It seems that Delta and Rockwell redesigned their jig saws and scroll saws about every two years since the 1930's. One important thing to know when looking for a scroll saw is that a Jig Saw and a Scroll Saw is NOT the same thing. Back in the day (Early 1900's) cutting jig saw puzzles and making highly detailed and mostly useless fretwork was all the rage. Jig saws are powered only on the pull-stroke (Downward stroke) and a spring that is mounted in a frame over the table is supposed to pull the blade back up. RIGHT! What usually happened was the operator would make a turn that was a little too tight, and before the spring could return the blade the cam below the table would reverse and jamb the blade into the bottom of the work piece. If this sounds like what you want to than perhaps a jig saw is all you need.If not, what you should keep en eye out fr is an actual scroll saw, not just a jig saw that is being called a scroll saw. To that end Rockwell and Delta made several decent scrollsaws from about the mid-1980's on. Most of them have round cast iron tables and have a distinctive "C" look to the frame. Even later Delta came up with a fantastic design for an 16" saw. This was the first time that Delta made a true parallel arm saw, which most other manufacturers discovered were superior to the C-arm years before. The 16" saw was made in Taiwan and had a two speed rocker switch and a round, left-tilting table. Later Delta added a variable speed motor, which was great, and a 20" version of the saw which wasn't so great. Delta has since moved the production of this saw to China where the quality has suffered. If the listings don;t mention the country of origin, send the seller a note. Pass on the Chinese unit, buy the Tiaweenie one.
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