Stanley 20-807 10-Inch Mini-Hack Light-Duty Utility Saw

Stanley Plastic Mini-Hack SawThis is a small hack saw that easily got into tight spaces to cut off a bit of metal pipe and a wooden dowel.The plastic handle is solid and seems to be made of a durable plastic. It's wide and comfortable, allowing me to do quite a bit of sawing without any pain to my hand. It fits both 10" and 12" standard hack saw blades. The blade is securely held by a bolt and nut. I had no problems with it slipping though it might be possible if getting ham-fisted and binding the blade in a cut. Lightweight and reasonably compact it should fit in to any portable kit. Replacement hack saw blades are readily available at any hardware store in different lengths and TPI as needed.I looked at all the 1 and 2 star reviews before ordering. On receiving and using it, my suspicions were confirmed - the overwhelming majority of complaints arose from someone obviously not familiar with using hand saws and using the wrong tool for their jobs.Looking at the saw's image and reading its description, anybody with any knowledge of hand tools would recognize its utility and limitations. First - it's a hack saw, designed to cut metal. Not wood, not formica, not tile - metal. Hack saws have 10-12" blades designed to be attached at each end and secured taut. This support makes the blade quite strong. The blades range from 14-32 Teeth Per Inch with more TPI making a smoother cut for thinner, softer metal. Larger work like iron pipe needs a lower TPI blade for a faster cut. Wood saws have as few as 3TPI, bad for metal, good for wood.This Stanley has 24TPI, good for thin metal, small dia. PVC pipe/wood dowels. Because of it small size and being supported at only at one end and the middle, the blade is mounted backwards compared to most conventional saws. This can be seen in the product image. Most hand saws are designed for the cut stroke to be power/pushing the saw. The pull stroke doesn't cut. That's great for full size saws. This little light saw cuts on the pull stroke not the push., otherwise the unsupported end could be prone to binding and jamming. It still can if used improperly, which many reviewers have done. If the end were supported for heavy cutting the saw wouldn't fit in narrow, tight spaces. It's similar in operation to wood pull saws used for flush cutting dowels.I take good care of all my tools but this one did manage to hit the deck a couple of times with only a slight scuff mark to bear witness. The blade is slightly flexible so it didn't snap and there was no permanent bend.Its utility can be expanded slightly by using blades with fewer TPI for faster cutting of harder metal or PVC or similarly hard materials. But it's not a wood saw so while cutting *small* cross sections of wood is certainly possible, it'll take awhile compared to a blade *made for use on wood*.As initially stated, it's a light duty hack saw, not a rip saw, wood saw, or Japanese flush cutting plug saw. Using it outside of its design envelope is possible but requires care and respect to the limitations of doing so. A little power can be applied if the cutting is kept to the portion of the blade between the support points. This means a lot more strokes. Using the whole blade is possible but it can only cut as deep as the forward support screw's outer dia. Past that pressure on the blade has to be eased, keeping in mind the cutting is done on the pull stroke. This could cut large diameter PVC pipe by rotating the cut if the walls aren't too thick.I rarely give 5 stars to a product because durability is my fifth star. Most of the time reviews are written very soon after a purchase with follow-up comments being less than common. This means durability isn't tested or noted unless something goes wrong straightaway. So a great product initially can only get 4 stars from me until it provides what seems like reasonable service.In the case of the Stanley Plastic Mini-Hack Saw, looking at the design and build quality, I believe this will last a long time with minimal care. Knock the creme brulee torch on it or drop in into a buck of acetone and all bets are off. Even if left out in the rain, just wipe it down. If a rusty saw blade is a bother, swap it out for a new one and it's new again.I'd buy this again. But usually by the time a good product needs replacing it's no longer available so I'm ordering another. I highly recommend it for what it is.

> This isn't the best choice for heavy-duty work (thick metal, or many cuts). The plastic is light, the blade is thin (bends easily) and fine toothed (cuts slowly).> However, this is great for very close work (i.e., in tight spaces) or for light duty jobs, when you don't want to pull out something heavier-duty, particularly in soft metal or plastic. It is also a good choice for precision work---for working with models, jewelry, etc.> For serious work, I use a full-size manual hacksaw, or a metal-cutting blade in my saber saw. But this little hacksaw has alot of uses, and is handy when it is appropriate.> Click on “Stoney” just below the product title to see my other reviews, or leave a comment to ask a question.

It was not worth driving across town to return this item, so I simply bought another.

The price is right so 3 stars for that. It's definitely easy to stow so that's good too. The reason for only 3 stars isn't the quality, size or value - it's the design. The 2nd support component of the blade is located midway up the blade, via the small nut and bolt. This concept is nice if you are only using the end of the blade, give you a couple inches of unobstructed cut with a blade-thin profile. This would be good for a bolt end. However you can't get more than one inch of back and forth without getting to mid-blade where the bolt and nut factor in. So if you're cutting you only have 1/2" of depth to work with until the much wider bolt and nut can't pass through the blade's path. Otherwise - I don't regret the purchase - just know if you attempt to cut something with more than a few inches length or more than a 1/2" depth - it may not be the best tool choice.

This was an impulse buy when I bought a regular-sized hack saw. Figured it might come in handy, and it was cheap. However, for the job we needed done, this tiny, flimsy saw ended up doing a majority of the work. We had a long bolt that was too long and needed to be trimmed down. We started off with the large hack saw, but it was too big and clunky to manage. We got halfway through before turning to the mini-hack to finish the job. We ended up having to make adjustment and trim a little bit more off the bult, and the mini-hack powered through perfectly fine. Definitely convenient to have in your tool box. You don't think you'll need it, but when you do, you don't want to have to order it and wait after.

A great little tool for cutting in spaces where a normal hacksaw can't go. I bought it to cut away or enlarge the latch opening in an old brass striker plate for a door that had settled out of alignment; the blade of the mini-hacksaw fit nicely into the existing opening of the striker plate (removed from the jamb and held in a vice for this process) and allowed me to cut away what I needed to allow the door to latch. The working length of exposed blade can be adjusted, too, to some degree, to allow a little more stroke in the cutting action if necessary. All in all, very pleased with it.

Cheaply made

I've only used this to saw my Aveno lotion bottle in half to get the contents that no longer would come out in the pump. There's a lot in there! But it worked great. I actually bought this to shave some wood around an existing hole left by some contractors. They didn't exactly trim the new cabinets to fit under the sink very well and the turn off valve is scraping against the drawer when we pull on it. It's a project we've yet to do, but I know this little tool will be able to handle it. It's a lot stronger than I thought it would be.