What is the best jig saw?

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fishmandm

New User
Dwanye
Looking to purchase a jig saw and would like to know which one you would recommend.
Thanks for any advice.
 

Canuck

Wayne
Corporate Member
I have been using the Bosch 7amp barrel grip saw (Model 1591 I think)for about 5 years now without any issues. Have used it on both wood and metal and invariably get good clean cuts. (For wood cutting blades, check out the Bosch xtra clean blades.)

It is a solidly built saw albeit maybe a little heavy compared to inexpensive brands.

Wayne
 

KenOfCary

Ken
Staff member
Corporate Member
I kinda like my Festool, but others with more experience have already spoken. And Festool is one of those things you either appreciate the engineering or balk at the cost.
 

Raymond

Raymond
Staff member
Corporate Member
Bosch JS572E - I like the top handle, left or right hand lock on handle, tool-less blade change and the two LED lights.
 

red

Papa Red
Red
Senior User
I have an old DeWalt that I purchased new back around 1993 and it works as good today as it did the day I bought it and it has done a ton of work. I would buy DeWalt again.

Red
 

Lowlander

New User
Chris
I have the barrel grip festool and love it. If the Bosch barrel grip was next to it during the time of purchase I would have a Bosch barrel grip instead and would also love it.
 

tarheelz

Dave
Corporate Member
I have a cheap Skil jig saw I bought in '95.

I'm guessing the range from worst to best jig saw is not very wide. Jig saw has a pretty simple job and they all hold pretty much use the same blades.
 
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junquecol

Bruce
Senior User
I'm in the Bosch camp also. Own three of the 1587's. Paid less than $40 on average for them. Bought from pawn shop, yard sale, CL.
 

Rick M

New User
Rick
Bosch invented the jig saw, or more accurately I believe they bought the company and hired the man who did. I'm sure there are other companies that make good jigsaws but you'll never go wrong with a Bosch jigsaw.
 

Gotcha6

Dennis
Staff member
Corporate Member
Along with the saw itself you should also be looking at the blades. For general wood cutting and such, a standard blade will do fine, but you'll get what you pay for. For more finished work and cutting laminate, get a Bosch downstroke blade. It eliminates chip out and keeps the dust off your cut line better.
 

DWSmith

New User
David
A Bosch engineer working in Switzerland invented the jig saw when he took his wife's sewing machine and attached a blade to it in 1947. (That is the official story from the Bosch corporate offices in Germany. I believe there is a photo in Germany.) All the other jig saws on the market are just copies of the original. As for blades, Bosch makes a lot of the other brands under their logos and the easiest way to tell who made them is to look at the teeth. All the Bosch jig saw blades had individually ground teeth and if you line them up side-by-side all the teeth will be in the exact same spot. Cheaper stamped blades will have teeth that don't line up. The blade that cuts on the down stroke was designed specifically for the laminate industry. It allows for a line to be made on the laminate and a cut can be made from the top surface without chipping out the top surface. A tough blade to control and takes practice.

The Bosch jig saw I purchased in 1991 is still working well and has a lot more life in it.
 

bob vaughan

Bob Vaughan
Senior User
The points about blades should be taken seriously. It is the teeth on the blade that actually does the cutting. I remember back in the '80s when I first got a Bosch 1581 I was amazed at the price of the good blades Bosch offered. Three times the price of regular blades and a proprietary end was daunting at first glance. Turned out that at three times the price, the blade cut ten times as good as others I had used (the saw's orbital action had no small part in that comparison). I've had other saws before and after getting the Bosch and the only one that came close was the now discontinued Porter Cable 548. Saws with a straight up and down action weren't even close and those saws with an orbital action were still not as good.

A portable circular saw against a clamped straightedge will cut nice and straight, but the Bosch will cut faster. For crosscutting and defecting boards on sawhorses, it can't be beat. It will crosscut 2" rough hardwoods easily.
 
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