1930s Rotary Jigsaw (Cutawl) [Restoration]

This rotary jigsaw was also known as the Cutawl (Model K8). Based on the age of the motor and the history of patents on this machine, I believe it was made sometime in the 1930s. It had many other cutters available for cutting materials such as metal, wood, leather, fabric, drywall, and essentially anything else that is up to 1.25" thick and softer than hardened steel.
This restoration was a lengthly process as the motor needed work as well. I am stunned this motor eventually ran so well. There is zero play in any direction other than back and forth when I move the armature. For a motor that is ~85 years old, I was very surprised to see the bronze bushings having essentially no wear. It's possible they were replaced at one point.
After doing research on this tool and talking with some collectors and experts, I learned that there were certain parts that were fragile and prone to damage. The large wheel in the back is attached to the main shaft by a pin that does not go through the centre of the shaft, but is offset. This means that over time, the offset pin allowed the wheel to wear around the shaft and starting wobbling itself to the point of bending/breaking the shaft. I chose not to risk it and left the wheel as is.
While looking at a parts diagram of this tool, I decided it was too risky to try and hammer and pry off the rotary mechanism as it's filled with small steel balls and retainer rings. These two things are my enemies. All I do is loose them. The part works completely fine, so there is no reason to mess with it.
I could actually see myself using this tool for some applications. It has a very natural feel to controlling the direction of cut and I feel like I could be more accurate with this than a modern jigsaw.
Hopefully you get a chance to try one of these out one day!
Here is a link to all the materials the tool can cut: imgur.com/a/RDysJ
Thank you to Evapo-rust for sponsoring this video!
Help secure more tools for future videos (if you want): / handtoolrescue
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[@snorklewacker]

‘Oil Reservoir’? Man, ‘goodbye’ sounds so much fancier in French. :)

[@jimbass7867]

Wow. I was highly impressed with your idea of remaking the hand knobs with Bondo. Excellent method- I doubt I would have thought of it myself. I was thinking you would laminate circles of black plastic and cut them down with a ball cutter on the lathe and then insert the brash thread boss with epoxy in an oversized hole. I actually stopped the video when you smashed the old ball and began trying to think up how I would have replaced it. I even thought of using billiard balls! Your method was simple, direct tough and worked out quite nicely.

[@theindigenouspothead4542]

Wow, I have one of these, it was my Grandfathers, then my Fathers, now mine, its in great shape as we take great care of all our tools!! Very nice restore!!

[@PatIreland]

What made the cutawl special was that the blade could rotate in 360* With the chisel blade, a lot of lexan material could be cut (even the middle of the letters) w/o picking up a drill.

[@Kilbot192]

These videos are so fun to watch. Great job!

[@cjserf2939]

Thanks for not putting some free crap background music on, it is much nicer to watch a video without that constant audio harassment.

[@Louie42969]

I have a Cutawl K-11 in the shop, I use it to cut gaskets with a circle cutter attachment. They're great tools. Great restoration!

[@rbmk__1000]

I allways wanted a sewing machine that could cut wood

[@randomsecrets]

I have to admit, using bondo to make new knobs was a fantastic idea - Kudo's to you

[@clarkhazle9629]

In a world of throw away stuff it is a pleasure to see these items brought back to life. Just shows the craftsmanship that went into them. A little TLC and they still work.

[@mjbirdClavdivs]

I think you did an amazing job, and that's a wonderful tool with the blade rotation rather than rotating the body of the tool! The only thing I wished you'd done was run a ground wire to the base plate (inside the switch box). With all that metal, a ground is really a good idea. Thanks for doing this one!

[@satt131313]

The nice thing about old tools and objects was they were made to be taken apart and repaired.

[@MakingStuff]

Another beautiful tool brought back to life. Awesome!

[@Moacirlucas]

Really liked the body filler knob. It was a simple solution instead of a "over worked clear epoxy/wood with a real scorpion in it" knob. Great video!

[@KPearce57]

US Patent: 1,492,554

[@knightwizaed6921]

Incredibly satisfying and relaxing watching someone restore

[@youtubeyoutube7086]

The best 23 minutes on TH-cam

[@WildeFyre69]

If I had not seen it with my own 2 eyes, I would not have believed how you fashioned that ball. Amazing. Thanks for another great video!

[@TangoDownProduction]

When you smashed that ball with the hammer, I almost spit coffee all over my monitor. That was not just a surprise, but hilarious as well. Love your channel. Thank you for the content!

[@Zaquerooni]

I love watching these old tools have their souls restored.