Disaster please stop using the Dremel as a saw...

So i just have to answer here coz that is my image.
The only reason I used the "dremel" (is a knockoff dremel) i because I didn´t have any other tool at the moment, but as tou can see in the worklog I bougt a saw later that month or if it was the month after just because it´s a hell of alot mor work to cut with the dremel but it´s not a bad tool to do the job if you dont have anything else, I meen I didn´t eaven have a sissor so what was I to use?

Anyway I really recomend everyone that does alot off moddig to buy i good saw it really meakes everything not just easier but more fun.

 

good because you can't have one you're right I just might make a p-log (it's on my list)

 

For us with only a dremel to cut with and little money to spare, wouldn't an "el cheapo" jig-saw do for cutting ~1mm thick steel sheet metal and perhaps ~2mm alu? I realize that this kind of low budget tool won't last as long as a mid-high quality tool, but then again - it's really cheap. Here in Sweden one of these low budget jig-saws can be had for as little as 17-21 EUR / 24-32 USD. If you treat it nicely it might last long enough for you to save up for a higher quality jig-saw. You will have to buy saw blades, but then again, you'll save up some on the dremel cutting discs. Also, after using your first (low budget) jig-saw for X months, you will develop a sense of what level of quality saw that suits you best (needs vs cost). So you don't have to go and buy a too expensive piece just cause you _think_ you _might_ need all that power and all those features.

That's my 0.02 EUR... what do you experienced jig-sawers think about this?

Hehe, while writing I remembered that my mother owns a jig-saw.. so I'll just have to buy some good blades for it. *lucky* ^_^ However, I am planning on applying the same thinking when getting my first router, get a cheap one, run it till it burns, then get a decent/good one.

[edit] oh, and Happy New Year ppl! [/edit]

 

You may run into the same problems with a cheap jig saw as a dremel with a cut off wheel. There is less accuracy in the tool, and you may end up with wobbly cuts.

 

good quality blades should help with that though. ^

 

Might make a slight difference; but very minimal. Most of the wobble is in the drive and blade retention mechanisms.

 

The $9 solution

 

Besides that, most HF tools = crap.

 

Gotta agree with ya man

 

I agree with the OP.
I paid £9 for my jig-saw from Focus DIY.

 

Thanx for fixing the link! ^_^

I agree, tin snips are great if used correctly for the right job.

[edit]
@[ Stuey, talladega, radodrill ]: Thanx for your input! I'll look into finding good blades, and stay away from cheap power tools. *bowing*
[/edit]

 

I just want to say, it's not like HF makes tools... they're just a retailer. They sure sell a lot of crap, but you find a DeWalt on there every now and again. It's Chicago Electric that's making the cheap stuff.

 

jigsaw has blades that are alot skinnier then any cuttin wheel.

 

However, my diamond Dremel saws pwn all. Nothing like next to never wearing out AND cutting most anything.

 

Find me a jigsaw blade that's thinner than a standard dremol disc.

 

Anyone used a nibbler on steel PC side panels?

Was thinking about buying one, but not sure how easy they are to cut curves with.

Edit: That would be a hand nibbler, rather than the expensive electric, or compressor powered types.

 

@Yotta: yes, many many years ago. It worked fine for the small things I did with it. But for curves, I dunno, you'd end up with a jagged edge (mine bit off rectangular pieces) that you'd have to file down... on the other hand, you end up with an edge you have to file with almost any non-cnc method anyways. *shrugs*

 

Hand nibbler was crap. Rough edges and twisting from it not being straight thruout the squeezing process. And your hands will ache after you have done about 100mm of the cut.

I had a go with one of those ones that goes in a drill and has 2 clamps to hold it to a bench edge - awesome.

Smooth cuts that just needed a light sand and it was like butter cutting thru the case side.

If I could table mount it on a router table with a fence it would be a dream for cutting straight lines, remove the fence for curves.

just watch the shrapnel doesn't go into the drill motor vents - that makes a loud bang and a dead $9.95 drill

 

I have to agree with the OP, the Dremel has to be about the worst possible for long straight cuts. Even a cheap jigsaw with a straightedge for a guide will be far better. Sure a cutting disc is thin, but I doubt there are many people so steady of hand that their cuts come out narrower than a jigsaw blade. A saw isn't that expensive. Even if a cheap jigsaw makes as nasty a cut as a Dremel at least it will do it in 1/10 the time. Hell, take all the time you save by using a saw vs. long laborious Dremel cuts and cleaning up the results, invest that time in a part time job and you could finance a real workshop

 

I've used a hand nibbler, and for the most part, it works decently. You just have to be careful to not get the one that looks like this.

If you have to use a nibbler, use one that looks like this this or the Klein version like this. Yes it costs more than the type most modders are familiar with, but it's stronger, more durable, and built for professional use.