Customer Reviews

Black & Decker HS600K ZipSaw Multi Project Tool

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Zipsaw is a great idea. Unfortunately, this tool is under powered and struggles to complete most medium duty tasks. I found the Zipsaw useful for hobby projects like cutting balsa wood, cardboard light guage plastic etc.

My other two problems with this tool are no.1 it is way too loud and no.2 it gets too hot during use.

Clever idea but disapointing quality and performance.

I got a zipsaw for Christmas, for light wood & metal-cutting around the farm, and I'm happy with its performance. It's not a 60-dollar scroller saw, but it is plenty adequate for occasional use and worth the price. I'd have given it a 4 or 5 if it weren't for the difficulty of getting the special replacement blades the Zipsaw requires. If I'd know this up front, we wouldn't have bought it.

It has been discontinued by B&D, and I suspect part of the reason is because the Zipsaw will ONLY take its own special type of blades, not regular jigsaw blades. I tried several brands of various jigsaw/scroller saw blades, including Black & Decker's, but nothing else fits because of the peculiar "hole grip" its quick-change blades require. If desperate, one might be able to grind or drill a jigsaw blade somehow..... ugh! Bad idea, since I can't find any local source for replacement blades, and Black and Decker's website and 800 number were useless. The lady referred me to DeWalt's website (they now own B&D), but it looked like you could only order blades from their Parts Department, priced per blade (and they didn't give the price). And DeWalt's number isn't even toll-free!

I got lucky and found someone online who was dumping a bunch of zipsaw blades very cheap, and picked up 20 packs of 11 ea., which should last us long enough to not feel like Black & Decker burned us too badly. There are other online discount sources (as of Aug '07), since apparently Black & Decker just dynamited down their stock of replacement blade packs to cheapie re-sellers, not giving a second thought to those of us who bought the Zipsaw. This will keep me from ever buying a B&D tool again.

My advice? If a light-duty saw is enough for you and you can buy it at a steep discount, go ahead -- but FIRST go online and make sure you can score a dozen or two of the blades you'll need for the next few years. If not, just buy a regular jig or scroller saw -- but NOT Black & Decker. We already know what kind of after-sales customer service to expect from them.

ADDED, October 2010

We've used it about 6 or 7 times since then, mostly small jobs. Today we tried to change blades and the blade release button wouldn't work. The spring felt the same, and looking down the throat with a flashlight didn't help. The spring-operated lever that the button SHOULD push seemed intact, and sticking various probes & dental tools didn't work. After a frustrating half-hour we decided to take it apart -- another lovely chore. All but one of the Torx screws that hold it together came out readily, but one needed some (probably nonexistent) "extended Torx" bit. I scraped enough of the plastic case away to make a regular T15 bit work, with a pair of pliers & much cussing.

That did NOT release the two halves of the plastic case. The black plastic mechanism around the blade has to come loose. I did it by banging it backward (back toward the cord) with a wooden block. However, the case still won't separate. And exposing more area of the blade-lock thingie hasn't helped. Looks like a piece of plastic on the button itself has broken, but pushing against the spring-loaded metal lever -- that SHOULD release the blade -- hasn't worked either. I may just dump the thing and try to find another cheap one on eBay, since I have hundreds of extra blades now.

I am not impressed with Black & Decker junk. I should have just stuck with my old jigsaw and scroller saw.

Good luck if you got stuck with one of these. Mine is getting very close to the trash can today, and I won't waste much more time on this junk tool.

I bought this jig saw based on its ergonomics and its ability to be used in projects beyond cutting. However, I had to return it due to some issues:

1. It is underpowered. It was extremely difficult for me to cut through wood, even though it wasn't as thick.

2. The cuts are not straight as it is very difficult to cut when you have to "push" the saw for it to work. My arms were hurting when I finish cutting a piece of pine measuring 3/4" x 12" x 3". This saw has a very nice attachment, ostencibly to use one of the borders (which needs to be parallel to the cut) as guide during cutting. However, you need to have at a minimum distance between that border and the cut of about six inches. In my case, the width of the piece of wood was about 3 inches so it did not work.

3. It has plenty of nice accessories (such as an add-in for sanding) but one can also do so by using a drill, with a sanding kit.

Very nice looking tool, but not as useful as I expected. I bought the Black & Decker JS600K (which is the same manufacturer as the HS600K) and the difference is noticeable. The JS600K is not only more powerful and useful but also it is $10 cheaper.

If you are looking for a sig saw, do yourself a favor and don't get distracted by the multitasking ability of this machine.

I thought the unit worked great! I was able to cut 2x material in a very tight area with no problem. I loved the quick blade change and the variable speed gave me better control over my work piece. Overall I felt the tool was great for the job.

I have used my Zipsaw to cut 2X and 1X material along with plastic sheet material and it works great! It has awesome power and the control for the user is out of this world.

Thanks again Black and Decker!

The unit had plenty of power to do the job. I was able to cut 2x material in a very confined area with no problem. I think the unit ran great and changing the blade was a snap. I also found the variable speed to be very helpful.