Why does a jigsaw cut crookedly and how to fix it. How to cut with a jigsaw. A jigsaw is essentially an electric saw. How to make an even cut with a jigsaw

How to saw with a jigsaw? First of all, you should have light. And the light should come from the left. You should sit upright and comfortably. The legs are bent at a right angle at the knees. Left hand sits quietly on the table and holds the workpiece. All tools are at hand. When sawing, fine dust falls, so it is better to wear a mask. But if this seems unnecessary to you, then breathe through your nose. Wear an apron to protect you from dust.

You can use a jigsaw to cut out curved and straight parts.

What is required for work

Materials and tools:

• table;
• jigsaw and file;
• triangular awl;
• plywood;
• Workbench;
• protractor;
• pencil;
• carbon copy;
• sandpaper;
• PVA glue;
• varnish, watercolor or gouache for coloring.

Varnishes and paints are optional.

1. Selection of plywood. When purchasing a sheet, consider it carefully. Choose plywood that has fewer cracks, knots, chips, and that clearly does not delaminate. It is better if it is birch plywood, because it is light and uniform.
2. Preparing plywood for work. Take medium-grain sandpaper and sand the sheet along the layers. Then repeat with fine-grained sandpaper. Did you get a silky smooth surface? This means you can proceed to the next stage.
3. Translation of the drawing. Place a carbon copy, put a drawing on it and attach it to the plywood so that it takes up as much space as possible less space. Trace carefully and clearly with a pencil. Take your time. It is better to place a ruler on straight lines. Clarity is needed so as not to squint when sawing.

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Starting jigsaw work

Place the workpiece with the pattern on the table, sit comfortably and, holding it with your left hand, take the jigsaw by the handle with your right.

Place a saw on the workpiece and begin sawing. To begin with, my advice is to take a simple, training job, mainly with rectangular parts. Dollhouse, for example, or a birdhouse.

They are easy to saw with a jigsaw, and the first quick job will bring great satisfaction. Having received an initial positive experience, you can safely complicate the tasks.

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Continued work

For convenience and ease of work, special devices are used.

The jigsaw file should move evenly and slowly. It is strictly perpendicular to the workpiece. This rule must not be forgotten. And remember, a jigsaw always cuts with an up-and-down motion only.

When cutting out sharp corners, it is more convenient to cut with a jigsaw, alternately on each side. Then the sawing will be clear. And keep in mind that the gap between the pattern and the cut line should be no more than 0.5 mm.

This is necessary later for filing with a file. If the jigsaw comes off the drawing, this can be corrected later by cleaning it. If the workpiece has internal contours, then they should be cut with a jigsaw first.

Without damaging the marking lines, you need to make a hole with a triangular awl or drill so that you can install a jigsaw file in it. This must be done carefully by placing a piece of wood under the future hole. Then the product will not have chips.

If sawing is required on bends, then, without stopping sawing, slowly turn the plywood until the desired direction is reached. Then you can safely cut with a jigsaw according to the drawing.

When cutting, the file must be strictly perpendicular to the workpiece.

1. Cleaning up. The main thing is to take your time. Use sandpaper to clean the ribs and the back of the part so that there are no burrs, go over the front part again, and the internal holes can be worked out with a round file.
2. Assembly and gluing. If this is your first experience and you started with a simple product, then the assembly will not confuse you. Having gained experience, using the drawings you will be able to subsequently assemble and complex designs. And there is nothing special about gluing either. Apply a little glue to the ribs, tie tightly with strong thread and lay out to dry. It will take about a quarter of an hour, half an hour.
3. Product finishing. To decorate the entire product or individual elements, you can use watercolors in the most ordinary way. But just in case, apply watercolor to an unnecessary piece of plywood, see what shade it turns out and how it lays down. You need to varnish the craft with wood varnish, preferably colorless, and a glue brush. Try to varnish without drips or streaks. This requires precision. Do not dry it outside - dust will settle on the varnish. It will turn out ugly, rough. Read the instructions on the varnish can carefully.

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Sawing with a jigsaw

When working with a jigsaw, you must carefully observe safety precautions, wear glasses, gloves, carefully secure the workpiece and do not touch the cutting blade.

How to cut with a jigsaw? When working, you must follow safety precautions.

The operating instructions must be carefully studied. Make sure the cord is not damaged. The insulation must be perfect. Check the strength of the fastening of the jigsaw blade. It must be firmly secured.

To avoid injury, avoid contact with cutting blade jigsaw

The jigsaw blade must match the material being cut.

Wear safety glasses when working, otherwise shrapnel may damage your eyes. It is advisable to have a system for removing debris from the web so that you can see the processing line. Don't lift weights.

Turn off the jigsaw and wait until it stops completely when you tear the tool away from the workpiece. Start and finish work with low feed.

Do not use high engine speeds. And lastly, to ensure that your jigsaw serves you for a long time, lubricate and clean it.

Types of materials for work:

• various types of wood;
• plastic;
• brick;
• ceramic tile;
• drywall;
• non-ferrous metals and even steel.

Naturally, this will require a set of files used for a specific material.

The jigsaw can cause vibration to your workpiece, so secure the material well before starting. It is not recommended to cut wood along the grain with a jigsaw, because it will be very difficult for you to make an even cut. For these, a circular saw is best suited. If you don’t have such a saw at hand, be sure to use a rip fence. One end of it is attached to the jigsaw, and the other rests against the edge of the workpiece. This way you can achieve more smooth cut.

If you need to cut a circle inside a workpiece, first drill a hole in the circle. Paste into drilled hole jigsaw and start moving towards the markings you made on the workpiece. If you need to cut a rectangular hole, do not try right angles right away. First, smoothly go around them, reaching the marking of the next side. When you cut the desired hole, you can easily adjust the corners of your workpiece on both sides.

When working with a jigsaw, you do not need to press it hard. This can lead to heating of the canvas and its breakage. Do not use one file for a very long time, as it may long work she's dumbfounded. A dull file can cause burrs on the edges of the material. When cutting hard materials, lubricate the blade with a few drops of machine polish. This will make the jigsaw easier to work with and will extend the life of the file.

When working at low speeds, give the jigsaw a break. When working this way, there is a risk of engine overheating.

Don't forget to follow safety precautions. Work in protective and... After work, clean and lubricate the tool.

Video on the topic

note

A single-speed jigsaw cuts on one constantly high speed. This jigsaw is convenient for sawing only wood. A jigsaw with mechanical speed switching is more versatile. You can use it to cut wood at high speeds, plastic and soft metal at medium speeds, and iron at low speeds. There are also jigsaws with electronic speed control; they are the most convenient.

Helpful advice

When purchasing a jigsaw, pay attention to its power. The more powerful the tool, the greater the thickness of the material that you can cut and, of course, the higher the cutting speed. Pay particular attention to engine speed control.

The jigsaw allows you to cut out plywood and other suitable materials figures of the most complex configuration. To make this process quick and enjoyable, you need to know the basic rules of working with a jigsaw.

Instructions

First, make a special stand for ease of use. It is a durable board about twenty centimeters long, five centimeters wide and 1.5-2 centimeters thick. On one side, at a distance of five centimeters from the edge, a hole with a diameter of 15 millimeters is drilled in the center. Then, stepping back one centimeter from the edges of the board on the left and right, cuts are made to the edges of the hole. The result is a figured cutout reminiscent of a keyhole.

The stand is screwed to the table (workbench) with screws or attached with a clamp so that it protrudes perpendicular to the table by 15 centimeters. It’s inconvenient to work with a jigsaw without a stand, so it’s worth spending a little time making one.

They work with a jigsaw while sitting on a chair. The material, for example, a plywood plate, is placed on a stand and held with the left hand. When working, the jigsaw is held so that the file is positioned strictly vertically. Without pressing too hard, gently move the jigsaw up and down, making sure that the file follows exactly the line you drew.

As you saw along the drawn contour, move the plywood sheet so that the cut location is always inside the shaped cutout of the stand. To smoothly rotate the cutting line, turn the jigsaw slightly to the left or right. If you need to make a sharp turn - for example, on - then at the turning point, work with the jigsaw in place, without moving it forward and gradually turning it in the desired direction.

In most cases, the process of straight and figured cutting of materials requires extreme precision of the tool. This statement is most true for an electric jigsaw. The thin saw blades used in this device can easily change the cutting angle, which can negatively affect the accuracy of the line. The clarity of the edges of the product and the evenness of the cutting line depend on the skills of the operator, the serviceability of the device and the saw. Next, we will tell you how to get the planned contour with perfectly clear edges and what to do if the jigsaw moves to the side.

Why does a jigsaw cut crookedly?

The saw blade leaving the pre-planned line may be due to several reasons. The operator may not have enough experience in handling the tool, the file may be defective, and the rod and guide roller for the jigsaw may have serious play. In order not to guess from the coffee grounds, it is worth starting to sift out the factors that determine the accuracy and evenness of the cut line in your individual case.

As usual, it’s better to start with yourself and your approach to sawing. Often, novice craftsmen rush things and, wanting to speed up the cutting, make high pressure on a jigsaw. The tool does not have time to bite evenly into the material and create a clear groove for the file, which begins to follow the path of least resistance and makes unpredictable movements. This problem is especially common when working with thick timber (from 40 mm) and varnished plywood from Soviet times.

This is one of the reasons why the jigsaw moves to the side. What to do about this? The answer is obvious. Apply the minimum pressure sufficient to guide the tool along the line and set the maximum number of revolutions (when working with wood). The pendulum mode usually does not affect the evenness of the cut if its design is in good order.

The quality of assembly and wear of tool parts can be a good reason for the formation of beveled lines when sawing. There are basically no complaints about devices from the budget segment (up to 2,500 rubles), as well as hopes for their conscientious assembly. It’s another matter when original, branded instruments begin to perform such tricks. Often, the cause of a crooked cut is the guide roller, the jigsaw rod or its sole.

You can check the reliability of the element’s fixation by simply tugging it with your hand. Loosening of the rod or roller by more than 1 mm determines that this device is not capable of producing ideal smooth cut. The more play there is in the parts, the less accurate the cutting line they form. This problem should be corrected based on the circumstances. If the part itself is worn out, it can be replaced with a similar one. It is difficult to fix a breakdown if the attachment point to the mechanism is worn out. Not every modern Kulibin undertakes such repairs, and this problem is usually solved by purchasing a new tool.

Unfortunately, the products of many trusted brands are often counterfeited, and jigsaw files are very popular in this regard. It so happens that low-quality and counterfeit products have quite a short term a service that brings many problems to the owner. One of these problems is a crooked cut. An initially smooth blade can bend due to poor-quality metal, which can cause deformation of the tooth set, if it was present at all. In this regard, if your jigsaw cuts crookedly, replacing the saw blade can correct the situation. The process of choosing a high-quality jigsaw file was discussed in detail in a separate topic.

To get an absolutely even cut, you don’t have to be a master or have a professional tool with original consumables. For such purposes there is a very simple and useful device, which we will discuss below.

Guide rail for jigsaw

Not every craftsman with straight arms will be able to make a perfectly even cut with a jigsaw without using auxiliary devices. Only the most seasoned experts who are masters of the instrument will be able to get a straight line “by eye”, and even then, provided that it is in good working order and the availability of suitable saw blades. Of course, not everyone has the time and desire to become a straight-cut saw with a jigsaw, and purchasing a circular or plunge-cut saw for such a task is quite expensive. If you only have a jigsaw with files at your disposal, then a special guide rail will help you get the desired straight line.

The jigsaw guide is a simple device, at first glance, similar to a large metal ruler or rule. The main difference between the tire and the above devices is a special groove along which, like on rails, the sole with a jigsaw mounted on it moves. Most guides have rubberized strips that prevent slipping on the surface of the material, and for additional fixation, they are attached small clamps. The average length of such devices is from 1.5 to 3 meters, and can be increased by another, similar ruler, using an adapter.

Many modern manufacturers electric jigsaws, produce special guide bars tailored to their products. Such devices have rather low versatility, limited to working with tools of only a given brand. Fortunately for owners of non-branded devices, there is an advanced, universal Line Master guide, with an adjustable sole and many useful functions. The average cost of such a line with an adapter will be about 3,000 rubles. The price is higher than some jigsaw models, but the high-quality, universal guide is well worth it. A detailed analysis of the device is clearly presented in the video below.

DIY jigsaw guide

If a jigsaw cuts crookedly, and it is not advisable to buy an expensive guide, you can completely get by with improvised means. Any smooth edge with a thickness of 5 mm or more can become an impromptu stop: a straight strip, usually a piece of plywood and other straight surfaces of suitable sizes. A pair of ordinary clamps can serve as clamps for the guide to the material. If the surface condition of the opposite part of the sawn material does not have of great importance, the guide can be screwed onto a pair of self-tapping screws.

Before installing a homemade stop, you should mark the line of the required cut in advance and retreat a certain distance from it, equal to that, what is between the file and the edge of the tool sole. When sawing, you should guide the tool strictly along the edge of the guide so that it is parallel to the sole of the jigsaw. Working vibration can distort the movement of the saw in the material, so the device must be held firmly and pressed against the stop, which must be firmly fixed.

To make the line as neat and even as possible, use the optimal file suitable for the material being processed. More visual processes for making and using a homemade guide are demonstrated in the following videos.

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When sawing laminated chipboard jigsaw has to deal with the following problems:

• uneven cutting line
• chips on the surface of the chipboard

• non-perpendicularity of the end

To solve these problems, there are the following methods.

To ensure an even cutting line, it is recommended to use bimetallic files. They cut better and, therefore, the likelihood that the file will move to the side decreases. It is also recommended to use a file with set teeth ( T144DF), then the cut is as smooth as possible. The same file will provide an end strictly perpendicular to the surface due to its thickness.

To get a perfectly even cut, you can use clamps to attach a metal corner to the part being cut parallel to the cut line at some distance from it. For different jigsaw models, this distance may be different, for example, for a jigsaw Makita 4329 it is equal to 37 mm

The disadvantage of this file is that it is too big size teeth, resulting in many chips. To avoid this, you can use a special anti-splinter liner and/or stick masking tape onto the chipboard along the cut line on the top side (or better yet, on both sides). In this way, almost perfect cutting quality can be achieved. If you are professionally engaged in the manufacture of furniture, then this method certainly will not work (insufficient quality and low productivity), but for homemade furniture will do just fine.

You can also use a file T318BF. It is specially designed for sawing laminated chipboards and provides a clean cut with virtually no chips. But unlike T144DF it is not so thick and its teeth are not so far apart, as a result of which there is a high probability that the file will move away and the cut will turn out to be uneven.

Home » Tools for working in the country.

An electric jigsaw is the most convenient and versatile tool for complex woodworking. With its help, you can produce artistic carvings, prepare various parts for carpentry and solve other problems.

Operating procedure

To get the best results from your work, you need to know how to cut with a jigsaw correctly.

• The material being processed must be securely fastened. Poor workpiece fastening is one of the main causes of errors when cutting. The jigsaw can jump off, go off the markings, or even go in an arc. By the way, if the jigsaw cuts crookedly, check whether the direction of the cut coincides with the direction of the fibers.

  If this is the case, then it is better to make a cut circular saw.

• When it becomes necessary to make a cut on the inside of the workpiece, you should first drill a hole at the starting point.
• When working with the tool, do not use much force. Electric tool cuts wood quite well and without excessive pressure. If you apply serious force to advance the jigsaw, the saw and motor will become very hot and the risk of damage increases. Besides, overpressure - main reason chipped
• When cutting hardwood, it is advisable to add a little machine oil to the blade.
• Sometimes you have to work at low speeds. In this case, it is necessary to take frequent breaks from work, as the saw becomes very hot.

Accuracy problems

Let's look at how to cut smoothly with a jigsaw:

1. The object to be processed must be securely fastened. Moreover, in such a way that it would be convenient to make the cut.
2. In cases of particular uncertainty or for greater guarantee of accuracy, it makes sense to use guides. When making straight cuts, you can use it as a guide. wooden block, fixed along the marking. If the cut shape is complex, then the situation becomes more complicated. In this case, you can use patterns, if any, or you will have to reduce the speed of work by more carefully guiding the jigsaw.
3. One of the options why a jigsaw cuts crookedly is problems with the saw. It may be dull or have chipped teeth. If you notice that the jigsaw literally turns itself wherever it likes, inspect the saw.
4. Jigsaw failure. For example, if the motor runs jerkily, the likelihood of a crooked cut increases sharply. Likewise, other mechanism failures can lead to a decrease in accuracy. Such problems are difficult to eliminate on site, as they require diagnostics and, possibly, repairs.
5. Finally, the accuracy of the work is greatly influenced by the skill of the performer. If you are a beginner carpenter, do not be discouraged by periodic failures: accuracy comes with experience.

Chips

Another serious question is how to cut with a jigsaw without chipping? These are usually formed:

• when pressing the instrument excessively;
• when working on thin material near edges without reinforcing stops;
• when using unsuitable (worn) saws.

Avoid these actions and you will reduce the likelihood of chipping to a minimum. Also, some models allow the use of special anti-splinter inserts for jigsaws.

Anyone who has ever had to cut laminated chipboard or wood with a jigsaw knows that the material is almost never without chips.

You can, of course, use special files for finishing cuts.

Smooth cutting of material with a jigsaw

For example this one. But even they do not always provide a chip-free cut. So what should we do?

Let's look at why chips occur. Watch how the chip appears. When the finishing saw goes down, the teeth come out of the material, practically without sawing it or forming any chips. On the contrary, they saw upwards and the teeth at the exit catch the material and break it out. In wood, neighboring fibers cling; in laminated chipboard, chips stick together with the coating.

Now try sawing two layers of chipboard at once. You will find that the bottom layer has been sawn clean on both sides. If you think a little, it is not difficult to understand why this happened.

This happened because upper layer The laminated chipboard did not allow chips to form.

By carrying out these small observations and experiments, you can quite easily solve the problem of cutting with a jigsaw without chipping. So what should you do?

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that when drilling holes, the same picture is observed: at the exit of the drill, chips also easily form, so you need to press down some unnecessary detail from the drill exit side when drilling through holes.

Alexander Klimov

Carpentry tricks Jan 21, 2014

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Smooth cut with a jigsaw. How?

Homemade device for precise cutting of boards with a hand-held circular saw

Using a standard hand-held circular saw it is extremely difficult to make precise cross-cuts of boards. Getting the perfect cut in accordance with the markings allows you to simply homemade device, easily made from scraps in your home workshop.

The cut-off jig is designed for perpendicular cuts of boards ranging from 100 to 250mm wide in 50mm increments, but can be easily modified to suit your needs.

How does a handheld circular saw attachment work?

The device in question is extremely simple and consists of only a few parts: a base for the saw, a guide rail, a stop block and eccentric clamp providing reliable fixation even on lumber that has been loosened with slight deviations in width.

Diagram of a device for a hand-held circular saw.

The homemade product is very easy to use. First, markings are made on the board.

Then a homemade device is installed on top, the lower stop of which is pressed against the edge of the workpiece, and the right edge is aligned with the mark.

Photo of a device for a circular saw.

Photo of the device - view from the bottom.

Now all that remains is to place the circular saw on the base and make the cut, pressing the edge of the sole against the guide side stop.

Cross cutting of boards using a manufactured device.

The result will be a perfectly even cut that exactly follows the markings.

With this device it is convenient to make many cross cuts when you need to frequently move the tool to a new cutting line, for example, when making grooves in beams. It is also useful if it is necessary to reduce the length of the workpiece by several millimeters, and it will cope with this task no worse than a miter saw.

How to make a device with your own hands

The cutting device is made for a specific model of power tool. On your circular saw, measure the distance from the engine to the bottom plane of the sole and subtract 5 mm. The result obtained is the height of the guide stop.

Removal required sizes circular saw.

Prepare a plywood base with right angles and wooden slats with parallel edges.

Blanks for assembling a device for cross-cutting with a circular saw.

Measure the distance from cutting disc to the edge of the sole.

Add an allowance of 6–10 mm and install a guide rail at this distance from the right end of the plywood. Secure the plank with countersunk screws, ensuring its strictly perpendicular position.

Screw with reverse side stop block and fix the device on the workbench.

Cut the plywood to the final width with a circular saw, creating a reference edge for precise positioning of the jig along the markings.

Draw a template for the cam clamp cam on paper.

Drawing of an eccentric clamp.

Mark the piece on 10mm plywood and use an awl to mark the center of the drill hole for the bolt.

Cut the workpiece with a jigsaw.

Make a washer with a diameter of 50 mm from the same plywood using a ballerina extendable wood drill.

Sand the workpieces and select an M6 or M8 furniture bolt with a mustache (or with a square headrest), a handwheel nut, a washer and a bushing. The latter can be made from a tube of suitable diameter. The length of the sleeve is the total thickness of the base, lever and plywood washer.

Ready-made plywood eccentric.

Make holes in the base with a drill according to the diameter of the bushing, which serve to rearrange the eccentric clamp according to the width of the board being cut.

Hole drilling diagram.

Assemble the eccentric mechanism: insert a bolt with a sleeve on top, and install a wooden washer, the cam itself and a steel washer from below. Tighten the parts with a nut.

Stick with inside stop strip sandpaper to prevent slipping when the eccentric is locked, which can occur when the device is fastened to a smoothly planed workpiece.

Clamping system of this device has a stroke that ensures fastening on boards with a spread of approximately 10 mm in width. If you need to cut or trim pieces of a different size, simply place a wooden block in front of the stop beam.

An example of using a device for cross-cutting a board of smaller width with a hand-held circular saw.

If desired, the potential of the considered device can be expanded by adding a cutting angle of 45°. To do this you will need to slightly increase the dimensions. support platform and install the second thrust block at this angle.