Comments on: Skil’s New Laser-Guided Orbital Jigsaw

by: Dann

Sun, 07 Oct 2007 20:43:22 +0000

MY 4680 is useless. After scrolling about 30 small cuts on a pergala, the blade rotates at will and I consider this thing very dangerous. I am a skilled carpenter and have used many tools in 30 years. This thing is a gob of useless plastic with bells and whistles that are useless. The blade I used, a Debolt, is as good as it was when inserted.

The saw blade rotates with no restraint a full 360 degrees. There is no adjustment or correction built into the device to fix this problem.

If I were Skill I would recall everyone sold before they get a class action suit for personal injury. Some people may be prone to want to grab the wrong part of the saw to correct the error it makes.

Mine is still under warranty and I could care less about having it repaired. It is going into the trash before it injures someone.

I hope SKIL views this site.

by: Brau

Tue, 08 May 2007 07:36:54 +0000

What James said goes for me too. I wasn’t sold on lasers until I got a new 12″ Makita Mitre saw and I have to admit it’s a major timesaver for 90% of cuts. Yes it stays aligned and is very accurate. When it comes to making truly anal cuts, it’s still a matter of using your good ol’ eyes and watching the blade. For circ-saws and jigsaws though, gimme a break!

by: Kurt Schwind

Tue, 08 May 2007 07:09:18 +0000

For miter saws and circular saws I think that lasers work very well. As someone already pointed out, when I break out my jigsaw (which, for the record, has a laser) I’m usually not cutting a straight line, so I don’t find it very helpful.

I don’t have a drill press, but I defenitely see some advantage in having a laser guide on that as well. It just speeds up set-up time if nothing else.

by: GAC

Mon, 07 May 2007 23:31:39 +0000

These things do more harm than good. It draws your attention to the laser instead of the moving saw blade that’s now half way through your fingers.

by: Buck

Mon, 07 May 2007 22:36:31 +0000

What James said.

I have the older, weaker version of this jigsaw and the laser is completely useless, mostly because the saw can’t cut straight lines even with an edge guide and the patience of Job. There’s too much slop in the blade & cutting mechanism to get too much precision, it’s going to want to wander around about +/- 1/8″ no matter what you do.

On the other hand, the white LED light shining down at the front of the blade area is very nice - it makes following a line easier when you can see exactly where the blade hits the material.

by: James

Mon, 07 May 2007 22:06:51 +0000

Steve: Lasers are useful on miter saws and laser levels. For every other tool, they’re a pointless gimmick and, usually, a sign of substandard quality. (overcompensation)

That’s especially true for jig saws, which are most often used to cut curves. How will a laser help you do that? If you wanted to cut straight, you’d be much better off with a straightedge.

If you’re curious about a laser’s usefulness on a tool, just look at the specs of a professional-grade version. (DeWalt, Makita, Hitachi, Ridgid, etc.) If it doesn’t have a laser, it’s pointless.

by: Crashin

Mon, 07 May 2007 22:00:18 +0000

I’m not too impressed with my laser circular saw. The saw is fine but the laser doesn’t stay where it is supposed to.

by: Steve Thompson

Mon, 07 May 2007 21:29:00 +0000

Just what we needed…more lasers. I’m curious as to how many Toolmonger readers actually find their laser guided tools more useful than their non-laser guided counterparts. Do they stay alighned? Is there enough accuracy to improve your work?

Somebody convince me if it’s worth it.