Skil saws cut lumber and plywood for homeowners and builders, from the 13-amp sidewinder in the garage to the SKILSAW Model 77 worm drive on a framing crew, and the brand rounds out the job with a table saw, a jig saw, sanders and a grinder. Skil has been building saws for over 100 years, and people still call a portable circular saw a Skilsaw because of it.
Skil is a power tool and accessory brand based in Naperville, Illinois, and a subsidiary of Chervon (HK) Ltd of Nanjing, China, which bought the brand from Bosch Power Tools. The company starts with Edmond Michel’s electric hand saw of 1923. He and Joseph W. Sullivan opened the Michel Electric Handsaw Co. in Chicago in 1924, and the Skil name dates from 1926. Skil calls itself the inventor of the handheld circular saw, and SKILSAW, its registered trademark, is the name on its professional construction-grade saws.
The Model 77 lightweight magnesium worm drive
Edward Sterba built the first Model 77 in 1937, it set the standard for handheld worm drive saws, and the design is still almost unchanged, which tells you what framers think of it. A worm drive puts the motor behind the blade and turns it through oil-bathed gears at a right angle, so the saw has the torque to push through wet 2x lumber without bogging, and the blade sits on the left where a right-handed cutter can see the line.
The lightweight magnesium version is the one to buy: the same design in a magnesium body. It’s a 15-amp saw at about 13 pounds, 4 pounds lighter than the standard SKIL 77, with the weight taken out of the guards, the foot and the housings, and it bevels to 53 degrees with a positive stop at 45. Four pounds doesn’t sound like much until the last hundred cuts of a long day framing a pole barn outside Kalispell in October, when the light is going and it’s the difference between a clean line and a saw that wanders. The worm drive’s torque is the other reason framers here carry it: lumber that sat on the pile through a wet week or froze overnight cuts like it is dry, without the motor bogging. It comes with a 24-tooth carbide blade. The gears run in oil, and Skil makes the worm drive oil for it, so a bottle goes home with the saw.
The 13-amp sidewinder
A sidewinder puts the motor beside the blade, so it’s shorter, lighter and easier to handle over a sheet of plywood on sawhorses. Skil’s 7-1/4-inch sidewinder runs on a 13-amp motor, plenty for decking, shelving, sheathing and cutting 2x lumber to length. For a homeowner who cuts a few times a month, it’s the right saw, and the money saved over a worm drive buys a good blade. For a framing crew that cuts all day, the Model 77 is the saw.
A Skil adjustable rip fence mounts on the foot plate and holds strips to the same width, up to 5 inches from the edge, and the 13896 fence fits the Model 77 magnesium saws.
The 10-inch table saw
Skil’s TS6307-00 is the 10-inch table saw on its own folding stand, so it sets up in the driveway, rips long boards and cuts plywood to width, then folds away against the garage wall. In a Montana building season that runs from the last frost to the first snow, a saw that goes from the truck to cutting in a minute is a saw that gets used. For anyone ripping trim, shelving or deck boards, a table saw beats a circular saw and a straightedge on both speed and accuracy. For finish plywood cuts, add a fine-tooth blade.
Jig saw, sanders and the grinder
Skil’s 5-amp jig saw handles the curves and cutouts a circular saw can’t, like a sink opening in a countertop or a notch in a stair tread. The 3-by-18-inch belt sander takes a door edge, a cupped deck board or rough lumber down fast, and the 5-inch random orbit sander finishes the job smooth. The 4-1/2-inch, 6-amp angle grinder cuts off rusted bolts on a trailer hitch and cleans up welds and metal, the grinder every shop and ranch truck should have.
Why Skil
Skil started with Edmond Michel’s 1923 handheld electric saw, and the Model 77 has stayed on job sites since 1937 because nothing replaced it. Buy the lightweight magnesium 77 if you frame, the sidewinder if you build decks and shelves, and fill out the kit with the table saw for rips, the jig saw for curves and the sanders for the finish.
Skil specs
| Skil tool | Specs |
|---|---|
| SKILSAW Model 77 lightweight magnesium worm drive (MAG77LT) | 7-1/4-inch blade, 15 amps, about 13 pounds, 53-degree bevel, 24-tooth carbide blade |
| Skil sidewinder circular saw | 7-1/4-inch blade, 13 amps |
| Skil TS6307-00 table saw | 10-inch blade, folding stand |
| Skil jig saw | 5 amps |
| Skil angle grinder | 4-1/2-inch, 6 amps |
| Skil belt sander | 3 by 18 inches |
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Skil tools any good?
Yes. Skil started with the handheld electric saw in the 1920s, and its Model 77 worm drive design has stayed almost unchanged since 1937 because framers kept buying it. The consumer tools are built for homeowners, and the SKILSAW professional saws are built for the crew.
Are Skil and Skilsaw the same company?
Yes. SKILSAW is part of the Skil family, not a separate outfit. Skil’s own line is aimed at homeowners, and SKILSAW carries the professional construction-grade saws, including the Model 77 worm drive.
How much does a magnesium Skilsaw weigh?
The lightweight magnesium Model 77, the MAG77LT, weighs about 13 pounds, 4 pounds less than the standard SKIL 77 worm drive, and it keeps the same oil-bathed gears and 15-amp motor.
Is Skil owned by Bosch?
Not anymore. Bosch Power Tools owned Skil for years and sold the brand to Chervon of Nanjing, China, which owns it today. The brand is run from Naperville, Illinois.
Where are Skil tools made?
In Chervon’s own factories, most of them in China, with the tools engineered by the Skil team in Naperville, Illinois. The Model 77 worm drive design itself has not changed in any way that matters since 1937.
What is the difference between a worm drive and a sidewinder?
A worm drive puts the motor behind the blade and turns it through gears, for more torque and a blade on the left where a right-handed cutter can see the line. A sidewinder puts the motor beside the blade, so it’s shorter and lighter. Framers pick the worm drive; for decks, shelves and plywood, the sidewinder is the easier saw to handle.
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