A reciprocating saw is an incredibly versatile tool that’s ideal for a range of different DIY jobs—especially once you understand how to use a reciprocating saw safely and effectively.
However, with the increased power, there is also a significant amount of vibration, and this vibration can adversely affect blade life, and affect how well it can work on the cutting surface.
While many tool manufacturers have invested in improved designs to decrease the material weight and develop better ergonomics for vibration control and to reduce fatigue and lengthen blade life, vibration is still a considerable issue with many saws and other high-performance equipment.
We take a closer look at what you can do to reduce vibration in your reciprocating saw and regain better vibration control to help you to cut in a straight line every time.
The best way to keep the vibrating in your reciprocating saw to a minimum is to buy a well-designed recip saw that has been specifically developed with reduced vibration in mind, to allow for fast cutting, even at variable speeds.
One of the main reasons why reciprocating saws vibrate is because of any parts that are not fully tightly fitted, which causes the blade to become unstable at speed, especially when it comes into contact with your material, such as sheet metal or other materials.
This issue is mainly down to the manufacturer to design a product that keeps vibration to a minimum, to allow for consistent and improved cutting action from blades.
A reciprocating saw will likely never run without vibrations because the cams, cranks, and other mechanisms need to rotate and move as you are cutting with the saw.
Faster cuts, of course, will require more power, which in turn can minimize consistent performance.
Saying this, you can reduce vibration significantly even with a standard saw with a shock-absorbing handle which is a tool that can improve the cutting of a saw even in the tightest spaces, and at the highest level of speed or power.
While this does not address all the vibration issues, it does reduce the impact of the vibrating very well, allowing you to apply more power, and achieve greater speed for much better consistency in half the time.
There are also some ways a user can reduce the vibration.
For example, you should disable orbital action mode on your saw when you are cutting through metal, as this helps recip saws to more easily cut through things like sheet metal and do a more reliable job.
This specific mode is suitable only for cutting hard wood, and when cutting metal with this mode engaged, it just creates unwanted vibration.
Also make sure that you place the reciprocating saw’s metal nose which runs through the blade sticks right up against the material.
This will prevent any kickbacks from the saw and reduce vibration to a large degree as you are cutting.
There are a number of different ways to handle a reciprocating saw to ensure that you keep vibration to a minimum while cutting.
When you are cutting metal, then you shouldn’t be using a blade that’s suitable for hard wood as this can create a lot more vibration as you are cutting.
Cutting smaller pieces of material with a longer blade can cause the end of your blade to vibrant significantly.
The wrong blade size does not just result in more vibration but also a much slower cut. It may even bend the blade while cutting into harder things like strong metals that require more power or maybe even more speed.
For this reason, make sure that you choose a blade that is suitable for the thickness of your material, and that has all of the anti vibrations features that you need from the perfect tool.
You will be able to get specific wood blades and metal blades in different sizes online or in your local hardware store—or choose from our list of the best Diablo reciprocating saw blades for top performance.
You will have to employ varying types of blades depending on what you want to use them on.
This increases blade life for all of the blades you have and ensures a more smooth experience on your work surface!
A reciprocating saw isn’t suited for more delicate jobs or surfaces that can be easily damaged, so make sure that you cover up any surfaces with protection sheets before using power tools, trying to cut intricate patterns on curved surfaces, or even before cutting plastics.
While some people believe that covering up the saw’s shoe with tape is enough, it’s not usually the best solution, and most companies would not recommend it, as it can work against the ergonomic design of such a power tool, lessening its power.
We recommend that you use some pipe insulation and take it to your saw’s shoe.
It’s a cheap solution and also means you can easily keep your floor and other surfaces protected, which is great if you work in confined spaces, or if you need to work with other materials that may pose a significant challenge to a power tool, especially one that is less adjustable.
As you cut through your material, your saw’s blade will heat up fast, and a hot blade dulls very quickly, which can be detrimental for a saw blade with anti vibration technology, and especially one with rough demolition style cutting that can work in even the tightest spaces.
In turn, a dull blade creates more resistance to material which means there is more vibration, which makes it difficult to work at a variable speed on a different stock of wood.
That’s why, it is good to apply a blade lubricant regularly, even when you are cutting up a lot of smaller metal sheets for your work piece.
No matter the overall length of the thing you are cutting, you will still want to apply som amount of lubricant, in order to allow the unique system to work optimally.
The lubricant will help to keep the blade cool, and then the teeth won’t get clogged up with excess metal chips or wood chips—just make sure you’re oiling your reciprocating saw properly using the right step-by-step method.
We touched on this earlier in our article. In order to avoid vibrations, it is a good idea to push the saw’s shoe up against the material that you are working with as you use the tool and take advantage of its features.
This prevents any kickbacks that could lead to vibration, putting it miles ahead of other power tools.
What many people don’t know is that the teeth of the reciprocating saw’s blade always wear out unevenly, no matter whether the blade has anti vibration technologies or not.
The teeth next to the shoe wear much faster than the teeth anywhere else on the blade.
That’s why, try to adjust your saw’s shoe properly to extend the life of the blade as well as reduce vibration.
You can also find reciprocating saws with adjustable shoes where the teeth wear more evenly, and your blade will last for longer.
Cutting a thick material does not only put more strain on your muscles but also your reciprocating saw.
It can be useful to occasionally change the angle of the blade when you cut thicker materials.
A different angle means that there is also a smaller surface area that needs to be cut. This makes a much faster cut and it reduces friction with few vibrations.
One advantage of a reciprocating saw is that you can insert the blade with its teeth facing down or up. Some of the newer saws even accept blades in all four directions.
When you want to cut a material lying on the ground or a flat surface, then insert the blade with its teeth facing up. Then flip the reciprocating saw upside down.
In this direction, the handle of the saw won’t be in your way, and you will be able to cut a straighter line aligned to the ground.
This reduces any kickbacks that could lead to vibrations.
When you are cutting plywood from a window opening with a long blade, then bend it round a little bit. This will ensure that the blade goes along the line of the framing.
This will not just create a cleaner cut but will also reduce vibrations.
Different saw manufacturers have designed a large range of individual settings for their reciprocating saws.
It’s important that you select the right setting to avoid any overpowering of the tool and creating unnecessary vibrations.
You will find that some saws even have an orbital cutting setting which allows you to use the blade to cut an orbital shape.
This feature is usually only suitable for cutting wood, so make sure that you turn it off when you cut through metal.
It’s essential to know when you should use a sharp blade or a dull blade. It’s a good idea to keep your sharp blades for tough materials, and use the dull blades for more crude tasks, such as plastic.
Don’t forget that certain cutting jobs can quickly dull a reciprocating saw blade in a matter of seconds, so don’t waste your expensive sharp blades.
You do not have to buy a low-vibration reciprocating saw to reduce the vibration impact of your tool.
Luckily, there is a variety of different methods that you can use to significantly reduce vibration. Just check out our article and try a few options.
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