalt, and B&D. I always grab the Milwaukee.

[Kevin Presutti]

Since I started using Bosch tools I've never looked back. The customer service people have gotten right back to me when I had a question about a purchase I was about to make. Prices are more than reasonable for the quality, and when on sale it's just another bonus. I have purchased new and recon never an issue. The Bosch will not disappoint you.

[Van Huskey]

If you don't want to pop for the Festool the Bosch 1590/1 is the way to go, just have to pick barrel or D handle.

[PeterTorresani]

I've got the Festool and it's very nice. Probably not worth the extra money though

[glenn bradley]

Another Bosch 159X fan. I prefer the barrel grip 1590 but, both are wonderful saws at a very reasonable price for this type of tool at this quality level.

[Brian Weick]

I would love to get my hands on an Oliver 273....most of them if available, are on the opposite side of the country...


http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=991


B,

[Van Huskey]

I would love to get my hands on an Oliver 273....most of them if available, are on the opposite side of the country...


http://vintagemachinery.org/pubs/detail.aspx?id=991


B,

Tough on your back and arms dragging it around the shop, much less using it... :D

[geoff wood]

My go-to is my little Porter Cable 548 worm drive bayonet saw.

got an old rockwell 548, love it. also love how it says EXTRA heavy duty on it.

[Wil Limanen]

Another vote for the Bosch 1590evs. I really like it. I have no experience with any other brands other than what Wal-mart sells.

[brian watson]

i am in the market for a new jig saw.

I've got a barrel handle Bosch -- awesome jig saw. Solid.

[Peter Bell]

I have got a Ryobi. it is very solid and looks well made and is a step up from the bottom of the line jigsaws but not in the league of a Festool.

The one and only issue I have with it is that the blade and centre mark are out of alignment. Works good if you are cock eyed, and takes some getting used to to ignore the centre mark at the end of the frame and just watch the blade and the line you are cutting.

Also, like all these cheaper cutting tools it is important to have quality blades. if you do not then you really are going to be in big trouble. Not sure if I should have mentioned Ryobi in reference to a Festool but I will now go and wash my mouth out.

Pete

[Chris Tsutsui]

I bought a bosch barrel grip jig saw from a local box store for like $160 or so. Then that same day I used it for demo work and modifying a kitchen.

After using it almost repeatedly for over an hour, the metal housing got extremely hot to touch. But I kept using it and to my suprise it seemed to be designed to dissipate that heat and it still works today like it did the first day I abused it.

My only CON is that the bushing parts that act as blade guides and hold the blade steady straight up and down have worn down and it's a bit pricey to replace.

I don't know if there's another jig saw with perhaps ball bearing blade guides that don't wear easily.

Festool has some $800 jig saw that hasn't been approved for the north american market yet called the carvex. That sounds like a fun toy to have on a list. :)

[glenn bradley]

I bought a bosch barrel grip jig saw from a local box store for like $160 or so. Then that same day I used it for demo work and modifying a kitchen.

I used a $15 HF recip-saw for that 7 years ago and the darn thing just won't die :mad:. My Bosch gets a little more respect :D:D:D. I have heard others complain about the heat and I believe the new version (JS470E) took such (ab)use into account and wrapped the front with more rubber ;).

[Jerome Hanby]

I used a $15 HF recip-saw for that 7 years ago and the darn thing just won't die :mad:. My Bosch gets a little more respect :D:D:D. I have heard others complain about the heat and I believe the new version (JS470E) took such (ab)use into account and wrapped the front with more rubber ;).

My stupid HF jig saw won't die either. Crappy thing. Bought it for a quickie project and quickly made it my mission to replace it. It's so bad that I actually used the 18 volt Firestorm jig saw instead of it! Eventually got a Milwaukee and later a Festool and now that ugly orange thing just sits on my junk shelf and glares at me.

[Timothy Wolf]

I guess it depends on how much you plan on using it, for whether or not you want to pay big money for a top of the line one or if it is just for occasional use you can go cheaper. I don't use mine very much, I used to have a Craftsman I bought a few years ago to do a cutout for a counter top. I paid $40 it was heavy and worked great, The only reason I sold it was because I found a lightly used Makita Barrel grip on CL for $25, so I sold the C-man for $30 and upgraded. Since that time several months ago, I have used it for only 2-3 projects. It would have been a waste of money for me to pay for a new one based on how much I use it. Most people like their bosch or makita jig saws, so I would go to a store and hold both in your hand, see what fits better and go with it, unless you just use it occasionally, then I would look at the used market for a lightly used bargain.

[dave harris]

Interesting..... no love for the DeWalt, not even the dw331k? I find that surprising....

what about the new bosch version js470e or the js260. how does it fair against the bosch 1590?

[glenn bradley]

Interesting..... no love for the DeWalt, not even the dw331k? I find that surprising....

I thought the view to the blade area was too cluttered so I passed. It does seem to be a decent tool as far as one can tell from holding it in your hand and not operating it :confused:. I find it hard to spend close to the price of a known performer for an unknown. Maybe some owners of the DeWalt will chine in. This question invariably gets a boatload of 159X responses because there are so many out there I guess. I would like to hear from an owner of the new JS470. The JS260 reminds me of the 1587 which I always felt was underpowered. Hard to tell based on how things get rated amp-wise without running them unfortunately. On the upside if you grab one at the BORG and don't like it, you can take it back and swap for a different model(?). I use the 1590 as my cut-off saw. When I am breaking down parts, it just sets on the shelf under my bench. My circ-saw only gets to see the light on those rare occasions when I use sheet goods ;).

[Van Huskey]

Interesting..... no love for the DeWalt, not even the dw331k? I find that surprising....

what about the new bosch version js470e or the js260. how does it fair against the bosch 1590?

I played with the JS470E along side the 159X versions when the introduced the former at IWF. The 159X versions are Bosch's top jigsaw in the US at least and it is capable of better cut quality with the same blade and worth the "small" premium if cut quality is important.

I see JSs in two ways, either you use it as a fine tool or a rough tool. If you use it as a fine tool such as with installation work out of the shop, use it in place of a bandsaw or cut things too large for your BS table then the 159X and Festool level JSs make sense, if you only use it as a coarse tool such as roughing out before going to the BS then a more moderatly priced saw seems in order.

I used the DW331K while building my house, it was the JS my uncle who was helping me build carries in his tool trailer. The Dewalt struck me as a well built tool that although it lacked the precision and cut quality of the Bosch and certainly the Trion it did seem very well built and "tough".