Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only for hobby
use.

Any recommendations?

Andy.



--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

I know you said not the most expensive, but this fab:

http://www.screwfix.com/app/sfd/cat/...81570&id=39071

I can't fault it in any way.

andy wrote:
Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only
for hobby use.

Any recommendations?

Andy.


http://tinyurl.com/llb2k


--
Sir Benjamin Middlethwaite

andy wrote:

Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

Blue Bosch, ideally barrel-bodied

Currently the lead model is the GST135, but you can usually get "last
years model" for a substantial discount. It's the same basic machine,
you just don't have quite so much power and cut capacity.

The "135" is the claimed max thickness in softwood. I use an older 70,
a 135 and a "millenium" GST2000 that's somewhere inbetween. Unless
you're near the limit you just can't tell them apart and it's the lack
of vibration you're buying here, not raw grunt.

andy wrote:
Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only
for hobby use.

Any recommendations?

Have a look in Wickes. Their 'Black' range is OK for DIY, their 'Grey' Pro
range is superb.


--
Dave
The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk
01634 717930
07850 597257

The Medway Handyman wrote:
andy wrote:

Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only
for hobby use.

Any recommendations?


Have a look in Wickes. Their 'Black' range is OK for DIY, their 'Grey' Pro
range is superb.

It is not quite that easy to call IME, the grey stuff is badged versions
of various makers kit (although generally the better quality stuff).
Some is very good (like their version of the Freud200E is ok - shame
they charge more for it than Freud!), some is just "ok". I don't know
who the OEM is for their jigsaws.

Having used both, I would say the Makita 4340 is on par with the blue
bosch jigsaws (universally acknowledged as first rate!), although better
value:

http://www.screwfix.com/app/sfd/cat/...84199&ts=82729

I have one, and can commend it for its speed, accuracy, smothness and
ballance. If you turn it on and place it on the table, it will simply
sit there without jumping or vibrating about at all!


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Bosch or Makita. I've got the Bosch GST 100, which is no longer available,
but go for a similar model. I know you said you didn't need a pro tool, but
the build quality, weight and stability of the Bosch Blue/Pro tools make it
worth the cash. The blades are also brilliant. I was amazed how the clean
cut blade for wood cut my kitchen worktop with absolutely no blemishes to
the surface whatsoever. BTW, I am just a DIYer.


"andy" wrote in message
...
Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only for
hobby use.

Any recommendations?

Andy.



--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

On 2006-08-30 19:03:46 +0100, "Piers James" said:

Bosch or Makita. I've got the Bosch GST 100, which is no longer
available, but go for a similar model. I know you said you didn't need
a pro tool, but the build quality, weight and stability of the Bosch
Blue/Pro tools make it worth the cash. The blades are also brilliant. I
was amazed how the clean cut blade for wood cut my kitchen worktop with
absolutely no blemishes to the surface whatsoever. BTW, I am just a
DIYer.


You don't need to demean yourself.

You're a DIYer - not *just* one. :-)

andy wrote:
Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only
for hobby use.

Are we all losing the plot here? The OP was asking for a jigsaw for hobby
use, not a top of the range professional model.

No point suggesting the Bosch/Makita stuff at £150 ish. No hobby user wants
to pay that for occasional use. The Wickes Grey jobby at under £50, made by
Kress in Germany with a 3 year warranty is an ideal choice. Unless you are
a power tool snob.


--
Dave
The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk
01634 717930
07850 597257

The Medway Handyman wrote:

Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only
for hobby use.


Are we all losing the plot here? The OP was asking for a jigsaw for hobby
use, not a top of the range professional model.

The difficulty here is the requirement for a "decent model" and being
fed up with "cheap" jigsaws. All the jigsaws I have used seem to fall
into two camps - let me call them "low" and "high" end for want of a
better name. Often the only difference between the 15 quid ones and the
50 quid ones is the feature list and the life expectancy. In use they
still feel and perform about the same. There seems to be little middle
ground.

No point suggesting the Bosch/Makita stuff at ï½£150 ish. No hobby user wants

Well the Makita is £114, there is also a Freud at about £95 usually.

to pay that for occasional use. The Wickes Grey jobby at under ï½£50, made by
Kress in Germany with a 3 year warranty is an ideal choice. Unless you are
a power tool snob.

I have not tried the wickes one and would be keen to do so given the
chance. Perhaps that geniunely is "middle ground" - it would be nice if
there were such a thing.

I can only describe the first time I used a "proper" jigsaw as a
revalation. I had read that there was an appreciable difference, but
without experiancing it, it was hard to understand what that meant. The
reality was, that it totally changed how I perceived what the tool was,
and what applications I felt it could be suitable for.

I have used some top of the range "consumer" models before (i.e. the £60
sort of ballpark) Black & Decker. They had more features (tool-less
blade change, blower, light, pendulum etc). But still felt and operated
like a low end tool. The base plate is still pressed steel (rather than
cast) and a bit flexible, the blade guide still allows the blade to
wander and slant, it still vibrates your hand and gives a rough cut. It
can't cut a dead straight line for love nor money or hack the end off a
8x2" in three seconds flat. In summary they share little in common with
either the Makita I have now, or the Bocsh GST2000 I have borrowed.
which are simply a class appart.


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Exactly as my experience. I regarded them as a tool to be avoided if
there was another way to do the job - until I tried a pro model.

In article ,
The Medway Handyman wrote:
Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only for
hobby use.

Are we all losing the plot here? The OP was asking for a jigsaw for
hobby use, not a top of the range professional model.

Trouble is hobby use may well still require accuracy, and that is
something the cheap end of jigsaws ain't good at.

I've had a Bosch PST 700 PAE for a number of years and it's been heavily
used. And I'm very pleased with it - although it was quite expensive at
the time. Recently the SDS blade changing mechanism failed - it has a sort
of ratchet clutch to prevent overtightening. The replacement part cost
1.50 from my local agent.

--
*Don't squat with your spurs on *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 20:38:02 +0100, "andy" wrote:

Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only for hobby
use.

Any recommendations?

Andy.

Not one I own myself:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/src/froogle/recno/11/product-Skil-4585-Jigsaw-377866.htm

Whatever you get, check how much play and give there is in the blade
holder and support roller.

If it's about the same as your current one, send it back, as it
probably won't cut better.

cheers,
Pete.

the point is that most of us have had a "cheaper" (£50) saw and weren't
happy. Moreover, like one of the other posters, I was gobsmacked the first
time I used my Dad's Makita at good it was to use etc etc. It's worth the
extra outlay going for a pro model.


"The Medway Handyman" wrote in message
. uk...
andy wrote:
Hi, I'm fed up with my cheap jigsaw & would like to buy a decent one.

I don't need a top of the range professional model since it's only
for hobby use.

Are we all losing the plot here? The OP was asking for a jigsaw for hobby
use, not a top of the range professional model.

No point suggesting the Bosch/Makita stuff at £150 ish. No hobby user
wants to pay that for occasional use. The Wickes Grey jobby at under £50,
made by Kress in Germany with a 3 year warranty is an ideal choice.
Unless you are a power tool snob.


--
Dave
The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk
01634 717930
07850 597257

The Medway Handyman wrote:

Are we all losing the plot here?

Not for jigsaws. There's enough of a difference to matter.

The OP was asking for a jigsaw for hobby
use, not a top of the range professional model.

If someone's paying me, I'll put up with anything I have to.
If I'm doing it for fun, I want it to be fun or there's no point in
doing it.