How to choose an electric jigsaw for your home? Purpose and characteristics

To figure out how to choose a jigsaw, you need to take into account a number of technical characteristics. First of all, we are talking about the type of power supply, power and number of revolutions. It is also desirable that the model be equipped with additional functions. The main selection methods are described in this material.

Power type

One of the main ways to choose a jigsaw is related to power supply. There are 2 types of models:

1. Rechargeable.
2. Electrical.

The first ones are well suited for domestic conditions. They are the main option on how to choose an electric jigsaw for your home. These are convenient devices that can be quickly charged and carried from place to place.

But if the device is required to work for a long time, it is better to choose an electric jigsaw that runs on mains power. These are the tools that are used in professional workshops.

Design Features

To make the right decision, it is important to know what a jigsaw is needed for and what the design features of a particular model are. To do this, you should pay attention to the handle, it comes in 2 types:

1. Staple-shaped – a universal option, convenient when performing sawing work along a straight line (the jigsaw goes on top of the part).
2. Mushroom – well suited for sawing when the device is located from below, as well as at different angles.

There are several design features that will help you both choose a jigsaw for home use and during sawing. Of these, 3 main parameters can be distinguished:

1. Sawing at different angles - can be adjusted so that the cut is in the range of 45-90 degrees.
2. Branch pipe - this element is useful if you plan to work using a vacuum cleaner or dust collector. Sawdust and shavings will be immediately removed, making sawing more efficient.
3. The ability to change accessories without keys is another convenient feature that allows you to install a saw without keys. To do this, just secure it with a clamp.

Main technical parameters

If we talk about which jigsaw to choose for household purposes, you need to study all the main technical characteristics. The most important ones include power, travel parameters and others - they are described in detail in the following sections.

Power

The main method for choosing a jigsaw for your home is to find out its power. If you need a regular device for household purposes, a range of 300-500 W is sufficient. And if it is to be used for professional work, 600 to 900 W is required.

Obviously, the more powerful the device, the more efficient it works. Other parameters depend on this indicator:

• how quickly the cut is made;
• how deep it can be made;
• How long can the tool be used without interruption?

Number of moves

Another way to choose an electric jigsaw is related to the stroke frequency. The speed of work directly depends on this parameter.However, it is not always necessary for the speed to be high.

So, for dense wood material, as well as for plastic and soft metals (primarily aluminum), it should be average. If you are going to work with steel, the speed should be low. A high rate is required only for parts made of soft wood.

Based on what you need an electric jigsaw for, you should choose this:

• only for wood materials - a sufficient number of strokes within 2500 in 1 minute;
• plastic, steel - from 3000 per minute.

At the same time, there are also universal models that can work at very different speeds. For example, Bosch brand tools (using the GST 150 CE as an example) range from 500 to 3000 strokes per minute.

Cutting depth

Also, to understand which jigsaw to choose for your home, you should also know about the cutting depth. So, for household purposes, it is enough to purchase a tool for working with wooden parts, the thickness of which is within 70 mm. And if we are talking about steel blanks, then within 4 mm.

If this is not enough, choosing a jigsaw for your home is not an option. Then you need to buy professional models that cut through wood with a depth of 100 mm or more, aluminum blanks within 20 mm, steel blanks up to 10 mm.

Additional options

When purchasing, first of all, pay attention to what the jigsaw is needed for. To make working with it comfortable, you should purchase a model with several additional functions, for example:

1. A soft start system is necessary if you periodically need to process a part very precisely. Then you can carefully insert the file into the workpiece without causing damage to the material, and the load on the electrical network is also reduced.
2. Another way to choose the right jigsaw is to pay attention to the presence of a pendulum stroke. It helps to cope with a large volume of work when you need to do straight sawing of wood slabs many times. Almost all modern models have this function.
3. An additional method for choosing a jigsaw for your home is associated with such a function as maintaining a constant number of revolutions during load. It is useful in cases where you often have to process dense, heterogeneous wood or work with metal parts.
4. Blowing away chips - the presence of this option also helps to understand how to choose a jigsaw for the home. It is important if the quality and accuracy of the work requires constant removal of chips (for example, to perform a figured cut).
5. The presence of a laser pointer is another indicator of how to choose a jigsaw. Useful in situations where large quantities of straight cuts are required. Helps quickly set markup.
6. Finally, there is a way to choose the right jigsaw - make sure it has a backlight. Battery models are usually equipped with a small flashlight; electric models rarely have this addition.

Thus, there are quite a few parameters that help you figure out which jigsaw to choose for your home. As a rule, for domestic purposes, medium-power devices that can work with different types of wood are sufficient. You can purchase a battery-powered model with backlighting. It can be carried anywhere and work even in conditions with insufficient lighting.