My first jig saw was my dad's from 1982, still cuts better than my new one

Pulled his old Craftsman out of storage last weekend for a quick rip on some 2x4s and it just ate through everything. I've been fighting my newer saw for two years with blade wobble and burn marks. Anybody else hang onto older tools because they just run better, or is that just me being sentimental?

2 comments

2 Comments

reese_lee1mo ago

...but I gotta push back a little on the cast aluminum thing. Most of those old Craftsman jigsaws had cast iron bases, not aluminum. Aluminum didn't really show up in the bases until the late 80s and 90s when they started shaving weight. The iron is what gives you that dead-stable feel and less vibration, which is probably why your dad's saw tracks so straight compared to the newer one. And honestly, the bearings in those old saws were bigger and had more rollers in them, so they didn't flex under side load the way the cheaper sealed ones do now. You're not being sentimental at all, it's a real difference in how they're built. I've got a 1979 Rockwell that I'd put against anything on the shelf today, and it's not even close.

ward.diana1mo ago

Read a review once that said the 1970s and 80s saws were built with thicker cast aluminum bases and better bearings, which is why they stay true. Newer ones are all about weight savings and cost cutting, so they flex more under load. Sounds like your dad's saw just has better bones, not just better memories.