Cheap or Expensive Jigsaw - does it matter?

[Tapper]

Buy the best saw from bosch, and the best blades. You won't regret it.

Here's your answer - it only hurts once.

Doug

[mike4244]

One of the first tools I bought about 60 years ago was a variable-speed Craftsman jigsaw, which is still in use.  This is a BIG sucker with a pivoting blade mechanism that can be locked in the forward direction or allowed to pivot depending on which sideways pressure you apply or by turning a knob on top.  It took a while to get the hang of the pivot idea, but the key is to go SLOW.  As above, wander or warp when cutting thicker material is a problem for any thin blade fixed on only one end.  Some hollow-ground blades I found somewhere do help.

 BTW, I have an Olson fret-style coping saw with 12" throat that I use for really intricate cuts and curves.

I have the same Craftsman saw. This saw can flush cut too. Also have the barrel Bosch. I used to do a lot of crown molding , the Bosch with a 14 tpi excels coping moldings.

[iclark]

If you are wanting to do the sort of things in the OP's vid, you might want to consider getting a scroll saw rather than a jigsaw.

Last time I looked, a decent used scroll saw can be had for about the same $$ as a high-end jigsaw.

[ajkoontz]

As others have said, the saw make a big difference. I started with the Bosch barrel grip. It's a great saw, but I wasn't 100% thrilled with the results (most likely user error). Then I got a bandsaw and hardly use my jigsaw after that. Mostly for carpentry/ DIY type projects. Then I got the DeWalt 20V top handle jigsaw as part of a package deal and I think I like it more than the Bosch. Point I'm trying to make since there are so many Bosch replies that your mileage may vary. I'm not the only one who prefers a top handle and there are other good brands besides the Bosch. Although again, Bosch makes great saw. Also, almost any bandsaw would be a huge upgrade over any jigsaw if budget/ space allows it.

[Paladin]

I have had a jigsaw for 20 years. Tried to use it once or twice, could never cut straight with it. Tired with different blades, even expensive Bosch blades, still unable to cut well with it. The problem is: even if I use a guide, the blade starts to live its on life and tends to wander, and the result is: it will start pulling the saw from the guide or towards the guide and make the saw get stuck. Even if I don't push hard.

My saw is a cheap saw, the own brand of a local department store. For a long time I thought it is the price of my saw that is the source of problems, so I planned once I have enough money I will buy a pro one to try that.

Recently it happened I needed a jigsaw for a specific task, so started experimenting with them and collecting info. In this project I need to cut curves (some are quite small) and straight lines. BY experimenting, in the end I managed to find a method that helps me to cut acceptable straight lines and larger curves. It is a bit time consuming but works: I sit in front of the saw, pulling it towards myself, and I push a little, then loosen, push and loosen. On every push I advance about 1/25". So this is very slow, but with this method I can cut along the line, and I can do so regardless of the quality or purpose of the blade. But small curves are still a problem.

So I decided to go and check the expensive jigsaws in a store. I observed them, and I found they have similar mechanism like my cheap jigsaw. Actually, apart from the higher price, some of them doesn't really look more advanced than mine. For example the Black&Decker seems to be very similar, yet it's much more expensive. So this raised the question for me: will I be able to work better with the expensive ones at all?

The other problem is that I purchased some of those tinier blandes that are for cutting curves. I tried cutting small curves with them, and it doesn't work. The saw cannot maintain the curve, I am unable to follow the line, the saw is staying away from the curve, and cuts a larger curve every time no matter how hard I push towards the curve. And most of the time if I push hard to make it follow the curve it starts burning the wood. Considering more expensive jigsaws have similar mechanism like mine, I wonder if buying a more expensive one will help this at all? I already have Bosch blades, so I wonder if a saw with a similar mechanism will perform better, if I already have the good blades?

I had been thinking okay, maybe these saws cannot cut small curves at all, but then I found this video. Check it from 9:42:

Is your current saw "orbital"? If so, try cutting with the orbital action OFF.



I need to cut the exact same curves, and as you see he is cutting perfectly straight without a guide and can cut the small curves like charm. My saw is struggling with larger curves already, even with Bosch blades. 

So what's the trick here? Is it only that he has a Dewalt jigsaw, or it is more than that? Can buying a pro jigsaw solve all these problems at once or it is more complicated that that?

[Bencuri]

Thanks for the recommendations! There is one thing to consider though: Scroll Saw -> yes, I considered this option, but notice that in the video I linked the guy is cutting the curves on a box, I also have a box already and you cannot fit them under a scroll saw guide. That would only be possible if I cut the wood piece before gluing onto a box. That also has advantages but disadvantages as well. However, at the moment I found the box option would be easier to deal with, so scroll saws are not an option in this specific case. Bandsaws may be, because I guess there are ones with high fitted blade guide, but those are not a possibility for me due to the high price. So I cannot think of anything else than a jigsaw. Or, I could cut it with a router, but the problem is I didn't find groove cutting bits that are 0.04" wide but 3/4" long.

[Derek Cohen]

For 20 years I used a Makita - very solid, metal casing. Bloody noisy. No dust control. Any pressure on the blade and the cut would cant to one side. Never managed a square kerf. Really a terrible jigsaw.



About 18 months ago I bought a Festool Trion. There is absolutely no comparison. Different universe. Excellent dust control, ZCI for tearout-free cuts, and a square kerf.





Regards from Perth

Derek

[JDuke]

About 20 years ago I had a second hand cheap craftsman jig saw.
When I bought a dewalt I realized just how crappy the craftsman really was.

I almost felt bad when I dropped it off at the Salvation Army.
The guy asked if it worked and I had to laugh and be careful to qualify my answer to “as well as it ever did”

I’m still a cheap skate when it comes to tools and find that over my lifetime I have wasted lots of money upgrading from crap to decent and then again to top quality.

[MarkSingleton]

Which leads to the old adage: " Buy once, Cry once."


My jig saw is a Corded Bosch. So old that it requires a long screwdriver to put the blades in and out.
Came in a very nice metal case ( with said screwdriver ) labeled as coming from "Tool Crib of the North."
Long defunct name for sure.

An ex gf gave me that saw many years ago. She bought it at Harbor Freight, of all places, when they
first opened a store here in town. She had gone in and asked the manager about the best saws they
had. Whoever he was, he did a good thing selling it to her.

It has never let me down.

[Kudzu]

Same story here.  Cheap saw. Hated it. Crappy cuts.

Starting building kayak kits and while I could cut most if on the bandsaw I had to have a jig saw for some.  Finally broke down and bought a good one (Bosch) and the difference was night and day. So to agree with all the others, yes there is a big difference.

BUT there is not substitute for experience either. I have cut miles with a jig saw and can make cuts many people say you can't. I messed up a lot learning that most of my problems were operator error too.  

Like when cutting curves and the blade bends leaving you with an angled cut.  That is 99% operator error. You are sliding the saw and not pivoting/turning it on the blades axis. I think that barrel grips help make that a more natural motion. Never tried one but it makes sense.