Makita has launched a new 18V compact cordless reciprocating saw, XRJ08, designed for cutting in tight spaces or overhead.
The new Makita XRJ08 reciprocating saw is designed to be “compact, lightweight, and balanced.”
It features a brushless motor, tool-less blade change mechanism, rubberized soft grip, and LED worklight.
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Makita says that the new model delivers 40% lower vibration, compared to their XRJ07ZXB subcompact reciprocating saw, thanks to an internal counterweight mechanism.
The saw can make up to 90 cuts in 2×10 lumber, or up to 50 cuts in 1″ schedule 80 steel pipe, when powered with a fully charged 5Ah battery.
Key Features & Specs
- 7/8″ stroke length
- 0-3100 SPM
- Brushless motor
- Tool-less blade change
- 14-3/8″ overall length
- Weighs 4 lbs (tool-only), or 5.5 lbs with a 5Ah battery (sold separately)
Price: $169 (tool-only, XRJ08Z)
ETA: Shipping Soon (preorders are open as of 12/2022)
Discussion
Makita’s product page advertises that their new saw is up to 55% faster cutting compared to competitive models.
Let’s take a look at competitive specs:
Makita 18V XRJ08Z: 7/8″ stroke length, 0-3100 SPM
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Dewalt 20V Max Atomic DCS369B: 5/8″ stroke length, 0-2800 SPM
Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2719-20: 7/8″ stroke length, 0-3000 SPM
The maximum linear cutting speed would be the stroke length x strokes per minute. This gives us the linear cutting rate in inches per minute (ipm).
Makita: 2713 ipm
Dewalt: 1750 ipm
Milwaukee: 2625 ipm
It seems as though the new Makita one-handed brushless reciprocating saw has an edge on their competitors, at least on paper. With respect to on-paper cutting speed specs, the Makita bests Milwaukee’s M18 Fuel saw by 3.4%, and Dewalt’s Atomic saw by 55%.
As SPM specs typically reflect no-load speeds, performance can vary in real-world settings.
Compact one-handed reciprocating saws are best matched to lighter cutting tasks, especially in tight spaces or overhead, but it’s good to have power in reserve.
fred
In our remodeling business we tried one of the first-generation Milwaukee Hackzalls. None of the crews wanted another one after we passed the test sample around.
In our plumbing business we did the same thing and ended up with one on almost every truck. I personally thought that the tool was wimpy – but I guess for cutting away old plastic and thin brass pipe in a tight vanity they were just the ticket.
Dust
As a plumber I only reach for the full sized saw when I’m doing demo. Otherwise usually need a hand to hold material and one to cut.
TomD
A sawzall with some sort of stabilizer that could “grab” a loose pipe would be wonderful. Not sure how it could be designed.
fred
Dewalt used to make one – their part # DE3091
I think that I’ve seen ones from Unitec. I think that they have a few styles – but they are designed more for pipeline (rather than plumbing) work with Unitec pneumatic saws
Sam
Ryobi makes one and it’s marketed for pruning trees. Obviously can be used for anything.
Chip
I use the m12 fuel a lot for cutting nail-on electrical boxes,when moving outlets installing cabinets.
It also fits inside an empty pocket door cavity,to cut screws protruding .
Like Fred mentioned, every trade has different needs.
My plumber cousins love the 18v version.
For me speed/power is the last on my list,the smallest is king.
Joachim Osmundsen
When will Makita release a 8ah high capacity battery for 18v?
Stuart
It seems that high capacity batteries simply aren’t in the works for the 18V system.
Kirk
Ryobi 18v had this in depot about 10 years ago, it was marketed as a one handed pruner and was lil bulkier, now everyone has this same odd shape lumpy thing like Milwaukee hackzall.
taras
That hand guard bit is a deal breaker for me. I know it most likely contains some wiring and chip boards to make the handgrip smaller, but these things make it almost impossible to use with proper gloves if you have big hands.
Dad
Your hands will fit and that bar is a counterweight mechanism, you can literally put a glass of water on top of this tool and it doesn’t splash when you pull the trigger. Try that with the Milwaukee that’s actually slower.
Kirk
Hand protector could be for that purpose alone, or just make more solid, I’d cut it off if it bothered me. But honestly hands down best, perfect balance for lightweight compact and still max power output is dewalts DCS367 20V XR Brushless Compact Reciprocating Saw. These one handed recip saws are just upside down blade shoe
JoeR
I have both, the first generation compact (XRJ01) and the full size (XRJ05) 18V versions. I back them up with a corded JR3050T (refurb). To be honest the first generation XRJ01 is probably the least reached for Makita 18V in my bag. No power. As noted, perfect for cutting PVC, as I used it when reinstalling the irrigation system in backyard. It’s size made it very handy for reaching into the trench. But when I was using it to cut quick stakes out of 1×2 pine it kept “stalling”, even with a new blade (demo-wood with nails type). It has it’s purpose, but I don’t recommend it. Not sure I would recommend the new one based on this experience.
MM
More competition is always good, but I don’t feel that this tool is particularly innovative….far from it, actually.
Where is the capability to accept jigsaw blades or a multi-position blade clamp?
Where is the adjustable shoe?
It claims to be fast, which might be good for some applications, but I’d like to see real-world testing before commenting on that. No-load specs aren’t very telling, what matters is how the tools perform under load. High SPM or long stroke doesn’t mean much if the tool bogs or stalls with the blade in the cut.
Xrh07
Asking for all those features defeats the purpose of the saw. Multi-position clamp requires a bigger shoe and different style crank arm that won’t work with this saw (and makes the saws vibrate side to side, which is not worth the gimmick. Extendable shoe is always nice but that’s just more bulk at the tool body. Save it for saws with 1.125-1.2″ stroke length. And you can get scroll blades with a regular recip tang anyways.
Makita’s got the best blade clamp out of the lot if it’s anything like the one on the XRJ05. The Hackzall and Atomic blade clamps are pitiful.
MM
There’s nothing impossible or even impractical about any of that. Metabo and Metabo HPT (and perhaps others) already have clamps which can secure jigsaw blades in addition to standard recip saw blades. 4-way clamps are likewise proven on other saws. Asking for both 4-way and jig blade compatibility in a single tool is a bit much, I agree, but it would be nice to get *something* better than just a standard recip blade only chuck.
Metabo has proven it’s possible to put an adjustable shoe in a saw even more compact than this one. There is no technical reason why any of these saws (Hackzall and their ilk) lack adjustable shoes.
blocky
The Makita vibration-reduction counterweighting in their new OMT is excellent. Might be an under-appreciated feature on paper, but probably makes for cleaner, more controlled cuts, and a less frustrating experience in close quarters.
Gordon
My dad has the old Makita OMT and I have the new one. He was pretty stunned at how much less vibration mine has.
MikeK
Get rid of the under guard piece and it would look very similar to the fuel model, which I love.
Jim Felt
My wife found and now won’t return my Milwaukee 2719-20 M18 FUEL Hackzall after I’d put a branch trimming blade on it. And I’ve not yet considered it a misstep on my part. Not yet anyway…
Dave (not here)
I dunno – the handle makes it seem like it’d be bulkier than a Hackzall, which seems to defeat the purpose of these one-handed recipro saws as the only time I ever want to use mine is when I’m working in a space too compact for a regular Sawzall. I’ll show this to the Makita guy on my crew, as he seems to borrow my Hackzall about as much as I use it, but if the only benefit is size and the compromise is stroke length (and thus overall cut speed versus a regular recipro) I wonder if he’d even use this as a gift or keep reaching for my Milwaukee or my DeWalt guy’s saw, especially considering that there aren’t (to my knowledge) compact battery packs like the low-capacity single-row cells the other brands have.
Matt Rentz
I bought one of the Chinese one-handed pruning chainsaws, but they are not very durable. I thought a small one-handed reciprocating saw would be much better and I have lots of Makita 18 V batteries. I’ll try it if they sweeten the price a little.