Guess what tool I needed but didn’t have with me today! Since I emptied and removed my truck boxes to move something huge, I haven’t quite returned all the tools to the box. I’ve been carrying nearly 100 hand tools for the past forever and thought I’d go through them and carry just what I need. Today I needed a sheetrock saw and didn’t have one with me so I used a razor knife.

Experience:

Wow. I’ve been using one of these for 20+ years and I never knew it was called a ‘jab saw’! The Stanley 20-556 6-Inch FatMax Jab Saw seems to be popular. Mine of course looks like nothing special, resembling this Goldblatt Tool 6″ Jab Saw for $4. Though it doesn’t look special and I have no attachment to this one other than it’s mine, this saw has served long enough. The model saw I have, see photo, should not be called a jab saw because if you were to jab drywall it would bend. You have to hammer this one straight on, which doesn’t mean you can’t bevel cut around an outlet. This is a piece of crap I’ve used a million times.

I’m ready to spend the extra $6 for a new Irwin ProTouch Drywall / Jab Saw or the Stanley 6-Inch FatMax Jab Saw but I’m content with this one until I need a new one.

My Makita 6820V is a real noise maker that has zipped in tens of thousands of drywall screws and still seems the same as the day I bought it. Typically left in my tool storage, I bring this screw driver to the job when it’s necessary. This is a tool that I’ve owned for 15+ years and is still sold today. There’s a reason for that. (The 6820V has been discontinued but the Makita 6821 is strikingly similar)

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Features:

Experience: Another tool I’ve had forever that’s still working perfectly. The Makita Drywall Screwdriver I bought even before my first screwgun because my very first jobs were commercial work in downtown San Francisco. I framed out many apartments in metal studs, even fabricating this place in 1990 as an apprentice carpenter. I don’t like putting up drywall. I don’t particularly like using this Makita constant-on screamer but I’m glad I have it for those few times when I am doing the sheetrock. (Hopefully no more than a bathroom or closet.)

Comments: The only comment I have is; Watch out you don’t get pricked when you reach into your pouch filled with screws! I’ve used other brands such as the Dewalt but I prefer the Makita.

Links:

Makita Variable Speed Drywall Screwdriver at Amazon.com

Drywall Screwdrivers at Makita.com (Product Data)