Customer Reviews
check around 
2006-12-31
Haven't used yet, but I just got mine for seventy seven at the big blue place this afternoon.
Great Jig Saw for General Use 2006-09-14
I bought the jig saw for a bathroom renovation and for use around the house. It has worked flawlessly. The ergonomic grip fits the hand very well and allows superior control of the saw. I had looked at several saws before deciding on the Hitachi and narrowed it down to these attributes: ease of use, value, and warranty (the Hitachi comes with a five year warranty). Other tools were either too expensive or had commercial/tradesman features that I just did not need. I have been a fan of Hitachi Power Tools from my early days as a plumber- using their rotary drills on a daily basis- they performed without a problem. The same can be stated for this jig saw.
Unfortunately, many name brand tools are being manufactured in China (Hitachi included for some tools) by contracted companies with low quality standards. This saw is made in Japan with Lean Six Sigma standards; quality throughout. If something does go wrong Hitachi will replace or repair it up to five years after purchase so hold on to that receipt or register it.
I give this Four Stars only because the variable seed is only slightly affected by the trigger. There is an adjustable wheel is front of the handle so be sure you select the correct speed for the material you are cutting first. After that, there is only a slight amount of speed variation that can be applied. Overall, this is a very good saw and a great value with its price and features.
NOT GOOD!!!! 
2006-05-19
I bought this saw as a replacement for my old DeWalt jig saw, and it was a big mistake! the first problem which I did not realize until after I bought the saw is that there is no variable speed control in the trigger, making this saw very hard to control especially when you need to make accurat cuts. The L.E.D. light is a great feature, but I would trade it for a variable speed trigger. As far as the keyless blade change system is concerned, it works well, but does not look like it will hold up over the long run. My next problem is the worst, I owned this saw for about a month until the roller wheel that suports the back of the blade snapped off in the middle of a sink cut out, what a disaster, I am going to return this saw and buy the Dewalt or the bosch, this is what I get for trying to save 60 bucks, a piece of camel dung, thats all this saw is!!!!
Great Saw for Value 
2006-01-18
I bought this jig saw to upgrade from the one I currently have which is a skil. No comparison. The Hitachi has a light that helps you see your line and the motor blows away the dust as you cut, great feature. It also cuts very smooth, no vibration transferred to your work piece which makes cutting smaller pieces much easier. The handle is ergonomically designed making a very comfortable feel in your hand. It also has plenty of power or if you prefer you can dial your variable speed setting down to lowest and cut slower. It also has 4 different settings for orbiting the blade which you can set at 0 and have no orbiting for smoother more acurate cuts. One more great feature is the quick change blade feature, no wrench needed. You can't beat the price either. I bought mine for 100. Also comes with a factory 5 year warranty.
Wonderful tool 2008-07-21
I have had a varity of jig saws in the past and I have to say this is the
best one I have ever had it works great.
Outperformed my expectations 2008-06-12
I needed a new jig saw. I knew my 25 year old jig saw would not be capable of cutting the Brazilian hardwood we were using for our new deck. The jigsaw was necessary because of the semi-circular stairs my wife and I had decided would look neat coming off our deck.
It was only a total of four steps, but it was much more complicated than we expected. The jig saw cut through the hardwood easily and smoothly, without the severe shaking I expected from my old jigsaw. Changing the blades was easier too. While the whole unit was heavier and larger than the old one, the handle fit my grip perfectly so that I could work for hours without tiring the muscles of my hands or wrist.
A good buy!
Great value 2008-05-15
The quality of this Jigsaw can't be beat at this price. Excellent power with a cast metal base that is flat and true. Just dont expect variable speed at the trigger. This saw has a seperate knob to vary speed. I have used Dewalt units and you just don't get that much more for your money.
1st one defective, 2d one runs well, easy return and replace 2008-04-14
I bought the Hitachi because of the Fine Homebuilding review and a great price. When it arrived, I tried it out, it cut beautifully, but then the blade fell out of the saw. After this happened a dozen times, I called Amazon, who said to return it and they'd swap it out, but I might want to talk to Hitachi 1st to see if there was an easy fix. So I did, and Hitachi said this happened about 10% of the time, and I could fix it locally or return it to place of purchase. So, another call to Amazon, they sent a new one in like 2 days, and emailed a label to return the old one. The second one works well in all the ways other reviewers speak of.
In sum, if you're going to buy one, Amazon is a great vendor in terms of support. The process of diagnosing replacing it could not have been easier--unless of course they'd manufactured the saw in the EU or someplace where better QA would have prevented the problem in the first place, instead of, you guessed it, the host of the summer Olympics.
Good saw, one minor issue 2007-12-28
The jig saw seems to be made relatively well. I only use it once or twice a month, but so far so good.
My one criticism would be how hard it is to find the accessories for the saw (i.e. guide, no-mar base cover, box). Granted, I probably should have shelled out more for another brand if that's what I wanted, but thought it wouldn't be so difficult to purchase them afterwards....
