REcip saws, corded or cordless?

[Knotgoalie]

I have seen some nice offerings be they red yellow etc. that have no tails. I am still devoted to my 25~30yr oldPC 737 tiger saw" as my foreseeable go to if it absolutely has to be destroyed right now electric axe. I suspect that there may be an opinion or two here?

I also own a DeWalt DCB1800 power station that makes anything almost cordless.

 

[seanb02]

Cordless. Most of the time I use mine for demolition type of work, so it's not constantly in operation all day long, otherwise corded would be a must. Cordless makes it easier to grab and go to wherever the job may be. If you aren't already invested in a battery platform however, it likely wouldn't be practical to just buy a saw. Better to get the bare tool to compliment your drill/impact driver kit or other tools. Otherwise just go corded as those will last 30+ years with no batteries to fail over time.

 

[u2slow]

I have the previous blue & yellow version of this.
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/maximum-11a-reciprocating-saw-0548286p.html#srp

Beats the pants off the orange B&D I had before.

 

[GTO]

Pick up a M12 Hackzall.
You will love it

 

[Knotgoalie]

Pick up a M12 Hackzall.
You will love it

I'm already too deep in the DeWalt battery platform.

 

[Firebrick43]

I will second the m12 fuel hackzall. I rarely use my full size corded Milwaukee anymore and if it’s a job that needs the power and stroke the infrequency doesn’t bother that it’s still corded. Now if I was a contractor then it would be different.

 

[oldwino]

I have a red M18 and a red corded. Cordless gets most use but there are times the extra poop from 119v makes a difference. Recommend both

 

[Trapps]

Red Corded Sawzall, Blue Cordless Hackzall has been the perfect combo for me.

Convenience and ease of use most of the time, muscle when needed.

 

[metaldad]

corded. milwaukees were the best balanced. p/c tigers were the beefiest, too much vibration. bosch, didnt like their quick clamp system. dewalt, that yellow gets dirty too quick and doesnt clean up well.

 

[DFB]

M18 cordless sawzalls are the Cats *** IMO

 

[Ton ton]

Those hackzalls are amazing.

 

[Knotgoalie]

Those hackzalls are amazing.

So is the Tiger Saw.

 

[Alchase]

I have a full sized Rigid corded Sawzall that is a beast, and 9 times out of 10 I grad my Milwaukee M12 Fuel cordless. I even use it for pruning tree branches.

 

[bcradio]

Now that I have bought into the cordless system, I never use my corded anymore. I have both Milwaukee corded and cordless

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Bosch 18v
Milwaukee 12v
Porter Cable corded
I use them all but the cordless **** up the battery pretty quick.

 

[The Cobbler]

2 bosch corded. one worked hard bought another so I could have backup parts if needed.
at thsi stage in my life, I don't see any future recip saw purchases

 

[Shiftless]

I use my m12 Fuel hacksall way more than my corded Milwaukee super sawzall.

It’s great for pruning trees too. It’s great that both tools use the same wide assortment of blades. If you’re up on a ladder the last thing you want to think about is a cord and the fact that you should really hold a heavy sawzall with both hands. The m12 hackzall with a 3.0 battery is light enough to hold in one outstretched hand.

 

[ChrisLS8]

Cordless for me by a landslide. It doesn't make much sense to have corded ones nowadays

 

[Shiftless]

Cordless for me by a landslide. It doesn't make much sense to have corded ones nowadays

I’ll never get rid of my corded. For jobs like trimming off the tops of a row of 6x6s on a wooden retaining wall, you can’t match the power and sustained 100% power of a corded tool. You can store it untouched for 10 years, plug it in and go to work immediately.

 

[The Cobbler]

Cordless for me by a landslide. It doesn't make much sense to have corded ones nowadays

I bet I still have my corded recip saw after you've replaced several batteries,and even a battery platform change making your tools redundant

 

[ChrisLS8]

I bet I still have my corded recip saw after you've replaced several batteries,and even a battery platform change making your tools redundant

And you'll still be attached to a cord and I would have a far superior new tool in basically every regard. Weight, power, speed, convenience, size and features.

So your argument doesn't work on me, I'm not worried about hanging onto old relic tools

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Chris. I have both and if I have lots of cutting to do I’ll take the corded every time. Now if you just have to make a quick couple of cuts or are in an isolated area the cordless are great.

 

[PureLeaf]

Chris. I have both and if I have lots of cutting to do I’ll take the corded every time. Now if you just have to make a quick couple of cuts or are in an isolated area the cordless are great.

Exactly this. For a quick cut, or somewhere awkward like an attic or a crawl space, I grab my cordless, but if I'm doing alot of work with it; demolishing tons of stuff etc, the cordless will do it but the corded 15 amp monster is just so much nicer to use.

 

[DerekV]

100% no questions asked, cordless. The comments about power and run time are amusing...I don’t think the naysayers have used one of these new saws with modern batteries. Crazy powerful, unbelievable runtime (esp. considering the power), and cordless freedom. The modern batteries have a much longer life too. Good brands with solid pack technologies can easily last over a decade and still chug right along. Cordless all the way. You will not miss your old corded saw. They’re that good.

 

[Super Mech]

I’ll never get rid of my corded. For jobs like trimming off the tops of a row of 6x6s on a wooden retaining wall, you can’t match the power and sustained 100% power of a corded tool. You can store it untouched for 10 years, plug it in and go to work immediately.

This. I have a 25 year old PC 737. It can cut anything all day long, it’s really a workhorse. I don’t use it all that often so the cord doesn’t bother me.
There have been times though where a lighter less aggressive cordless saw would have came in handy. Especially would be nice for pruning smaller limbs on trees and bushes.

 

[dsimatt]

And you'll still be attached to a cord and I would have a far superior new tool in basically every regard. Weight, power, speed, convenience, size and features.

So your argument doesn't work on me, I'm not worried about hanging onto old relic tools

I think his point is he paid once for a tool that should last him a lifetime and he's right as I highly doubt my M18 sawzall will be supported in 20 years. Cordless pretty much beats corded tools in every aspect minus cost and longevity as far as power source.

 

[finn]

My disappointment with my M12 Milwaukee Hacksall is why it’s the only cordless Milwaukee tool I own.

I have plenty of Dewalt 20v and Bosch 12v and 18v tools, and am happy with both platforms.

All future purchases will be cordless, but I see no reason to add another platform at this time.

 

[seber]

I have both. The M18 gets used for quick cuts, but anything heavy or extended use I pull out the corded. In truth, the M18 doesn't see much use. I found it at the local pawn shop with nine amp battery and charger for $140. Considering how often I use it, I should have left it there.

 

[theoldwizard1]

For light jobs, the M12 Fuel Hackzall is the "go to". For heavier, go with the M18 Fuel. In either case, buy the biggest battery available and you had better have at least one spare charged and ready to go.

Having said that, I'll bet you can find a "gently used" corded recip for 25% of the cost of an M18 and two big batteries !

 

[bwringer]

How many damn times do we have to go through this, people?

The real answer to every "which tool" question on GJ, as it always was and ever shall be, is: "both".

Or "all the above" if there are more than two choices under discussion.









All the above said, if you're really pinched for pennies, you can get a HELL of a lot of nonprecision work done with the $20 version from Harbor Freight, a decent blade from somewhere else (HF's blades are still really awful for some reason), and an extension cord. Yes, it's crappy, but there's a lot of freedom in not needing to give a hoot about a crazy-cheap tool. I use mine all the time for whacking away at roots down in the mud, and for some reason it will not die.

 

[txvwnut]

I’m of the both camp. I have a red one with a cord and a green(Ryobi) one without. In the shop and around the shop if an extension cord will reach I’ll use red. If I’m going somewhere and need the use of a recip saw I take the green one. My green one will run circles around a friend of mines yellow one, he even used it and said damn I would’ve never thought of this type of performance from green.

 

[Trapps]

I recently demolished a 2 car garage. Basically carved it up in its entirety with a corded Milwaukee Super Sawzall.

I love my Bosch 18v Hackzall with an 8.0Ah battery, but it would not have been up to that task. Nor would an 18V Recip (of any color) unless you had lots of either batteries or time.

Milwaukee Super Sawzall = $250
Milwaukee M18 Sawzall w/ 1x 3.0Ah batt. = $250

I think you'd need 3x 8.0Ah batteries to keep up with corded output while charging (assumes 1 charger)

Milwaukee M18 XC 8.0 = $150 x 3 = $450

Yes you can use the additional batteries in other tools. And adding a second charger helps keep up. Still, on the surface, you're looking at nearly $700 vs. $250.

Context applies here. Do your math based on your situation.

 

[Shiftless]

To elaborate on Trapps post regarding comparing costs...

I use my Milwaukee M12 Fuel hammer drill and impact driver almost exclusively. But I still picked up a hardly ever used Milwaukee Hole Hawg (1/2 inch) at an estate sale for $5.
As long as a guy has a little bit of extra space, picking up quality older Made in USA tools, for tiny fractions of what newer ones cost, to me is a no brainer. Tools like that one will wait patiently for a chance to go back to work. It did a fine job boring one inch holes through a series of 6x6 posts.

If you have the time and patience to haunt estate sales, you can outfit your tool box with excellent stuff without spending big bucks. And I’m not just talking about corded power tools.

 

[redwrench60]

Gotta have both. It really depends on what you’re doing. I love the modern cordless for convenience and maneuverability on lighter duty cycle jobs. But, if I’m leaning on it hard for long periods of time out comes the heavy duty 15 amp corded monster.

In fact, cordless fucked me just last week. Under pressure to move quickly I grabbed the shops 6 month old Dewalt cordless 4-1/2” angle grinder (with 6.0 ah battery fresh off the charger) to flap disk powder-coat off the base of a large component we were preparing to hoist and weld into position. That powder coat was pretty tough and I was leaning into it pretty hard for probably 10 straight minutes. But when I let off to swap flap disks and tried to continue the tool was in thermal protection shutdown mode. I didn’t have the 30 ******* minutes or whatever to wait for this snowflake tool to gets its beauty rest so I finished the job with my more powerful corded Makita grinder.

I’ve lost track of how many times in my life I’ve made the ‘cordless tool can’t cut it’ walk of shame back to my toolbox for a proper air impact or heavy duty corded electric tool.

 

[jd_1138]

I'm already too deep in the DeWalt battery platform.

I do prefer DeWalt over big red because DeWalt is a USA co. with at least some production here, but it's not a real big deal to be in 2 platforms. I am in Makita and Ryobi. Having a charger and at least one battery for a certain brand opens up flexibility.

If you need a certain tool, you have 2 brands to choose from. Plus a lot of cordless tools come with a battery/charger anyway, so once you buy that other brand's tool, you then have a battery/charger for that brand.

I buy Makita for my main tools -- drill, impact driver, impact wrench, and I buy Ryobi for the lesser critical items like lights, jobsite radio, saws. I have corded Makita saws (recip and circular) that are my main ones, but the Ryobi cordless saws are good for smaller projects.

 

[lardy1]

There's a cordless version on my shelf that rarely gets used. It is pretty handy for certain pruning chores, however.

But it isn't even in the same category as my old 80's era corded Milwaukee.

 

[Showkey]

M12 and M18 here..........not used the corded Sawsall in years.

Have an 18v Makita that has not been used in years as well.

 

[acer66]

Chris. I have both and if I have lots of cutting to do I’ll take the corded every time. Now if you just have to make a quick couple of cuts or are in an isolated area the cordless are great.

Same here.

 

[theoldwizard1]

How many damn times do we have to go through this, people?

The real answer to every "which tool" question on GJ, as it always was and ever shall be, is: "both".

Slowly going that way !

Which is why my platform of choice is M12 (not M18).

 

[iamrfixit]

Have a stack of corded recip saws, various brands, dewalt, milwaukee and porter cable. Haven't touched one in years. I haven't found anything the cordless can't handle. I have a couple 20v dewalt and numerous batteries. These things aren't like the old nicad cordless tools from 10-20 years ago, they can handle any job with power to spare. Brushless motors and lithium batteries can power cordless tools like never possible before. Some of my 60v stuff is possibly even more powerful than their corded counterparts. The advantage of not having a cord holding you back is obvious. The only time I'll ever grab a corded tool first is if it's all I have.