# 6A vs 12A reciprocal saw



## pman626 (Jun 28, 2016)

I need a recip for a small job at home- 

I need to remove rotted 2x10 fascia board that has been nailed from inside an immovable stucco soffit. So I have to get my blade between the fascia and stucco, and cut off those nails.

Will a 6A saw be sufficient?

Harbor Freight has one with decent ratings for $20, compared to more powerful ones that are many times more expensive at home depot.

Just trying to get sense of real world difference for my task.
I'm probably rarely ever going to use the saw again in the future.


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## ddawg16 (Aug 15, 2011)

I personally think HF tools are great for the once or twice use. I have their multi-tool and I've used the dog crap out of it. Still working.

So, yes....go for it.

But....

I can't picture in my mind how they nailed that fascia board from the inside?

Anyway....once you get it all apart....I 'highly' recommend painting ALL sides of the replacement board before install.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

a 6 amp recip saw will bog down severely and take forever to make cuts. either grab the 12a or look for even a 9 amp.. personally i wont touch anything other than a 15 amp but i renovate for a living


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## Colbyt (Jan 27, 2014)

HF has more than one amp rating on their saws. The cheap one works fine for me. 

Reading your post, the pivoting handle may help you with what sounds like a PITA job.

Nail cutting is more a function of the blade used and not the saw. HF blades are not quality so buy quality blades for your cheap saw. A 3-5 pack of good blades will be about half the cost of the saw.


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## SeniorSitizen (Sep 10, 2012)

Power won't usually replace technique and the most frequently misunderstood part of a sawsall is the shoe. In fact the more power the more important technique is and this shoe thing may cause you a problem with the stucco.

If you'll never use it again there is always the 32 tooth hack saw blade clamped between two pieces of wood for a handle and sawing on the pull stroke. You may be surprised how quickly a nail can be cut.

https://www.thisoldhouse.com/how-to/reciprocating-saw-101-how-to-use-shoe


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## pman626 (Jun 28, 2016)

ddawg16 said:


> I can't picture in my mind how they nailed that fascia board from the inside?
> 
> Anyway....once you get it all apart....I 'highly' recommend painting ALL sides of the replacement board before install.


Fascia is nailed to rafters from outside, but framer also nailed the soffit frame into the backside of the fascia, instead of hanging it from the rafters.

So there are a bunch of nails I have to cut through.

The blade has to get between the 2 blocks of 2x lumber. 

I'm going to get good blades, but wondering if a 6A or 12A would both get bogged down getting into that tiny gap.


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## SeniorSitizen (Sep 10, 2012)

If you be skilled enough to do a plunge cut to get to the nail, sure a 6 amp saw will cut a nail.


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## ChuckF. (Aug 25, 2013)

I've used these for reaching up under siding to cut nails. It's reach is a lot more if you put a full sized hacksaw blade in it.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 25, 2011)

one of the most important functions of the recip saws show is protecting the chuck that holds the blade.. some models of recips allow the user to take the shoe off.. the problem with doing this is getting the tool too close to the material getting cut.... the chuck can slam into the material repeatdly and then explode.. ive seen guys do it a few times


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## jeffmattero76 (Jan 4, 2016)

pman626 said:


> I need a recip for a small job at home-
> 
> I need to remove rotted 2x10 fascia board that has been nailed from inside an immovable stucco soffit. So I have to get my blade between the fascia and stucco, and cut off those nails.
> 
> ...


If you are a DIYer, I think you will find many uses for a reciprocating saw once you own one. I resisted getting one for years, but now I have both the big Milwaukee sawzall that was my first purchase, and then I bought the much smaller Kobalt recip saw from the blue big box store for about $75. 90% of the time I use the Kobalt saw. Personally, i think that saw would be a great addition to your tool arsenal for only a small amount more than the Harbor Freight saw.

Sent from my LG-D415 using Tapatalk


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## Drachenfire (Jun 6, 2017)

My advice is spend a few extra bucks and get something more robust. You will be surprised how many other uses you can find for a recirocating saw.

In addition to your intended use, it can be used to cut down pallets being repurposed for project wood. You can cut trees and tree limbs (withing limits) or pipes both metal and PVC.

At Lowe's you can get a number of good sub-$100 saws

10 amp DeWalt - $79.00
11 amp Kobalt - $69.00
7.5 amp Porter-Cable - $39.98


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## Improvisation (Jun 10, 2017)

Since you are not on the clock and needing to demolish a huge load of old wood or plywood in excellent condition and the project is small, a 6 amp saw will be sufficient for your purpose. 

Having used an old 6 amp Ryobi with manual speed adjustment to cut a piece of thin plumbing pipe, it is quite violent in its right. I've also used a bigger Rigid saw. More powerful, but heavier as well.


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## Improvisation (Jun 10, 2017)

Drachenfire said:


> My advice is spend a few extra bucks and get something more robust. You will be surprised how many other uses you can find for a recirocating saw.
> 
> In addition to your intended use, it can be used to cut down pallets being repurposed for project wood. You can cut trees and tree limbs (withing limits) or pipes both metal and PVC.
> 
> ...


That Porter Cable suspiciously seems to be just a rebadge of the Harbor Freight variety of the tool. The Chicago Electric 7.5 amp version looks identical to the Porter Cable except for the paint job. In this case, it all about which store provides the better warranty, and Porter-Cable provides 3 years to HF's 90 days. Although, HF's extended replacement plan might be more hassle-free than Porter Cable's.


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## NotyeruncleBob (Mar 9, 2017)

I've never regretted buying the nicer tool. 
If you really don't have the money to spend, then borrow one from a friend.
As far as the Horror Fright tool being the same as the Porter Cable? I doubt it. The HF one might be a cheap copy with crappier materials to keep the cost down but I really doubt they're both coming out of the same factory.


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## Improvisation (Jun 10, 2017)

NotyeruncleBob said:


> I've never regretted buying the nicer tool.
> If you really don't have the money to spend, then borrow one from a friend.
> As far as the Horror Fright tool being the same as the Porter Cable? I doubt it. The HF one might be a cheap copy with crappier materials to keep the cost down but I really doubt they're both coming out of the same factory.


They are the same price. Harbor Frieght's 20% coupon makes their 7.5 amp $39.99 before tax. Lowe's just dropped the Porter Cable price to 39.98. The Harbor Freight comes with a M4 hex wrench, power indicator light, and trigger lock while the Porter Cable does not. 

Reciprocating saws only have differences in the motor to compare. Whoever is willing to teardown the items can see for themselves if there us anything significant between the stator, rotor, varnish thickness, etc. Certainly, the parts diagrams themselves are practically identical even down to screw placement and the need for a M4 hex wrench for the adjustable shoe. 

The other badge engineering tool that is between the Harbor Freight table saw and the Skil tablesaw that goes for 125ish. Skil is now owned by Chevron, Ltd, a company based in Nanjing, and again, suspiciously similar in design with color scheme as the only difference.

Basically, the regular retail price of $59.98 for the Porter cable is all about a superior warranty and not superior internals. In fact, it is less endowed than its HF counterpart internally and doesn't come with a hex wrench while the HF one does.


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