/diy/ - Do It Yourself

Just got this Bauer jigsaw. Quick review after using once:

Pros:
>Cheap. $50-60 for the tool, ~$120 for the tool, charger, and 5.0 battery. Milwaukee M18 tool-only is $200, for comparison.
>Not the worst quality ever. It’s right down that fine line of acceptable. The casting is OK, the foot is OK, everything is pretty much just OK.
>Lineup also includes cheapest orbital and detail sanders available. Also mildly interested in some other tools just because they’re cheap but only if they come in handy and I have money to burn.

Cons:
>Foot didn’t sit true out of the box. Had to take it apart and adjust the bracket things that the foot locks into.
>Laser toggle is too easy to hit by accident and honestly is more annoying that useful. Would have preferred either a recessed switch or not have it at all.
>Not sure if it’s just the cheap blades, the tool itself, or operator error, but it has a lot of trouble with randomly grabbing the wood and trying to jump out of the cut. Could be entirely my fault since it’s my first time using a jigsaw
>Fit and finish leave a lot to be desired. Paint is really sloppy in many places, the shank for the blade looks like an apprentice’s first attempt at a brazing hack-job, the trigger spring is way too heavy and hard to control, and the tool-less blade chuck is a pain in the ass to get to lock properly.

Overall I think it will do what I need it to do and I’m not unhappy for the price. I’m sure a Makita, Milwaukee, or DeWALT would be much nicer to use, but since this will only see occasional use on wood I didn’t want to spend that much money. If it turns out I really like doing things where a jigsaw comes in handy I’ll consider upgrading but for now it’s good enough.