Carolyn Since time immemorial, human beings have had to make use of different tools to facilitate various tasks. From hunting to building a home, clearing land, among others. Currently, this entire field has evolved to such an extent that, in the vast majority of cases, we can find a tool for any job we want. Some examples of this can be clamping tools, used to tighten a piece, welding machines to join two metal pieces and even instruments to measure the pressure of a specific object.
Now, if we focus on the world of carpentry, we can find a huge variety of tools that help create shapes with wood. One of the ones that most often stands out is the jigsaw. This machine that has a blade fulfills the great function of cutting materials that are not very resistant such as plastic, wood and, in some cases, metal. Next, we will show you everything related to this tool so widely used in the field of carpentry.
Definition and concept of a jigsaw
It is known that there is a huge number of machines that help to facilitate the completion of certain tasks with materials such as wood, metal or plastic, which we could not do without the help of utensils. Such is the case of the jigsaw. It can be defined as that tool that allows us to make cuts on certain materials. All this with great precision and without the need to apply a lot of physical force. With it, you can make different types of curved cuts, straight, zigzag and any other that is possible for the person using the instrument.
On the market, we can find different types of jigsaws that in turn have a blade that can be changed depending on the work we want to do. The most common to observe are the manual and electric jigsaw. The latter makes use of a battery and electric current to facilitate transport and mobility when cutting wood, metal, plastic or any other material that the blade or its power allows. In fact, it is one of the most used machines in carpentry due to its great ease of use and the finishes it provides.
What is a manual jigsaw?
On the one hand, we have one of the tools that was widely used by people who wanted to make cuts in the field of DIY or carpentry. It is the manual jigsaw, a saw that is made up of a base, handle and a toothed and sharp blade in order to maximize grip and precision when cutting plastic, wood and even metal. The objective of this is tighten the blade as much as possibleso that the cut is more effective and does not end up splitting or damaging due to the force that we exert on it.
The manual jigsaw has aged quite badly compared to the electric one since the evolution of the tools has shown that the latter is more sophisticated because it does not require the use of physical force to make the cuts. However, the manual jigsaw has certain advantages over the electric one. One of the most remarkable is that it cannot be burned it doesn’t even download, The only drawback being the wear suffered by the blade and the force to make the most precise cuts.
What is an electric jigsaw?
On the other hand, we have one of the quintessential tools that carpenters have. This is the jigsaw that works electrically. We refer to a machine that has a powerful engine inside, which, by means of electrical power, rotates a blade of a certain diameter in a vertical way. This can be powered by a battery or outright, powered by 110 volt or 220 volt electricity. In the market, we can find a huge variety of these and with different prices.
In the vast majority of cases, these tend to vary in aspects such as power, engine revolutions per minute and even the type of blade they use. The internal function of the jigsaws that use electricity is to turn a motor that is inside it. This same one is hooked to a structure where the blade is fixed, which moves in a ascending and descending. Of course, all this at a great speed and with enormous force in order to guarantee cleaner cuts and that it does not get stuck in the middle of it.
It should be noted that many people often confuse the jigsaw with the circular saw. Although these have a quite similar operation, they are used in different areas, the most notable being the cutting of metals and materials that are very hard and heavy. This is why you should know the difference between jigsaw and circular saw.
What is a jig used for?
Now, this type of saw, although it is intended to be used in areas similar to carpentry, can be used for other things. The jig fulfills the function of cut materials that are not very hard or that flat, have a huge size in terms of width and depth. In other words, the capacity of the jigsaw is subject to aspects such as the power of its motor, whether it uses a battery or electricity, and the length of the blades that are used in what you want to cut.
Some of the uses that this machine could be given can be to make complex cuts in the plastic and give it the shape we want, reduce the size of a piece of metal, cut wood to create doors, frames, tables, chairs , among others. In fact, the jigsaw is usually seen in areas such as the DIY, woodworking and the art of welding pieces. Although in the latter, a circular saw is usually used that has greater capacity and tolerance for cuts made in metal or similar materials.
How does a jigsaw work?
In a very similar way, the internal functioning of this machine or tool is quite revolutionary and makes use of different factors that greatly help to make the cut as clean as possible and that there are no failures when doing so. First we can start with the manual jigsaw operation. This is very simple, and it has been used for many years, since it consists of a structure that supports the blade that we are going to use to make the cut. This allows you to tighten and tighten it to improve the quality of the cut and prevent it from splitting in two.
While, on the other hand we have the jigsaw that works with electricity. The operation of this is based on a battery or current source that feeds a motor with great power and which in turn rotates at hundreds of revolutions per minute. As it spins, it moves the jigsaw blade in a vertical fashion that is up and down. This with the purpose of moving the blade forwards and backwards to make the cuts that we are going to make.
What are the parts of a jigsaw?
On the other hand, this machine consists of different parts that make it work correctly and make it easy to use this. Although this will depend on the type of saw that we are mentioning. In this case, we will show you what are the parts of an electric jigsaw:
- Battery: This is the power source used by the motor to turn the saw. This is linked to the power of the jigsaw.
- Sheet: It refers to the piece with which the cuts are made in the materials. These are typically quite flexible, saw-shaped, and should be replaced when dull. We can find them in different sizes depending on the work or material in which we are going to make the cut.
- Engine: It is the one that, by means of an internal structure that the machine has, makes its blade rotate. Depending on the power that it has, it can cut quite solid materials such as metal, carbon fiber and other similar ones.
