I need some information on a scroll saw . . .

[scrollgirl]

I received the following question from a fellow scroll sawyer.  I have not had any experience with the Hitachi saw.  Have any of you?  Any help would be appreciated.  Here is the question I was asked:

"I can't afford a Dewalt 788 at this time but Lowe's has a clearout sale on the Hitachi CW40, 16 inch Variagle Speed Scroll Saw.  It only has a 1/4 horse motor on it.  I was wondering if you have ever run into this saw or know anything about it.  Thanks for any help.  I believe the sale price is $130, down from $170."

Thanks to everyone in advance!  Sheila

[dgman]

Sheila, I don't own one but from what I have heard it is not a bad little saw for the price. Its being discontinued because its being replaced by a saw from Delta or Porter Cable which is actually the same saw painted gray.
I would go for it at clearance.
P.S. The DeWalt only has a 1/4 horse motor on it!

[Intarsia92]

Hi You may want to read the posts on the following site:
http://www.scrollsawer.com/forum/beginners-scroll-saw/13774-2.htm

[GrayBeard]

The CW40 is IDENTICAL to the Craftsman mod. 26101 V.S. that I inherited as a first saw.
Goof basic saw and should serve OK for a beginner. Definitely a bottom feed operation in my opinion. Speed is easy to control and and vibration is OK.
$130 NEW is a fair price for the saw.

~~~GrayBeard~~~

[sp_343]

Sheila:  Tell the person that they can't go wrong with the Hitachi Scroll Saw.  I still have mine in the garage...it was a GREAT saw when I first started out.  Good price and a good machine.  Table was a little small and wasn't big enough when I started getting more comfortable with this hobby...so now I have a DeWalt.  The Hitachi had a nice speed control, little vibration, easy to set blade tension.

I did a lot of work on my Hitachi and motor never failed me.  My blower tube bellows quit working toward the end and I had to fix that.  Also, the plastic cover for the power switch came loose, but that was also an easy fix.  Nothing major...just those minor problems. 

Overall I give it 2 thumbs up for a beginner scroll saw.  If this is a person that is REALLY REALLY into this type of woodworking...then it might not be for them.  But for the price...you can't go wrong.  LOWES is also very good with the customer service.

Hope it helps...

[scrollgirl]

You guys are all great!  I have been forwarding all your answers to the gentleman that asked me and you have all been a tremendous help. I think I may have a new participant for our group here! Thank you so much!

Sheila

[dgman]

Yeah Sheila, Have him check in over here!

[Joesawdust]

Sheila, I'll put my 2 cents in too, for the price it is a good saw, I have well over 100 hours on mine, and the only problem I have had was operator caused. The stand that comes with it is probably the weakest point of the package. I have mine on a wooden stand now and it made a big difference. There are plans on here somewhere for a very well designed wood stand that is rather simple to make. I have made a couple of changes to my saw that have made it more user friendly without affecting the warranty. If you want give him this email joesawdust2@gmail.com and he can contact me for more details, I'd be glad to help him out.

Greg

[Terry Jackson]

See you got experienced answers.  Have had one for a year and it works just fine.  I've hauled mine around a bit, in and out of the shed every day in summer, back and forth between WA and AK.  It can be top-fed, but it is not easy.  Much better as a bottom feeder.  A work-around is to put a 90 deg bend  in a fine used blade in the middle , then feed it down from the top and you now can pinch that to the blade you are using and feed it up thru the hole.  Have used about 3 gross of blades so far.  The only issue is feeding small holes on large pieces (larger than about 10"x 10"). 
Terry

[jimbo]

Hiatachi has a good name for power tools, I have had a bench saw for 3 years and so far it has been great
Jimbo

[jon]

rofl c,mon a beginer saw? its an intermediate atleast lol i own this saw and i use it daily. the table is on the small side.but any idiot can solve that problem, this is a good saw for the $$ especialy if this person is married and has to beg for $$ like i do. i have had no problems with this saw other than the blower stoped working but as you know that is a 5 min fix, the other problems were my fault and stupidity i cant say enuf about this saw

[paul44224]

I have been using the Craftsman version for over 2 1/2 years. No problems, except for the on/off switch. I eliminated the switch, and use a foot switch. Also tell him to scrap the hold down foot. Use the screw from that to replace the lower blade clamp screw. Much easier blade changes. Same size thread, but larger grip area. Leave off the cover below the table. Also much easier blade changing, and cleaning. And, on my flickr pics, I have a couple of pics of my own zero clearance insert. Works excellant for me. Replaces the plastic insert. Hope this helps!

Paul