Which Jig Saw????

[Fred Haydon]

With the Lowe's tool sale this week, I've been arguing in my head whether or not to buy the Bosch 1590EVSK. With discount, a $159.00 purchase becomes $135.15. Nice price, Nice saw...

But then, HD is having their 20% off select PT and their Ridgid R3121 is included in this, so a $139.00 saw becomes $111.20. This saw has received mostly good reviews and it has a lifetime warranty.

What's a woodbutcher supposed to do? What would you do??

Fred

[John Grossi]

Fred, I have owned a Dewalt for years. Great saw. However, today is a Gold Box special at Amazon on a Freud fj85, 77% off list. It can be had for $49.99 and I think free shipping. I know nothing about this saw. Maybe some other members can help out. It is rated 4 of 5 stars on Amazon. John

[J. Z. Guest]

Personally, my next jigsaw is going to be a 1591. The Bosch 159X series and Festool Trions seem to have the best lateral blade support, so you still get square cuts in thick hardwood.

No more top handles for me. That means I won't be finding them on sale anywhere locally, and that's fine with me. I want to do this just once more and be done for life. (or until they stop making motor brushes for it.)

[Tim Malyszko]

I just picked up a Festool Trion, but I almost bought the Bosch 1591EVSK. The only reason I went with the Festool was that I've been on quite a Festool kick as of late and I liked the way it felt in my hand much better than the Bosch. I'm a lefty and the barrel grips were obviously designed for right handed people.

I owned a cheaper DeWalt and this was one of the most frustrating tools I've ever used. I could never get a square cut in anything thicker than 1" and the sole plate always wandered from the 90 Degree position. I would avoid using it at all costs.

Based on my experience with the cheaper DeWalt, I decided that I would never buy a "cheap" jigsaw again.

Between the Bosch and the Ridgid, I would chose the Bosch just because its been proven time-and-time again to be one of the best, if not the best jig saws on the market.

Good luck with your search.

[Don Dorn]

I also own the DeWalt and agree with Tim. I bought it reconditioned and even though I only have $100 in it, it's $95.00 too much. In my opinion, I could have spent a whole lot less and had just as high of quality saw as I have now.

Between the ones you suggested, I would opt for the Bosch - a friend has one and it's a very nice saw in my opinion. I'm sure the Festool is amazing, but for me it's cost prohibitive. If it isn't for you, cosider it, but you can spend allot less and get a high quality saw in the Bosch too.

[Peter Quinn]

Get the bosch...its money well spent. Great tool that won't fail you. They are the industry leader and the industry standard.

The festool is real nice too...$$$$$$$$$$$$$.

[John Thompson]

Over 35 years I have owned 6 tools the manufacturer labeled as a jig-saw. I never used any of them as they were basically useless. The least used tool in my shop. Five of those were given away to try something else as I could not with a clear concious take someone's money and tell them they were purchasing a jig-saw. My description would have to be different and this is a family site.

My company purchased a Bosch EVS Barrel Grip 7 years ago to do 100' of round show-room counter for our new Muscle Car Show-room. That is the day I discovered what a real jig-saw was. It went from being the least used to one of the most used and a very valuable asset as I am in the shop 8-10 hours a day.

It holds a true line almost as if it had "auto-pilot".. I use it on metal and it replaced the smaller of my two band-saws for cutting curves in under 1" stock. I make many templates and it gets the call. I use it to size down sheets without a guide if the sheet is going to the TS after size down.

I have tried the "tauted one" and it does not have the feel of my barrel grip and no dust blower if working free-hand without a vacuum IMO. I love the Bosch and look for excuses to use it. If I can't find one.. I go door to door in the neighbor-hook and ask if they need any curves.. metal or hole cut.. :)

Did I mention I love the Bosch....

Sarge..

[John Callahan]

The 1590 (top handle)/1591 (barrel grip) without a doubt. Bosch upped the ante on this one- imho much improved over it's 1581/1587 predecessors. As for the Rigid, I've not tried it. I tend to shy away from Rigid power tools for reasons of parts and service ............. I'm not sure the lifetime warranty is worth the paper it's written on. Bosch (and PC/Delta, DeWalt, Milwaukee, Makita) have networks of factory service centers along with with authorized independent service centers. They make what they sell. Rigid has no factory service centers- over the long haul I believe you'd be better off with the Bosch and less likely to be stuck with an "orphan".

[jason lambert]

Bosh is number one, had one for two years no complaints. Festool is just as good but has some nicer features if important to you like dust collection splinter guards, etc... I now have the festool, I wouldn't use anything else. Everything else is a compromise. Not that there bad but these are the best.

[Richard Dooling]

I have the Bosch 1590 and it a very good saw. I have never used the Festool saw but I am sure it is very good. The 1590, and the barrel grip 1591 include a clip on non-maring shoe and a multi position anti-splinter insert. I would buy this saw again. If you go through one of the shops that sell reconditioned tools it can be had for about $120.00. BTW this saw accepts Festool blades and the lateral blade support is very good.

[CPeter James]

Someone else makes a jig saw besides Bosch? I had my share of other brands before I tried a friend's Bosch and I knew right then that I had to have one. There are jig saws and then there are Boschs.

CPeter

[Jason White]

Barrel grip Bosch. Forget about Lowe's. Get the newest one from Tool Barn. Great saw, better than Festool and about $100 less.

Jason



With the Lowe's tool sale this week, I've been arguing in my head whether or not to buy the Bosch 1590EVSK. With discount, a $159.00 purchase becomes $135.15. Nice price, Nice saw...

But then, HD is having their 20% off select PT and their Ridgid R3121 is included in this, so a $139.00 saw becomes $111.20. This saw has received mostly good reviews and it has a lifetime warranty.

What's a woodbutcher supposed to do? What would you do??

Fred

[Lee Schierer]

You won't be disappointed with the Bosch. I have a Bosch 1584 AVS barrel grip and it is a great tool. With the Bosch T234X blades you can cut large radius curves as smooth as a table saw cut. I owned a B&D jig saw for years and it finally died. Bought the Bosch and wondered why I hadn't done it sooner.

[Dave Bureau]

is there a better bosch saw than the one lowes sells?

[Whit Whitfield]

I went to Home Depot with the Lowes ad and asked for the 15% plus 10% and got it. Final price was $122. I am happy
Whit

[Jack Gingerich]

I have several Festool tools, but the Trion is the only one I returned under their 30 day return policy. Cut not significantly better in the curves and I couldn't see where I was cutting with the blade set so far back for dust collection. Dust collection for a jig saw??.......not worth the trade offs IMO. Jack

[J. Z. Guest]

is there a better bosch saw than the one lowes sells?
You have to be more specific. They sell the 158X series and the 159X series. The 159X is the latest & greatest.

[Dave MacArthur]

Just bought the Bosch 1590EVS jigsaw at Lowes with the 15% sale and a $10 off coupon. No immediate need, just couldn't pass it up after reading all the great reviews here and in FWW.

[J. Z. Guest]

I just bought a 1591. (Full price from Amazon; wanted the barrel grip which the big box stores don't carry)

Went to look at them locally, but the local tool store that carries them wanted $210 for it. I'd pay $10-20 more to buy locally, but not $50.

I also picked up a reconditioned random orbit sander (the basic two-handed model) from them for only $75.

[matt dumney]

I have the B&D and I would recommend against it! Not the worst I've used but far from perfect.

I've used the Ridgid and for the price its a good buy.

[Jason White]

In my opinion, the answer is yes...

http://www.toolbarn.com/product/bosch/1591EVSK/




[0QUOTE=Dave Bureau;816293]is there a better bosch saw than the one lowes sells?[/QUOTE]

[Bob Slater]

The Bosch is the first saw I bought about 15 years ago. I asked it to do every job I had till I got more saws. It is my favourite saw.

[Eric Larsen]

Easier to change blades with the Bosch than on a band saw, and just as accurate for curvy/odd-angle stuff.

If a sales rep told me Bosch just made a special jigsaw with 12" resaw capacity, I'd probably believe him at first.

I have no experience with the Festool jigsaw, however.

[Marc Prudhomme]

picked up the freud at amazon on sale and free shipping for 60.00.Good saw great price..

[Dave Bureau]

I picked up the Bosch 1590 at lowes for 121 and change with the discounts.

[Bond Turner]

Bosch hands down. Can't compare to Ridgid. I got mine for free when I purchased a Bosch 12" mitre saw. Until then I had not used a jigsaw extensively, but this saw well engineered and easy to make accurate cuts.

Highly recommended.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

Bocsh. nothing else comes close in value and performance.

If on the other hand money is not an issue and dust collection is, you may want to look at Festertool

[Fred Haydon]

Thank you again Fellow Creekers!!

I stopped this afternoon and purchased the Bosch 1590. It was the recommended tool of the collective wisdom. Sorry, but Festool is way out of my price range. Haven't even unwrapped it as I have the two little ones while LOML is running some errands.

Cheers,
Fred

[Rick Moyer]

Once you use it you'll probably just throw away whatever you were using before. Of all the different power tools I've ever used, I think the Bosch jigsaw is the most significantly better tool than the rest of the options. Most tool types have many players that compare favorably to each other, but Bosch seems to be much better than the other mfgrs in jigsaws that I've used. (no Festool experience;)). btw, get the Bosch blades, too!

[Bruce Benjamin]

For anyone with the older Bosch jigsaws, (1587) if you like this one you will love the newer models, (1590, 1591). Much improved and it's not just a matter of the improved blade change. When most people refer to the Bosch as being the best they are referring to the later models.

Also, a dust collection port is available for it. http://bosch.cpotools.com/attachments/jig_saw_attachments/ja1005.html I bought one and it works pretty well. I find that it won't get all of the sawdust but it does get most of it. I've never used one but from what I've read the festool doesn't have perfect dust collection either. The Bosch has a replaceable anti-chip insert too.

I've also read that the festool blades will fit the Bosch. I don't know if this is true or not but I'm not sure what the advantage would be if it is. They may be better but I've been very happy with the Bosch blades. The other brands just don't last as long or cut as well in my experience. It would be good if anyone who has tried the festool blades in their Bosch 1590/1591 jigsaw would post their opinions. Are they better than the Bosch brand of blades? If so, how? If there's a way to improve the already stellar performance of the Bosch I'll try it.

Bruce

[glenn bradley]

I love my 1591 every time I use it. As someone pointed out when I got a little too enthusiastic about it; it is heavy for overhead work. If you primarily do furniture-type stuff and will be resting the tool on the material, I don't think you can beat it. If you are working under cabinets or in the attic, a lighter tool may be more appropriate.

[J. Z. Guest]

I had some scroll cuts to make on a small shelf project and I decided to wait the extra day just so I could make them with the new Bosch when it came.

What a saw! My old Black & Decker Professional (pre-DeWalt) is a nice saw too, but just not quite in the same league as this one.

In comparison, the Bosch vibrates less. The dust blower is just brilliant. My main complaint with my other jigsaws is that I have a hell of a time seeing the cut line when it is obscured with sawdust. It was funny, but I had become so accustomed to manually blowing the cut line clear, I caught myself yesterday night and had a good chuckle.

The other thing I didn't think was great on my old B&D Pro was the lateral blade support. When I would cut through thick hardwood and didn't go nice & slow, the blade would deflect and I would end up with non-square cut. (usually, I would drum-sand to the final line, but when gang-cutting curves in identical parts, this is not so easy, as the parts are no longer identical!)

One other surprise was that I was more apt to choose the right speed with this barrel grip saw, even though the speed can't be changed on the fly. With the trigger control B&D Pro, I tended to leave the trigger adjustment alone and just give it full throttle most of the time. With this electronically controlled Bosch, I'd start it up, look at the blade speed, decide the right speed for the cutting I do, dial it in, and go. I guess it amounts to bad habits I'd developed with the D-handle saws. However, it might have something to do with the fact that the Bosch's oscillation speed is controlled electronically it just has a better ability to maintain the speed I decide on. Personally, I think the 6.4 A motor is overkill. I've cut through 2" thick hardwood with my B&D Pro with no problems, and it is only 4.5 A. I think this is a ratings war kind of thing. (for example, the Milwaukee barrel grip models is "only" 6.2 A.)

If Bosch were to ask me for suggestions for improvements, I'd suggest making a model with the same features, but with a smaller, lighter, and less powerful motor and with an LED to illuminate the cut line. (The Makita barrel grip jigsaw has an LED but no dust blower. What's the point of lighting up a pile of sawdust on your cut line?) I remember reading from some folks here that they wound up buying the Festool because Festool didn't get overly distracted with ratings and decided instead to go for adequate power and lighter weight. (rather than the most possible power)

I've found that even after years of using the D-handle jigsaws, the barrel grip immediatly gave better control on scroll cuts.

I was a little upset that it didn't include the edge/circle guide or vacuum attachment, but it did include a couple of Bosch coarse wood blades and a metal blade, as well as the no mar shoe cover, anti-splinter insert, and a nice case. The case, I like not so much for protecting the tool from shocks, but for keeping the airborne dust out of it when it isn't in use.

I'll post some pix tonight.

[John Thompson]

Well Jeffery... the longer you have it the more you will appreciate it as a new world of tircks opens up. Like the Red Sea parting and you can finally see the "Promised Land" on the other side. :)

Enjoy what many of us have already discovered long ago...

Sarge..

[Randal Stevenson]

For anyone with the older Bosch jigsaws, (1587) if you like this one you will love the newer models, (1590, 1591). Much improved and it's not just a matter of the improved blade change. When most people refer to the Bosch as being the best they are referring to the later models.

Also, a dust collection port is available for it. http://bosch.cpotools.com/attachments/jig_saw_attachments/ja1005.html I bought one and it works pretty well. I find that it won't get all of the sawdust but it does get most of it. I've never used one but from what I've read the festool doesn't have perfect dust collection either. The Bosch has a replaceable anti-chip insert too.

I've also read that the festool blades will fit the Bosch. I don't know if this is true or not but I'm not sure what the advantage would be if it is. They may be better but I've been very happy with the Bosch blades. The other brands just don't last as long or cut as well in my experience. It would be good if anyone who has tried the festool blades in their Bosch 1590/1591 jigsaw would post their opinions. Are they better than the Bosch brand of blades? If so, how? If there's a way to improve the already stellar performance of the Bosch I'll try it.

Bruce

At one time, I believe there was a dust port for the 1587. But when I tried to find it, I emailed Bosch and asked them about it. Their reply, was to contact the manufacturer :confused::confused::confused::confused::confused: :confused: I thought that was WTH I did!:eek::eek::mad:

I picked up a NIB 1587 for some metalwork, locally for $85 (this was a while ago), so until I see a bargain on the 1591, so I can have one of each handle, I am going to wait.

As for the blades, try searching. I read about it, I believe close to two years ago (Festool blades in a Bosch)

[J. Z. Guest]

Here's the evidence. It makes me want to do more scrollwork.

[Dan Clark]

Thank you again Fellow Creekers!!

I stopped this afternoon and purchased the Bosch 1590. It was the recommended tool of the collective wisdom. Sorry, but Festool is way out of my price range. Haven't even unwrapped it as I have the two little ones while LOML is running some errands.

Cheers,
Fred

Fred,

I have a Festool Trion. Excellent jigsaw. The ONLY other jigsaw that I would consider is the Bosch 1590. Congrats! Excellent choice!

Dan.

[Jason White]

I have the same saw. Mine seems to get pretty hot after awhile. Do you notice a build-up of heat in the handle near the front?

Jason


I had some scroll cuts to make on a small shelf project and I decided to wait the extra day just so I could make them with the new Bosch when it came.

What a saw! My old Black & Decker Professional (pre-DeWalt) is a nice saw too, but just not quite in the same league as this one.

In comparison, the Bosch vibrates less. The dust blower is just brilliant. My main complaint with my other jigsaws is that I have a hell of a time seeing the cut line when it is obscured with sawdust. It was funny, but I had become so accustomed to manually blowing the cut line clear, I caught myself yesterday night and had a good chuckle.

The other thing I didn't think was great on my old B&D Pro was the lateral blade support. When I would cut through thick hardwood and didn't go nice & slow, the blade would deflect and I would end up with non-square cut. (usually, I would drum-sand to the final line, but when gang-cutting curves in identical parts, this is not so easy, as the parts are no longer identical!)

One other surprise was that I was more apt to choose the right speed with this barrel grip saw, even though the speed can't be changed on the fly. With the trigger control B&D Pro, I tended to leave the trigger adjustment alone and just give it full throttle most of the time. With this electronically controlled Bosch, I'd start it up, look at the blade speed, decide the right speed for the cutting I do, dial it in, and go. I guess it amounts to bad habits I'd developed with the D-handle saws. However, it might have something to do with the fact that the Bosch's oscillation speed is controlled electronically it just has a better ability to maintain the speed I decide on. Personally, I think the 6.4 A motor is overkill. I've cut through 2" thick hardwood with my B&D Pro with no problems, and it is only 4.5 A. I think this is a ratings war kind of thing. (for example, the Milwaukee barrel grip models is "only" 6.2 A.)

If Bosch were to ask me for suggestions for improvements, I'd suggest making a model with the same features, but with a smaller, lighter, and less powerful motor and with an LED to illuminate the cut line. (The Makita barrel grip jigsaw has an LED but no dust blower. What's the point of lighting up a pile of sawdust on your cut line?) I remember reading from some folks here that they wound up buying the Festool because Festool didn't get overly distracted with ratings and decided instead to go for adequate power and lighter weight. (rather than the most possible power)

I've found that even after years of using the D-handle jigsaws, the barrel grip immediatly gave better control on scroll cuts.

I was a little upset that it didn't include the edge/circle guide or vacuum attachment, but it did include a couple of Bosch coarse wood blades and a metal blade, as well as the no mar shoe cover, anti-splinter insert, and a nice case. The case, I like not so much for protecting the tool from shocks, but for keeping the airborne dust out of it when it isn't in use.

I'll post some pix tonight.

[J. Z. Guest]

The cuts I did took no longer than 30 seconds each. Even after that amount of time, I noticed some minor motor heat.

I'm not concerned about this. I'm sure it comes from having the grip area in intimate contact with the field windings.

As long as it isn't hot enough to burn you, don't worry about it. The plastic it is made from is fiberglass-reinforced polyamide and can handle a lot higher temps than you can, hehehe. (Those plastics are usually rated around 130°C for electrical applications)

It may also have to do with the routing of the motor fan to act as a dust blower...

[Bruce Elswick]

used it this weekend to trim some rough maple, freehand, to prep it for the jointer, the saw is perfect for this; the job went much faster than trying to do it on the tablesaw.

The front of the saw got pretty hot after trimming five 7' long boards.

Agree with everyone else about the DeWalt - I would be ashamed to try to sell it - it is a pos...

[Richard Dooling]

Bruce,

The Festool blades definitely fit the Bosch. I am not familiar enough with the two brands to recommend one over another.

[Richard Dooling]

I don't know at what speed you are running the saw, but I believe the fan runs at a speed that is proportional to the motor speed. Slow saw speed = slow fan speed = heat builup.

[J. Z. Guest]

I don't know at what speed you are running the saw, but I believe the fan runs at a speed that is proportional to the motor speed. Slow saw speed = slow fan speed = heat builup.
Well, the slow saw speed also means the motor is drawing less current and making less heat too, so that should be proportional as well. I'm sure it'll run hotter at higher speeds.

I believe the heat people are talking about from the 1591 is generated in the gearbox.

[Travis Gauger]

1591 all day long. About a month ago I posted the same question and decided to pull the trigger on the bosch. Love it. I find myself going to it quite a bit now. Some things that I would have done on the bandsaw are now getting done with the jig saw.

[Bruce Elasik]

Got my 1590 delivered yesterday from amazon for 135.15. Question is: Which blade do you recommend to cut my old craftsman jigsaw in half????