# regular Sawzall vs Orbital Sawzall



## Rehabber

If you use a Sawzall as hard as I do, you will appreciate the orbital action when cutting larger or tough materials, the ability to choose the stroke is a real plus for me.


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## forresth

the blade path I think. 1 is linear, and the other move in an orbital path. it should be more aggressive, and probably vibrate a bit less if I had to guess. I never tried one.


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## jburchill

Rehabber said:


> If you use a Sawzall as hard as I do, you will appreciate the orbital action when cutting larger or tough materials, the ability to choose the stroke is a real plus for me.




I'm not planning on using one everyday, but there are times when I need one and then have to borrow someones...is 50 bucks extra worth it if I'm not gonna use one all the time?


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## Ironlight

No it's not worth it for occasional use. Orbital action cuts a bit faster, but is only good for straight line cutting. A cut that takes 12 seconds with a regular sawzall will take 9 seconds with orbital action. 

I have the $99 Milwaukee. Used it extensively during my current renovation. Thought I would use it only now and then but it is a much more versatile tool than I had expected and I have used it a lot. But even so the one I bought is more than I need most times. It's a beast.


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## Daniel Holzman

I have the orbital version, bear in mind it can be used either as orbital or straight line cut. As noted, the orbital is faster, but the most important factor in speed of cut is having a sharp blade. I usually use orbital when doing demolition work on tough boards with nails, most of the time I use straight line action, easier to control the cut. I too have found the Sawzall to be very useful for a wide range of projects, but it seems to be an absolute necessity on framing demolition work. I can't imagine doing the demo work for my exterior French doors or the demolition of a load bearing wall between kitchen and dining room without it. As for the extra $50, it isn't that much money in the big scheme of things, could be worth it, I certainly think it was, but consider I am amortizing this tool over at least ten years.


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## ratherbefishing

I just bought that $99 Milwaukee to replace a Ryobi that still worked, but had a cranky blade clamp. The red saw runs circles around the blue one. No regrets at all. Save the $50 for your next tool.


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## toolaholic

And a super sawzall adds a anti vibration counterbalance which works quite well saving your hands the vibration!


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## woodworkbykirk

one thing that no one has stated is that the orbital action is for cutting wood only,, do not use it for cutting metal such as nails. for cutting metals run it on straight cut mode


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## Ironlight

toolaholic said:


> And a super sawzall adds a anti vibration counterbalance which works quite well saving your hands the vibration!


That's an incredibly important point. Most of what I use my sawzall for is pretty limited....a 10-15 second cut and for that it has been great. but I have done a few longer cuts with it and the vibration is really noticeable in the $99 model. If you're going to be doing numerous longer cuts then I can see the anti-vibration feature of the super being a real arm saver.


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## raylo32

Definitely agree with this. Not an issue for occasional light use but for frequent or heavy use vibes can be a real problem. I used my Dewalt for cutting some 6x6 treated posts while building a deck a few years ago and my hands weren't right for a couple days after. That thing really beat them up.



Ironlight said:


> That's an incredibly important point. Most of what I use my sawzall for is pretty limited....a 10-15 second cut and for that it has been great. but I have done a few longer cuts with it and the vibration is really noticeable in the $99 model. If you're going to be doing numerous longer cuts then I can see the anti-vibration feature of the super being a real arm saver.


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## woodworkbykirk

that sounds about right for a dewalt.. their recips are one of the worst.. underpowered and they burn out easily.. 

the makita avt and the milwaukees are the best ones available. i hear bosch makes a decent one also but still have yet to try one


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## tranzicion

*Great info and things to consider*

Great thread. I learned a few things and thought about a few things I hadn't even considered. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.


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## Gymschu

+1 on Milwaukee.
20 years ago, when I was a new homeowner, I splurged on a Milwaukee Sawzall. At the time I think it was $150 and it was a time in my life when I didn't have $150 to spend like that. It was the best investment I ever made in a tool. I have used that thing countless times over those 20 years on many a home improvement project. It has never let me down. Great tool.


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## woodworkbykirk

the other thing not mentioned about using orbital action is that it can actually clear the kerf of saw dust quicker.. 

and you will notice a drastic difference in the cutting speed both with upping the amperage and using orbital. i own a 15 amp milwaukee that has the orbital option along with a 9 amp makita. the makita feels like a toy in comparision. similarly one of my guys has a 10 amp milwaukee that only has straight cut and its considerably slower

its comparible to using a impact driver to drive large screws compared to a drill driver in the high speed setting..


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