I was given the opportunity to work with and review the Dremel Moto-Saw. I was excited about this opportunity, as I already own an older Dremel Scroll Saw, an obsolete model they are no longer manufacturing. Still, it gave me a point of reference to compare the Moto-Saw to.
Dremel has an excellent reputation for quality and I expected this saw to live up to that reputation. Their company fills a unique niche, where nobody has really managed to touch them. This saw appears to have been designed to fit that niche, more than the scroll saw that I own.
In the following sections, I’ll talk about my hands-on experience with the Moto-Saw.
First Impressions
The Dremel MS20-01 Moto-Saw comes nicely packed, broken down, and stored in a blow-molded case, along with its accessories. My first impression on seeing it packed that way was that this would be an ideal saw for someone living in an apartment or a home without a garage, who wanted to do crafts or light woodworking, but couldn’t have a permanent workshop due to lack of space.
My second impression of the saw was that it was that it looked like a coping saw. For those unfamiliar with this manual saw, the coping saw was originally created for cutting out architectural molding to go around other pieces of architectural molding.
What we think of as mitered corners in baseboard and crown molding isn’t actually mitered, as corners are rarely exactly 90 degrees. Carpenters give the impression of the molding being mitered by “coping” the molding so that one piece fits around the other in a way that looks like a miter cut. More on that later.
What’s Included
The saw itself consists of two basic pieces, the saw bow, which includes the motor, blade holders, and controls, and the table, which comes with a pair of clamps, allowing it to be mounted on the edge of most tables.
The scroll saw can be used mounted on the table or “freehand,” as the user prefers. It is generally easier to use it mounted to the table for smaller workpieces and freehand for larger ones.
In addition to the aforementioned parts, the saw comes with a starter pack of assorted blades. This is important, as the saw can’t use standard scroll saw blades. These are shorter and there are four different types:
- Large toothed wood and plastic blade
- Small toothed wood and plastic blade
- Right-angle blade that allows cutting longer workpieces at 90 degrees to the saw’s axis
- Metal cutting blade for non-ferrous metals up to 20 gauge
Using the Moto-Saw
Controls
The saw itself has controls below the table level for turning it on and off, as well as a speed control dial, calibrated from one to six.
They recommend using six for cutting wood, but slowing the saw down to four for metal or plastic; metal because it is harder to cut and plastic because too much friction will cause it to melt. I used it at the recommended settings, not experimenting with them.
Blade Tensioner and Foot Lock
The unique controls for this saw are the blade tensioner and pressure foot lock. The blade tensioner is a flip-handle that rotates 180 degrees, allowing the blade to be installed. It was a bit tricky to use at first, mostly because I didn’t understand it. But by the third time using it, I found blade installation to be extremely easy.
There is no tension to set, just drop the blade in place and flip the lever to its lock position. Tension is automatic and there is a detent at the fully locked position for positive reference.
Using the pressure foot on this saw is much more important than on most scroll saws. I generally ignore the pressure foot on my bench-mounted scroll saw, allowing my hands to provide the necessary pressure to hold the workpiece to the table.
That is impossible with this saw, when using it in the freehand mode, as there is little table to hold the material to and one hand is occupied holding the saw.
When mounted to the table, it would be possible to hold the workpiece down with your hands, but the table is considerably smaller than a typical scroll saw, increasing the risk caused by your hands being too close to the blade.
Fortunately, the pressure foot is extremely easy to work with, with a spring-loaded button to unlock it, allowing it to be raised up. It is not necessary to use the lock to lower the pressure foot; just push down on the bar it is mounted to. In cases where there is a lot of vibration, the foot may ride up slightly; but that’s not unusual for a scroll saw.
Cutting Performance
Of the four blades provided for the Dremel MS20-01 Moto-Saw, the right-angle blade is the most unique. It is Dremel’s answer to the throat of the saw not being very deep. By making a blade where the cutting action can be right to left or left to right, as the user prefers, they have made it possible to make curved cuts in material of any length; a truly unique innovation.
Mounting the saw to the table is easy. It slides into the groves easily and with a positive, audible click when locked in place. Mounted, the saw is just as easy to work with as any other scroll saw I’ve used, even with the shorter blades.
What was surprising about using it though, was just how strong the motor is, especially when you consider how small it is. Specification state a maximum wood thickness of ¾” for either boards or plywood, but I was able to cut 1-1/2” thick boards with no problem.
I didn’t hear the motor bog down at all, even when I pushed the material hard enough that the blade broke. It was a bit slow cutting, but it would have been slow cutting on my bench-mounted saw as well. Cutting thin-gauge metal was just as easy.
I also tried using the saw freehand, as a coping saw, to cut some baseboards with a rather complex profile. It performed admirably, cutting clean and smooth while being easy to control. I could see where this saw would be extremely useful for cutting crown molding.
Conclusion
Overall, I was favorably impressed with the Dremel MS20-01 Moto-Saw. It was more powerful than I had expected and was easy to work with. While I don’t think the plastic construction will cause it to replace my bench-mounted scroll saw anytime soon, I can see where there are times when it would be a nice addition, especially using it freehand.
I can also see, now that I’ve used it, that my first impression about it being an excellent saw for people who can’t leave their workshop set up all the time was right on the money. There have been times when I didn’t have a workshop, where I would have loved to have this saw.
Rich is a second-generation woodworker, having grown up in his dad’s workshop, “making sawdust.” Fifty years later, he’s still studying and working on improving his own woodworking skills, while also helping new woodworkers “catch the bug” for the smell of fresh sawdust. While Rich has done some custom woodworking projects, his greatest thrill is helping the next generation of woodworkers along, regardless of their age. His background as an engineer and a writer just adds to his ability to teach his true passion, woodworking.
