I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around my
bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty ancient B&D
saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade might be to A)
minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk of scorching the
maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to start, which will
keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I can use a moderately
wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam" ground blade on softer
wood, but I have no idea what it will think of the maple. The saw uses
the the old style blades with a hole, not thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Doug White

"Doug White" wrote in message
...
I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around my
bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty ancient B&D
saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade might be to A)
minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk of scorching the
maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to start, which will
keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I can use a moderately
wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam" ground blade on softer
wood, but I have no idea what it will think of the maple. The saw uses
the the old style blades with a hole, not thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Doug White


Get a Bosch. {:-)

Max ( has two)

"Doug White" wrote:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets
into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.
snip

As a point of reference, I have a Bosch 1587 saber saw BUT it would
not be my tool of choice for this task.

I would make a template from 1/4" ply, grab my handy dandy plunge
router equipped with a guide bushing and a 1/2" pattern bit, then go
to work.

If I were to use a saber saw, it would be to cut a hole leaving about
1/2" of material for router clean up.

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

Lew

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in news:4b74ae7d$0$24273
:


"Doug White" wrote:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets
into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.
snip

As a point of reference, I have a Bosch 1587 saber saw BUT it would
not be my tool of choice for this task.

I would make a template from 1/4" ply, grab my handy dandy plunge
router equipped with a guide bushing and a 1/2" pattern bit, then go
to work.

If I were to use a saber saw, it would be to cut a hole leaving about
1/2" of material for router clean up.

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

I'm actually planning on cleaning up the hole with my router & a
template, but that a lot of hardwood to go through with a router to cut
out the hole to begin with.

I've been looking into the new saw option. Unfortunately, the last time
Fine Woodworking did a thorough comparison was issue #126, which I figure
was about 6 years ago. Even if I still had that issue, it's seriously
out of date.

Bosch seems to be popular, and they have some new "clean" blades that are
supposed to cut really well. The price tag is also impressive, although
the long weekend might produce some good sales.

Doug White

Doug White wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in news:4b74ae7d$0$24273
:


"Doug White" wrote:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets
into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.
snip

As a point of reference, I have a Bosch 1587 saber saw BUT it would
not be my tool of choice for this task.

I would make a template from 1/4" ply, grab my handy dandy plunge
router equipped with a guide bushing and a 1/2" pattern bit, then go
to work.

If I were to use a saber saw, it would be to cut a hole leaving about
1/2" of material for router clean up.

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

I'm actually planning on cleaning up the hole with my router & a
template, but that a lot of hardwood to go through with a router to
cut out the hole to begin with.

I've been looking into the new saw option. Unfortunately, the last
time Fine Woodworking did a thorough comparison was issue #126, which
I figure was about 6 years ago. Even if I still had that issue, it's
seriously out of date.

Bosch seems to be popular, and they have some new "clean" blades that
are supposed to cut really well. The price tag is also impressive,
although the long weekend might produce some good sales.

Bosch has had clean cut blades for as long as I can remember (like, going
back 30 years) that make a remarkably smooth cut. Also others that do rapid
rough cuts and others that are specialized in various ways.

Now, if you read that article in Fine Woodworking and then take a look at a
Bosch 1590 you'll find that it is pretty much what their ideal design would
be. Amazon has them in stock for under 150 bucks, which is the same
ballpark as Milwaukee,
DeWalt, and other high quality jigsaws.

In power tools there's no other in which the difference between cheap and
good is so radical as in jigsaws--if it's a tool you use regularly you'll be
very happy that you spent the money.

"J. Clarke" wrote in message
...
Doug White wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in news:4b74ae7d$0$24273
:


"Doug White" wrote:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets
into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.
snip

As a point of reference, I have a Bosch 1587 saber saw BUT it would
not be my tool of choice for this task.

I would make a template from 1/4" ply, grab my handy dandy plunge
router equipped with a guide bushing and a 1/2" pattern bit, then go
to work.

If I were to use a saber saw, it would be to cut a hole leaving about
1/2" of material for router clean up.

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

I'm actually planning on cleaning up the hole with my router & a
template, but that a lot of hardwood to go through with a router to
cut out the hole to begin with.

I've been looking into the new saw option. Unfortunately, the last
time Fine Woodworking did a thorough comparison was issue #126, which
I figure was about 6 years ago. Even if I still had that issue, it's
seriously out of date.

Bosch seems to be popular, and they have some new "clean" blades that
are supposed to cut really well. The price tag is also impressive,
although the long weekend might produce some good sales.

Bosch has had clean cut blades for as long as I can remember (like, going
back 30 years) that make a remarkably smooth cut. Also others that do
rapid
rough cuts and others that are specialized in various ways.

Now, if you read that article in Fine Woodworking and then take a look at
a
Bosch 1590 you'll find that it is pretty much what their ideal design
would
be. Amazon has them in stock for under 150 bucks, which is the same
ballpark as Milwaukee,
DeWalt, and other high quality jigsaws.

In power tools there's no other in which the difference between cheap and
good is so radical as in jigsaws--if it's a tool you use regularly you'll
be
very happy that you spent the money.

I have the 1584 and a 1591 and I much prefer the older 1584.

Max

On 02/11/2010 09:59 PM, Max wrote:

I have the 1584 and a 1591 and I much prefer the older 1584.

This statement would be a lot more useful to others if you gave some
reasons for the preference.

Chris

"J. Clarke" wrote in
:

Doug White wrote:
"Lew Hodgett" wrote in news:4b74ae7d$0$24273
:


"Doug White" wrote:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5"
thick "butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular
pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.
snip

As a point of reference, I have a Bosch 1587 saber saw BUT it would
not be my tool of choice for this task.

I would make a template from 1/4" ply, grab my handy dandy plunge
router equipped with a guide bushing and a 1/2" pattern bit, then go
to work.

If I were to use a saber saw, it would be to cut a hole leaving
about 1/2" of material for router clean up.

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

I'm actually planning on cleaning up the hole with my router & a
template, but that a lot of hardwood to go through with a router to
cut out the hole to begin with.

I've been looking into the new saw option. Unfortunately, the last
time Fine Woodworking did a thorough comparison was issue #126, which
I figure was about 6 years ago. Even if I still had that issue, it's
seriously out of date.

Bosch seems to be popular, and they have some new "clean" blades that
are supposed to cut really well. The price tag is also impressive,
although the long weekend might produce some good sales.

Bosch has had clean cut blades for as long as I can remember (like,
going back 30 years) that make a remarkably smooth cut. Also others
that do rapid rough cuts and others that are specialized in various
ways.

Now, if you read that article in Fine Woodworking and then take a look
at a Bosch 1590 you'll find that it is pretty much what their ideal
design would be. Amazon has them in stock for under 150 bucks, which
is the same ballpark as Milwaukee,
DeWalt, and other high quality jigsaws.

In power tools there's no other in which the difference between cheap
and good is so radical as in jigsaws--if it's a tool you use regularly
you'll be very happy that you spent the money.

I looked into buying a 1590 locally (Boston area), and NOBODY has them in
stock. I finally caved & ordered one through Amazon. Ordinarily I
probably would have tried to make due with my old one, but all of the
fancy newer blades (which are supposed to be a big improvement) are in
the Bosch T style mount. I've looked in the local hardware stores, and
the choices for the old style blades with a hole are mostly junk.

As I get older, the vibration from the B&D also gets more wearing. The
Bosch is supposed to be super smooth. It's odd, because I usually find a
lot of mixed opinions when I go tool shopping. The Bosch has the most
unanimous praise of any tool I think I've ever seen.

Thanks!

Doug White

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 15:46:14 +0000, Doug White wrote:

As I get older, the vibration from the B&D also gets more wearing. The
Bosch is supposed to be super smooth. It's odd, because I usually find
a lot of mixed opinions when I go tool shopping. The Bosch has the most
unanimous praise of any tool I think I've ever seen.

All I can say is that I replaced a B&D with a Bosch several years ago and
I couldn't believe the difference. They also make a blade with variable
tooth pitch (I can't recall the name) that does a remarkably clean cut
for its aggressiveness.

--
Intelligence is an experiment that failed - G. B. Shaw

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

Lew

ditto... the b+d will never cut 1.5 inches perpendicular - the bottom
of the cut will be wavy.

bosch for saw and blade is the way to go.

shelly

wrote in message
...

BTW, great excuse to buy a real saber saw.

Have fun.

Lew

ditto... the b+d will never cut 1.5 inches perpendicular - the
bottom
of the cut will be wavy.

bosch for saw and blade is the way to go.

shelly

I have the 18v DeWalt jigsaw and use the Bosch blades. It's one
fine combination.

--
Nonny
When we talk to God, we're praying,
but when God talks to us,
we're schizophrenic.
What's the deal?

On Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:07:15 GMT, Doug White wrote:

I am very happy with my $20 recip saw from good ol' Harbor freight..
Put a decent blade in it, like a dewalt or something, and give your jig saw a
break.. YMWV

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around my
bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty ancient B&D
saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade might be to A)
minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk of scorching the
maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to start, which will
keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I can use a moderately
wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam" ground blade on softer
wood, but I have no idea what it will think of the maple. The saw uses
the the old style blades with a hole, not thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Doug White


mac

Please remove splinters before emailing

Doug White wrote:
I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into
one edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around
my bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty
ancient B&D saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade
might be to A) minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk
of scorching the maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners
to start, which will keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way
I can use a moderately wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam"
ground blade on softer wood, but I have no idea what it will think of
the maple. The saw uses the the old style blades with a hole, not
thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Doug White

i'd use my tripod drill with a forstner bit.

http://glasscuttingwheels.com/tripod-glass-drill.html

i suppose you don't have a tripod drill. most glass shops have one. they'd
probably drill this out for a few dollars for you.

regards,
charlie
http://glassartists.com/ChaniArts

Doug White writes:
I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around my
bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty ancient B&D
saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade might be to A)
minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk of scorching the
maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to start, which will
keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I can use a moderately
wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam" ground blade on softer
wood, but I have no idea what it will think of the maple. The saw uses
the the old style blades with a hole, not thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

I'd handsaw the end crosscuts, then handsaw (or sabersaw) a series
of crosscuts between them and chisel out the waste.

scott

On Feb 11, 5:07*pm, Doug White wrote:
I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. *I need to cut two irregular pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.

Treat it like a mortise; you can auger near the edges of the cutout,
use a
keyhole saw to connect the dots, then finish with a chisel. Power
tools
are OK, but sharp chisels make big chips and work fast.

Try before buying...most rental tool places carry the Bosch, which
is the king of jig saws in my opinion.

Doug White wrote:
I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into one
edge of the bench to mount equipment.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Doug White wrote in
:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into
one edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around
my bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty
ancient B&D saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade
might be to A) minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk
of scorching the maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to
start, which will keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I
can use a moderately wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam"
ground blade on softer wood, but I have no idea what it will think of
the maple. The saw uses the the old style blades with a hole, not
thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Well, I _finally_ got time to finish this job. I bought a new Bosch saw,
and got some of the new "clean" blades to go with it. I used the biggest
blade I had for extra rigidity.

The results were very good, but not exactly perfect. Crosscutting was a
dream. Nice stright cuts, no blade wander, and a smooth, accurate,
vertical cut.

Ripping was a different story. The blade bogged down a LOT. The sawdust
blowing on my left hand (which was guiding the front of the saw) was HOT,
and dark brown. I tried varying the speed & pressure, but never came up
with a combination that cut especially well. The resulting cut was smooth
& accurate, except that the blade flexed in the cut (fortunately, _into_
the material to be removed) so that the cut wasn't vertical. Despite the
hot sawdust, the cut was not particularly burned. Maybe "lightly toasted"
is a better description. I'm going to clean it up with a router &
template, so it's no big deal.

All in all, the new saw is quite a success. Ripping 1.5" hard maple is
definitely a chore, even for this puppy. I can't imagine what it would
have been like trying to use my old Black & Decker saw with conventional
blades. I'd probably still be at it.

Thanks for all the suggestions & info.

Doug White

"Doug White" wrote in message
. ..
Doug White wrote in
:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into
one edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around
my bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty
ancient B&D saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade
might be to A) minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk
of scorching the maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to
start, which will keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I
can use a moderately wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam"
ground blade on softer wood, but I have no idea what it will think of
the maple. The saw uses the the old style blades with a hole, not
thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Well, I _finally_ got time to finish this job. I bought a new Bosch saw,
and got some of the new "clean" blades to go with it. I used the biggest
blade I had for extra rigidity.

The results were very good, but not exactly perfect. Crosscutting was a
dream. Nice stright cuts, no blade wander, and a smooth, accurate,
vertical cut.

Ripping was a different story. The blade bogged down a LOT. The sawdust
blowing on my left hand (which was guiding the front of the saw) was HOT,
and dark brown. I tried varying the speed & pressure, but never came up
with a combination that cut especially well. The resulting cut was smooth
& accurate, except that the blade flexed in the cut (fortunately, _into_
the material to be removed) so that the cut wasn't vertical. Despite the
hot sawdust, the cut was not particularly burned. Maybe "lightly toasted"
is a better description. I'm going to clean it up with a router &
template, so it's no big deal.

All in all, the new saw is quite a success. Ripping 1.5" hard maple is
definitely a chore, even for this puppy. I can't imagine what it would
have been like trying to use my old Black & Decker saw with conventional
blades. I'd probably still be at it.

Two thoughts.

That is a pretty small saw for cutting a maple bench top. So, the saw did
pretty good. Even if it was difficult on the rip cuts.

And now that you got that job out of the way, you got a great little saw for
a hundred other jobs! And those cuts will propbbly be much easier.

I haven't broke down and bought that saw yet. But I do make sure I have a
sharp blade in the saw for anything I do.

On Fri, 09 Apr 2010 20:42:28 GMT, the infamous Doug White
scrawled the following:

Doug White wrote in
0:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets into
one edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around
my bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty
ancient B&D saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade
might be to A) minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the risk
of scorching the maple. I was planning on drilling out the corners to
start, which will keep most of the cuts fairly straight. That way I
can use a moderately wide blade. I've had good luck with a "fleam"
ground blade on softer wood, but I have no idea what it will think of
the maple. The saw uses the the old style blades with a hole, not
thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper new
saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Well, I _finally_ got time to finish this job. I bought a new Bosch saw,
and got some of the new "clean" blades to go with it. I used the biggest
blade I had for extra rigidity.

The results were very good, but not exactly perfect. Crosscutting was a
dream. Nice stright cuts, no blade wander, and a smooth, accurate,
vertical cut.

Ripping was a different story. The blade bogged down a LOT. The sawdust

Were you using a RIP blade? If not, it'll cut very slowly and you'll
get hot, brown sawdust on you. Oh, sometimes it smokes, too.

--
Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace
will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will
blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy,
while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.
-- John Muir

Larry Jaques wrote in
:

On Fri, 09 Apr 2010 20:42:28 GMT, the infamous Doug White
scrawled the following:

Doug White wrote in
. 50:

I'm building a special work bench, using one of Grizzly's 1.5" thick
"butcher block" bench tops. I need to cut two irregular pockets
into one edge of the bench to mount equipment.

The top is 25" x 48", and way too big (and heavy) to manuever around
my bandsaw. I'm assuming the best approach is to use my trusty
ancient B&D saber saw. I'm wondering which the best sort of blade
might be to A) minimize the load on the saw, and B) minimize the
risk of scorching the maple. I was planning on drilling out the
corners to start, which will keep most of the cuts fairly straight.
That way I can use a moderately wide blade. I've had good luck with
a "fleam" ground blade on softer wood, but I have no idea what it
will think of the maple. The saw uses the the old style blades with
a hole, not thenewer Bosch T style.

Alternatively, should I use this as an excuse to buy a super-duper
new saber saw? If so, what should I look for?

Any ideas, warnings or suggestions would be appreciated.

Well, I _finally_ got time to finish this job. I bought a new Bosch
saw, and got some of the new "clean" blades to go with it. I used the
biggest blade I had for extra rigidity.

The results were very good, but not exactly perfect. Crosscutting was
a dream. Nice stright cuts, no blade wander, and a smooth, accurate,
vertical cut.

Ripping was a different story. The blade bogged down a LOT. The
sawdust

Were you using a RIP blade? If not, it'll cut very slowly and you'll
get hot, brown sawdust on you. Oh, sometimes it smokes, too.

That sounds about right. I was cutting out a couple rectangular indents
in one edge of the bench top. I hadn't expected to have to swap blades
back & forth in the middle of things, so I didn't use a rip blade.
Sounds like I should pick up a couple.

Doug White

On Sat, 10 Apr 2010 20:29:45 GMT, the infamous Doug White
scrawled the following:

Larry Jaques wrote in
:
Were you using a RIP blade? If not, it'll cut very slowly and you'll
get hot, brown sawdust on you. Oh, sometimes it smokes, too.

That sounds about right. I was cutting out a couple rectangular indents
in one edge of the bench top. I hadn't expected to have to swap blades
back & forth in the middle of things, so I didn't use a rip blade.
Sounds like I should pick up a couple.

It makes all the difference in the world.

--
Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace
will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will
blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy,
while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.
-- John Muir