Thread: Which jigsaw?

Could not give advice on the JS to buy: but I must ask about the thichness if the timber. I tried to use a JS to cut 35mm origon and found the blade would flex to much in that depth. That is the blade would not cut at 90 degrees to the base plate although I think some of the problem may have been the blade following the grain of the timber.

Someone who knows more than me may add to it.

Cheers

cutting a jarrah piece with a jigsaw??? Unless it's a decent jigsaw, this just won't work. Is there any chance that using a router may work better for you?

Of course I'm assuming the piece of jarrah is pretty thick

what do the jigsaw specs say on the maximum cutting depth for hardwood?

I've got a ryobi jigsaw that I've had for approx 4 years. Works well on thin mdf/ply and softwood up to 25 mm thick. Anything thicker, forget it

cheers
Wendy

The piece of jarrah is just under 50mm thick.

Many of those jigsaws claim a 135mm cut, but I have no experience against which to judge this claim.

heck! put it this way Ron, there's no way I'd even try to cut 50mm jarrah with >my< jigsaw. I would, however, be totally prepared to cut the curve with my router and a jig for guidance. but that's just me

for eaxample, I once tried to cut 40 mm thick silver ash with the jigsaw - one beautiful piece of timber absolutely ruined


Other jigsaws may be more than capable though.

cheers
Wendy

Ron,

Wendy has the right idea!!!!

I had a Makita jigsaw that would cut 100mm + and it was used mpostly to cut the tops of 100x100 treated pine posts.

Now, while it would do this with a very aggressive blade fitted, it ended up smashing the gearbox and snapping the shaft. An expensive fix I can tell you, it wont be doing that sort of work again.

I wouldnt even attempt to cut 50mm jarrah with a jigsaw, you're just asking for problems.

Save your money and use the router, you'll end up with a much better job of it.

Hope this helps,

Ross.

My Metabo jigsaw would cut that no worries, the secret to getting good cuts is letting the machine do the cutting at its own pace and most importantly using the correct blade for the job

My makita (older model, not made any more) with the appropriate blade would cut it no problems. Looking at the machines on the link, I'd say that any of the $300 and upwards machines should handle it. If you did it all day. every day it would strain the gearbox, but for occasional use it would be fine. Make sure the saw has an orbital/pendulum action and use it at the maximum setting.

Mick

Right then, another tool added to my list - thanks Mick and DJ. (cuz I just know I'll want to try to cut 40mm timber with a jigsaw)

cheers
Wendy

DJ, is it easy to get a range of blades for the Metabo?

Originally Posted by DJ's Timber

My Metabo jigsaw would cut that no worries, the secret to getting good cuts is letting the machine do the cutting at its own pace and most importantly using the correct blade for the job

. I had (sob) the same jigsaw and I'd back it easily. I'd use it in a second if I could find which "friend" it's with...

Originally Posted by Ron Dunn

DJ, is it easy to get a range of blades for the Metabo?

Never had a problem sourcing blades, just about every tool shop I've been in had stock to fit it, in fact I'm sure that even Bunnings carried blades for it too, been awhile since I had to get any as I normally buy 20 or 40 at a time, which reminds me, I better get another lot soon as I'm down to my last 2 I think

Hi Ron,

I asked a similar question about using a jigsaw to cut australian hardwoods. The answer was yes you could do it but using the correct combination of blades & speed.

I bought a Makita 4329 a few months ago and am very pleased. It has adjustable pendulum action making cutting much easier, cuts 90 deg but with thicker timber you need to be more careful. I used to use my father's old skil jigsaw, which gave a rough finish and was hard to control, but this makita is pure heaven. I figured I needed a good quality tool but it's not a thing I will use constantly, so couldn't just more than $150 or so.

Regards,

Tom

Originally Posted by Ron Dunn

I want to cut a long curve on a piece of jarrah too big and heavy to manoeuvre on my bandsaw (a little Inca 340). I'm therefore thinking about a jigsaw.

US forums seem to adore the Bosch 1591, but that isn't sold in Australia.

From the following list, which saw would you recommend based on your experience, or more importantly, which would you never buy again?

http://justtools.com.au/category19_1.htm

Ron

I'm tending to agree with those who say the $300+ jig saws plus the right blade (which might cost $5 to $10 each) plus care will be able to do it. Care includes clamping the piece to a solid bench to prevent vibration.

But look again at your band saw.
why can't you use it?
do you have the right blade (width and teeth per inch) for the task

could be much cheaper than buying a decent jig saw



ian

Thank you for the suggestions, everyone.

Ian, my bandsaw has a table which is roughly 30cm square. It is great for furniture work, but not particularly useful for architectural woodworking.

I have a piece of jarrah which measures 5cm thick by 40cm wide by 200cm long. I intend to cut an arc along the front then (after finishing) invisibly mount it to make a feature shelf in my house.

The timber is too wide to sit on the table at the ends of the cut, and the table is too small to support the length of the stock. Because I'm cutting an arc, using a normal roller or rolling-ball stand isn't a practical solution. The timber is also damned heavy, and I'm nervous about my ability to maintain a neat cut whilst holding the weight.

I thought about making a lot of tangential cuts with a guide-rail circular saw, but that is even more expensive than buying a jig saw.

Now that I've better explained the problem, do better solutions come to mind?