Metabo HPT 18V Jig Saw (Tool Only) w/ 2-Pack Batteries & Charger

It is impossible to beat the combination of quality and price.

Ayan Carney

| Mar 13, 2021

br>br>My go-to br>br> Milwaukee and Dewalt have been my go-to brands for cordless tools, and I've found that each brand has its own set of tools that it excels at. I had been using an M18 jigsaw for a while before switching to a Dewalt jigsaw. That is the jigsaw I've been using since then, and it is currently my favorite on the market. As a result, I'll be comparing this Metabo to the Dewalt. br>br>For those who don't know, this "metabo" is nothing more than a Hitachi jigsaw. Hitachi recently purchased the rights to use the Metabo name (I'm not sure if they bought the entire Metabo company or just the rights to use the Metabo name on certain products). Both "Metabo" and "Hitachi" batteries are compatible with this jigsaw. If you're unfamiliar with Metabo, they've been around for a long time and have traditionally catered to the industrial and trades markets (on par with brands like Hilti or, for a more familiar brand, SnapOn). I've used a couple of their angle grinders and they're great. The Hitachi models have been re-engineered. To distinguish them from genuine Metabo products, they have an "HPT" suffix added to their names. br>br>COMFORT AND USABILITYbr>I find both the Dewalt and the Metabo to be very user-friendly. The Metabo's blade-style design is one of my favorites. mechanism of transformation It's similar to the Dewalt in that the mechanism is actuated by a large lever, making it quick and tool-free. There are no restrictions on changes. What's more, the mechanism is relatively open and simple to clean. This was one of the areas where the Milwaukee M18 jigsaw gave me a lot of grief - The Milwaukee mechanism completely jammed up after cutting anything with fine dust (such as drywall, plaster, etc. ) and I had a difficult time changing blades. This Metabo, however, is not one of them. br>br>The Metabo battery attachment mechanism is also one of my favorites. The two tabs are simple to press, and it easily detaches from the tool. One issue I have with Dewalt batteries is that when they get dirty or dusty, the battery release tab becomes "sticky" and difficult to press. Although this Metabo has a variable speed trigger, it lacks the ability to adjust the maximum speed (on the Dewalt, for example, I can adjust the maximum speed using a dial - This is great for long lower-body workouts. Cuts in speed). br>br>One feature I really like on the Dewalt that the Metabo lacks is a "blower" function that clears dust from the cut line in front of the tool. When I use the Dewalt, I can see my marked cut line much better, whereas when I use the Metabo, I have to manually clear dust from my workpiece. br>br>The weight distribution is one area where the Metabo clearly outperforms the Dewalt. Because the Metabo has a little more weight over the battery area (but not enough to feel unbalanced or uncomfortable), I can easily set it down with the battery on the table and the blade elevated above my work surface (as shown in the photo). Placing the jigsaw in this position on the Dewalt is extremely risky, as even the slightest breeze can tip it over onto the blade. As a result, when I use the Dewalt with a blade, I have to lay the tool down on its side, which isn't a natural movement for me. I could replace the Dewalt's battery with a more powerful one, but that would significantly reduce mobility. This Metabo has a metal baseplate. It's smooth and doesn't have any sharp edges, but I'm concerned that it might scratch any soft surfaces I work with (such as plastic). This worry is alleviated for me by the Dewalt's removable soft plastic cover. Metabo should have included a plastic cover like that, in my opinion. The oscillating feature on this Metabo can be adjusted. br>br>ADJUSTMENTbr> It's not a feature I use very often, but it could be useful if you need to cut wood quickly. In my personal experience, I only use a jigsaw when I need to make complex cuts that necessitate taking my time to ensure I'm accurately tracing my marked cut line; if I need to make a longer cut where speed is more important than cut accuracy, I'm more likely to use a circular saw or reciprocating saw. br>br>The Metabo has a cut angle that can be adjusted. The blade can be adjusted in each direction by 45 degrees. It is not, however, a tool. Adjustment is completely free. The angle can be adjusted after loosening the lock with the included hex key. I like the fact that it's a lever. tool that is based- With the Dewalt jigsaw, you have complete control over your adjustments. Worse, there's a notch at the 0-point. It's simple to return to a straight perpendicular cut when you're in a 90-degree position; This notch, on the other hand, is a little loose - 1-, I believe. When the jigsaw is in the notch, there is 2 degrees of play (for positioning purposes). There is no play once the hex key is locked in, but you may not be at exactly 90 degrees). If you don't use a right angle square square or an angle finder every time you adjust the angle, your cut will be out of square. Whether or not that small amount of "play" in the 0-zone makes a difference. Whether or not a degree reference matters to you is clearly determined by the accuracy of your work. The Dewalt, on the other hand, has a much tighter 0-degree tolerance. a reference point in degrees br>br>BUILD QUALITYbr>This jigsaw is built better than many of the low-cost imports, but not as well as some of the higher-end tools. The case is made of injection molded nylon with 30% glass fiber reinforcing, which is excellent material. It's built to last, and the clamshell fits together with precision. The injection molding appears to be very well done in my opinion (though I am not an injection molding expert). The electrical circuit is very simple (this uses a standard brushed motor, not a brushless motor), making any problems very easy to diagnose. The only "complicated" circuit in here is for the battery meter, which is wired in parallel with the rest of the tool (so that even if it fails, the tool will still work). This means that the tool is relying on the battery's internal BMS to cut power when the voltage falls below a certain threshold - If you're using this tool with batteries from other manufacturers and they don't have an internal BMS, keep this in mind. br>br>As previously stated, this is a simple DC brushed motor rather than a brushless motor. The motor speed has no feedback sensor, so as your battery voltage drops, you'll notice a reduction in motor speed for any given trigger level. It's also worth mentioning that I couldn't find a simple way to access the brushes - You'll need to buy a new tool or a new motor unit once the brushes wear out. The soldering on the motor terminals is also not up to par. br>br>The drivetrain is made up of sintered metal parts, which is nice, and there's a lot of grease to keep things lubricated, but the geartrain isn't well protected from dust ingress. If you use it in a dusty or dirty environment, I'm concerned about how quickly this mechanism will wear out. br>br>Unfortunately, the Metabo's internal cable routing is a little sloppy. There are cutouts in the clamshell that serve as wire channels, indicating that they thought about this when designing it. The wires, on the other hand, are not securely held in the channels and can easily be pinched during assembly by the clamshell. This is precisely what happened on one of the wires leading to the capacitor (see photo). br>br>While I appreciate the strain relief measures on the most vulnerable wire joints (heatshrink on the capacitor, silastic-like material on the battery connector), I'd like to see some of this on the other connections to the motor and switch as well. br>br>One of the things I like about the clamshell is that all of the screws that hold it together are the same type (philips drive in this case). There are no security fasteners on the labels, and no fasteners are hidden beneath them. It's simple to gain access to the tool and perform maintenance.

Quincy Parker

| Jul 21, 2021

This 18v jig saw has really impressed me. Uses the same 18V Metabo batteries as most of their other tools, and these, like Makita, are built to a very high Japanese standard. Metabo is the new name for Hitachi tools, which I've been using for decades and have been very pleased with their overall quality and dependability. br>br>This jig saw has a quick release chuck that allows you to quickly remove the blade by sliding a lever. This makes switching blades a breeze. This tool comes with a wood blade, but it works with any standard jig saw blade. I tested it on wood, mild steel, aluminum, and stainless steel to see how well it cut, and I was very pleased with the results. It really shines when it comes to cutting wood, with a four-position selector switch that lets you choose between three orbital cutting settings and one for more precise straight cuts, plus the baseplate is easily rotatable for angled cuts and the release lever is smooth and easy to use. Because the battery packs do not have a built-in display, you can check battery power by pressing a small button under the handle. This is a useful feature that isn't available on all of their products. br>br>While this unit does not have a brushless motor, the trigger is a variable speed control, and I had no trouble controlling the blade speed when cutting curves and other complex cuts. The plastic used for the tool body, as well as the rubberized coating, is of very high quality, and you can tell as soon as you touch it that this is a quality product on par with other industry standard power tools. I'm no expert, but I do a little woodworking and mechanical work, as well as some light fabrication, in my home shop, and I frequently use a jig saw. br>br>After using this unit on a variety of materials and as part of a couple of current projects, I can confidently say that it is the nicest battery-powered jig saw I've used, even nicer than the 20v brushless Skil model I've been using for over a year and am very happy with. This is my new go-to jig saw, and I'm amazed at how well a brushed motor can perform in a high-quality package like this one. Metabo battery-powered tools have consistently impressed me, and I appreciate that they sell bare tools because I already own the batteries and charger.

Violet Cortez

| Oct 05, 2021