Jigsaw or reciprocating saw

9 years ago

I have a manual saw and when I need to cut a wooden board I put it against the stairs or something else rigid and stable so that wood board make an angle of 45 with the floor and I cut the board from above downwards. From just the shape of electric saws reciprocating saw looks similar to manual saw but jigsaw is cheaper, safer and more precise in cutting. How can i use jigsaw for similar work? perhaps I will have to face towards the front surface of wood board, put the jigsaw at upper edge of wood and cut downward. thanks for suggestions and help. One more question I bought a black and decker jigsaw whose manual says that connect the vacuum cleaner nozzle to the dust extraction port of jigsaw. What does it mean? do we need to attach a vacuum cleaner to jigsaw when cutting or to vacuum out the dust after cutting. thanks again

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Comments (2)

chas045
9 years ago
Well, since you have already purchased the jigsaw, it can be made to do as you wish with the addition of a straight strip of wood (or something) a little longer than your board is wide to be used as a guide to keep the Shoe of your saw straight as it rests and rides beside the guide to keep the cut straight. You would attach the guide with one, or better two, little C Clamps to your board. You set the guide so that the saw blade will cut at your mark while the shoe rests against the guide.

However, neither a jigsaw and certainly not a recrip saw are designed for your purpose. The reciprocating saw is mainly designed for demolition and would make horrid cuts. A better choice would be a circular saw.

Many modern tools are designed to catch sawdust to either moderate or eliminate its spread all over your shop or home while in use. If your 'stairs' are really 'steps' (no banister) and are outside, you don't need to worry about blowing a little sawdust around. You are not required to use the dust collection system and it may not work well anyway.
mike_kaiser_gw
9 years ago
Reciprocating saws (commonly called a Sawzall after the brand name) are mostly for demolition work and most people would have a difficult time cutting a straight line with one. Jigs saws (sometimes called sabre saws) are most often used to make curved cut but you can certainly use one to make a straight cut. The accuracy of the cut is going to a function of the quality of the saw, the type of blade, and the skill of the user. As Chas045 mentioned, using some sort of a guide clamped to the work piece will certainly help.

If the board you want to cut is attached to the wall, neither saw is going to work because the blade would have to go into the wall. Frankly, you'd be better off removing the piece of wood from the wall and cutting it with a circular saw. Since this is finish work use a 40-60 tooth carbide tipped blade.

You don't have to use a vacuum with a jig saw because they don't blow the dust very far but I try to use one whenever possible just to keep down on the mess. Sucking up the dust also helps keeps the cut line clear, making it easier to use the tool.
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