A review of the Axminster AWVFS Variable Speed Fretsaw. I’ve been looking around for a jigsaw/fretsaw/scroll saw for some time. I need one for occasional use and this is what I ended up with.
Specification
- Cuts per Minute 700-1,700
- Max Depth of Cut: 28mm
- Motor Speed: 3,600 – 4,000rpm
- Nett Weight: 14kg
- Power: 90W
- Rating: Hobby
- Table Size: 412 x 254mm
- Table Tilt: 0-45°
- Throat: 400mm(16″)
When looking at the different fretsaws available I was particularly interested in this one as it will accept pin or plain ended blades. This opens up the options.
The guard fits over the pin that the foot is attached to and is held in place with a bolt and locking nut. The problem is the plastic on the guard is bent out to fit it over the pin and I can see that this may not survive so long – especially as the whole machine vibrates as expected.
The angle of the table adjusts very easily from 0° through to 45°.
Well, straight out of the box, I checked the tension on the blade, plugged it in, adjusted the speed and quickly cut out a simple 4 piece jigsaw from 3/8″ plywood.
The speed adjust works well and there is a good speed range, the table is solid and the motor noise is low. I will need to bolt it down so that I remove any movement on the bench and noise created due to vibration on the bench.
The power is more than adequate and was able move the wood around at a very smooth pace. The blower does the job – well it did do a good job for quite a while, but it is asking rather a lot of it to survive this number of actions and after a year of having the fretsaw the bellows just fell apart.
This was without me even bolting it down, will drill the bench and find some bolts at the weekend as I can see me wanting to use this saw quite a lot.
Price: approx £75.00 from Axminster Tool Centre.
Conclusion
A very well priced fretsaw that does exactly what you would expect and is very solidly constructed.
The only minor issue is the guard does not look that robust and I may end up altering this – just needs a more robust attachment and hinge.
Overall very nice, but I would suggest you go to the shop and try the different machines as this particular one is really only ok for occasional use.
Long Term
Well, I’ve been using the Axminster AWVFS Variable Speed Fretsawfor some time now and there are a few issues. One is that there is a lot of fretting of the tension adjusting knob on the casing.
This also creates a lot of noise – very frustrating and just bad design.
I will have to take the arm apart and modify the case to clear this.
Another issue was the insert around the blade as there is quite a large gap around the blade and it sits below the level of the aluminium table.
My solution was to cut an aluminium disc to fit where the plastic insert fits with a small hole in the centre. I then laminated this with a thin sheet of hardwood.
This feels much better to work on.