Shane Holland said:
The Carvex 420 requires that the carbide jaws be adjusted to the blade being used for optimal cut quality.
I just wanted to clarify that while it is important for the guide jaws to be close to the blade, it is not necessarily required to re-adjust them with every blade change. If all you are doing is putting in a fresh blade of the same type, it doesn't hurt to check the jaw clearance, but it should not be necessary to make any adjustment. If the jaws are set so close to the blade that switching to a fresh blade of the same type causes the blade to bind, then the jaws were set too close in the first place.
On the other hand, if you are switching to a different style blade, then you should check/adjust the jaws for optimal performance. Each blade type may have a different body thickness. Some will be very thick, and some will be very thin, depending on the design and purpose of the particular blade.
It should also be noted that how close you bring the jaws to the body of the blade is dependent on how critical the cut is to you. For less precise work, you can leave the jaws set slightly wider and not worry about how well the lateral guidance is. For more precise cuts, bring the jaws in closer to the blade, as long as they are not touching the blade.
woodie said:
I do have a set of the Cunex (tapered) blades coming with the saw. I'll make a point to see if it fits in a standard t-shank jigsaw.
Using a trapezoidal-body blade in a Carvex jigsaw would be problematic for the guide jaw adjustment and function. You might be able to get away with it if you set the pendulum motion to zero, but otherwise, there is a risk that the blade would bind in the jaws during the rearward sweep of the pendulum motion. The jaws would have to be set wide to permit the thicker part of the body to enter the jaws during the down stroke, but during the cutting upstroke, the jaws would then be too wide for proper guidance.