I had a Makita that a friend found on the side of the road. Used it with extreme prejudice on stuff like thick wall Chrome Moly for 20+ years before it finally gave up. Would have bought another but another friend found a basically Brand new Milwaukee a few days later in the dirt and gave it to me. 6 years now and going strong (he found two, the one he gave me and a Porter Cable, the P-R died soon after and I tried to give the Milwaukee back but he said keep it for your shop)
found? or "found" i have had a milwaukee i bought new in '91 still going strong, i also have two porter cables i bought at an estate sale that are so old that standard blades have to be ground a little to fit but they work great.
My Mikita is getting close to 20 years old and is just now wearing out at the blade chuck. I'll probably look for another Mikita when it dies for good. At my Dad's shop he has gone through three or more in the same time. I know one was a DeWalt, and they now have a newer Milwaukee with the twist-off blade chuck. I'm not too sure about those twist-off chucks.
The old tools were made in USA. The quality of the imports is suspect. The manufacturers are relying on their reputation and giving us sub-standard tools. Black and Decker was good, then cheap. They bought the Dewalt name and then made it cheap. Now they have bought Porter Cable and others. As long as people are tricked into buying price, they will never have value. A quality tool pays for itself many times over, not only for the tradesman, but for the hobbyist. How much does two or three cheap tools cost compared to one quality tool? Cheap tools seem to give up when you need them most. I have yet to find a Chinese tool that compared to American tools. How many holes can you drill in 9 guage mild steel with a 1/4 inch bit from China?
my Milwaukee has lasted two Brother-In-Laws and a Father-In-Law and is still going! I have replaced a switch on it about 2 years ago but have had it about 14 years and still runs great! Used to use it all the time!
Been in the steel biz for 40 years and always used Milwaukee. The only reason we have bought so many is because they get stolen.
Milwaukee is a toy...not as crappy as a Makita though. I use two reciprocating saws in daily use in a remodeling business, by far and away Porter Cable rules! Very heavy duty, blades are just as important, buy Lenox blades and you will like them. I speak from thirty fives years of experience!
I just got a new milwaukee and it comes with a five year warranty, It has the quick change head, my older sawzall had the screw type head, the new type is slick and easy. My brother took the old one my father gave me I have been using it for at least six years he had it for years before that. It is the all metal one. my new one does not seem as stout or solid, hope it lasts as long when I was looking the the milwaukee was 10 amp and had a 1 1/4 length throw it was 3000 rpms the dewalt was also 1 1/4 throw with like 8 amp and was 2700 rpms the ridgid was a 3/4 inch throw but ran at 3500 rpms Milwaukee has the best warranty I would go with them again
I have a 20+ year old Milwaukee, works great. Shorter stroke and slower rpm. I have a Milwaukee supersawsall about ten years old work even better. Cuts circles around the older one, longer stroke and more Rpms variable speed and orbital. The quick release it finiky and can be problematic sometimes. I think its the fine dust that mucks them up. I worked with guys who had porter cable, dewalt, and makita & rioby cordless and corded- I've used them all, but would only own a Milwaukee. Blades make a huge difference, cheap ones are a total waste of money.
I was a Milwaukee snob for years, and still am about some tools. I had an old Sawzall that got stolen, and it was great. For it replacement I have a DeWalt reciprocater that has done yeoman's duty for the 5 or 6 years I have owned it. It's caught Hell and works fine. I did have to work on the blade release gizmo once - took a hammer and punch to loosen the thingie (correct mechanical term) on the shaft the releases the blade clamp. I blame my not being nice to the tool in general for that. It's the most satisfactory DeWalt tool I have used, and I'd set out tomorrow to demo an entire house with it without a thought.
I swear by Milwaukee Sawzalls!! Right now I own 3 of them. I abuse them about as bad as you can! I cut up entire vehicles with them to scrap. That means cutting everything from 20-22 gauge sheetmetal to 1/2" steel on some truck bumper brackets & misc.. I've tried just about every brand out there. And I've killed them all. The dewalt was one of the worse. It lasted about an hour! The craftmans, makita and porter cable all made it about a week. I haven't tried a rigid yet ( probably never will because I'm happy with my Milwaukees ) . The only ones that hold up at all are the Milwaukees. I've burnt up two Milwaukees. The first one was a second hand one that was over 15 years old. The second one lasted over 7 years of cutting up vehicles and heavy steel stock ( 1/2" -1" thick ) . Right now I've got the following. I've got a cordless 18V sawzall. Don't use it much anymore. But it's nice to have in case I need to cut something while away from home. The only down side is it goes thru batteries pretty quick on heavy cuts. I've also got a brand new basic sawzall. Only used it a couple times so far. I didn't need it but found it real cheap on sale so I bought it. By far my favorite tool is my Milwaukee 13 amp Super Sawzall it has orbital option and the rotating handle. It's not perfect, the first time I used the saw the quick blade release broke. But I took it into a Milwaukee service center and it was repaired under warranty. No problems with it since ( been like 5 or 6 years ) until last fall when the foot cracked and broke. I also own a couple Milwaukee portable bandsaws, a 18V and 28V cordless impacts, and some cordless drills, impact drivers, etc. There have been issues with some of them but all I have to do is take it into the service center and they fix the problem. All the issues have happens while the stuff was still under warranty. You can tell the build quality isn't as good on the new stuff. But it's still better then the other brands I've tried. Most brands have quality that has gone down hill due to all the china out sourcing . It sucks but it's today's reality.
Another poster posted the following, If it's a Sawzall it's a Milwaukee period. I second this for sure. I purchased one in 1985 and you cannot kill this tool!!!!!!!!!!! I have replaced many triggers over the years but never the motor. One day one of my boy's asked me how much it cost me and I told him son tools don't cost anything and he looked at me like I was crazy. When you figure how much money that one tool as made me over the past 27 years it made for itself many times over. Jimbo
I've had a Porter-Cable for years 120 volt corded. Use Lenox blades because they last, use the right blade for what you are going to cut and you can't go wrong! Son has Porter Cable 18V lithium we bought for him, seems very good too!
I worked in a salvage yard for a while and the Milwaukees were the only ones to hold up.We used some kind of demolition blades in em that cost $6 ea.It takes a pretty good blade/saw to cut thru a torsion bar.
Blades make a huge difference in how good any saw cuts... Best ones I know of are simply called-"the UGLY", a gray metallic coated one available at Home depot and other hardwares..... They are super tough and last an incredibly long time....also they have both coarse and fine teeth alternately placed ,super quality,about 3-4 dollars...Using one 6" blade I cut all the outer body off an'82 Impala down to just it's floorboard on the frame for a platform donor on a swap once.....incredible blades.
Milwaukee is the best by far. I have had the same one for almost 10 years.. I have a craftsman that is total junk.. Won't hold the blade and is burnt up with very little use Sent from my iPhone using TJJ app
My Ryobi is 25 years old and still going strong and its been used alot, dont know if a new one would last that long.
Milwaukee "super" sawzall is the best i've ever used and i've used many. been a carpenter for 22 yrs so i've tried them all. the "super" is expensive but you get what you pay for in this instance
harbor freight there is no such thing as quality anymore in america so why go spending extra money on just a name when there all the same cheaply made shitty tool. 16 bucks verse 180 and they both do the same job,and last the same. ive been having my harbor fright electric tools out lasting my Milwaukee tools. craftsmen shit just falls apart in your hands.
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