Jigsaw: how to hold it safely

Learn to grip, position and control a jigsaw so your cuts are safe, straight and controlled.

JH-01Know what the tool is doingA jigsaw has a thin blade that shoots up and down very fast underneath a flat metal plate called the sole plate. The sole plate sits on top of your material and the blade cuts as you push the tool forward. It's not a tool you swing or wave about - it only cuts what's directly under the sole plate.

JH-02Clamp the workpiece, never hold it in your handPut the wood or board on a workbench or a pair of sawhorses and clamp it down so it cannot shift. Beginners often try to hold the material with one hand and cut with the other - this is how the material jumps and the blade snags. If it's clamped, both your hands are free for the jigsaw itself.

JH-03Grip with two handsPut your main hand around the handle where the trigger is, finger resting on (not squeezing) the trigger. Put your other hand on top of the body of the jigsaw, or on the front handle if it has one, well away from where the blade comes through the sole plate. Two hands gives you control; one hand lets the tool twist as it cuts.

JH-04Rest the sole plate flat before you switch onPlace the sole plate flat on the material, with the blade lined up just to the waste side of your marked line, before you pull the trigger. Switching on while the blade is already touching the material, or starting with the plate tipped up, is how the blade skates sideways and the cut wanders.

JH-05Let the blade get up to speed, then feed it in slowlyPull the trigger and let the blade reach full speed before you start pushing forward. Feed the jigsaw forward at a slow, steady pace, keeping the sole plate flat down the whole time. The mistake almost everyone makes at first is pushing hard to force the cut - this bends the blade, makes it wander off the line, and can snap it.

JH-06Keep your body and the lead clear of the blade lineStand slightly to the side of the cutting line, not directly behind the blade, so nothing is in the path if the blade breaks or the tool jolts. If it's a corded jigsaw, flick the lead behind you or over your shoulder so it never crosses in front of the blade. Wear safety glasses - the blade throws small chips of material back up at you.

JH-07Check you've held it rightYou've got it right if the cut edge is fairly straight and not scorched or melted, both your hands stayed on the tool the whole time, and you didn't feel the jigsaw twist or drag sideways. If the cut wanders badly, you were probably pushing too fast or the sole plate lifted off the surface - slow down and keep it flat, don't fight it with more force.

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