Fretsaw buying guide
Updated: 21 October 2026
You open amazon.co.uk, search for a fretsaw, and the Fret Saws bestseller list hands you coping saws first. That is how the node is organised, not a fault in your search. Before you add anything to the basket, you need the frame family that matches the cut, the blade end the clamps expect, and whether a throat figure is reach into the sheet or only the size of the parcel. This fretsaw buying guide sets those rules. Listings and scores sit on the [fretsaw comparison](/hub/power-saws/fretsaw). Peter F. compared amazon.co.uk listings and public UK guides. There was no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
You open amazon.co.uk, search for a fretsaw, and the Fret Saws bestseller list hands you coping saws first. That is how the node is organised, not a fault in your search.
You open amazon.co.uk, search for a fretsaw, and the Fret Saws bestseller list hands you coping saws first. That is how the node is organised, not a fault in your search. Before you add anything to the basket, you need the frame family that matches the cut, the blade end the clamps expect, and whether a throat figure is reach into the sheet or only the size of the parcel. This fretsaw buying guide sets those rules. Listings and scores sit on the fretsaw comparison. Peter F. compared amazon.co.uk listings and public UK guides. There was no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Throat | Blade end | Supply | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Dremel Dremel MS20 | 250 mm in the manual | Pin-end MS20 | 240 V, 70 W | 9.2 | about £99.95 | View offer |
| Best value |  Bahco Bahco 302 | 300 mm cutting depth | Plain-end | Hand frame | 9.0 | about £13.75 | View offer |
 Eclipse Eclipse 70-FS1R | Not stated on Amazon | Plain-end | Hand frame | 8.8 | about £14.49 | View offer |
On this page
Three frames, not one Amazon list
UK tool guides split hand frame saws into three families, and they are not interchangeable. A coping saw has a shallower bow, often quoted around 120–170 mm, and it takes a pin-end blade that can rotate in the frame. Scribes use it on skirting, and woodworkers reach for it when the curve sits near the edge of the board. A deep fretsaw has a much taller throat. InterDIY and UK Workshop commonly cite up to about 300 mm, so you can start a cut well in from the edge of thin sheet for marquetry or pierced panels. A jeweller's saw is the small plain-end cousin used at a bench pin. Compact frames are often labelled that way even when the shop title says fret saw.
The kept set is not the whole market. Coping leaders such as the Eclipse 70-CP1R and Bahco 301 were dropped from the fretsaw table because they are coping saws, not deep fretsaws. If the job is a floor notch or a skirting cope, read fretsaw vs coping saw before you buy a deep bow you will never tension correctly for pin-end blades.
Pin-end and plain-end do not swap
Blade fitting is the second lock after frame family. Coping saws use a pin at each end of the blade. Fretsaws and jeweller's saws clamp plain ends, often on blades around 130 mm long in trade listings. Workshop Heaven and the UK Workshop thread on coping saw or fretsaw agree: you cannot mount a coping pin blade in a fretsaw clamp. Plain-end packs are a common wrong purchase on a Bahco 301 used for skirting.
One Bahco 302 review describes pin-less blades and contrasts them with a pinned Stanley FatMax coping blade. Buy spare blades in the same end style as the frame you chose, and keep a few extras. Blades in this category are consumables that snap on tight curves.
Read the throat, not the box size
Throat depth only helps when the listing states it as cutting depth, not as overall dimensions. The Bahco 302 prints 300 mm cutting depth in the bullets. Axminster lists the same EAN with a 130 mm blade and a 300 mm throat: a long bow and a shorter blade. The amazon.co.uk row also puts blade length at 300 mm, which clashes with Axminster and B&Q reseller lines. Treat 130 mm as the blade you will replace, and 300 mm as how far the frame reaches into the sheet.
The Eclipse 70-FS1R names thin wood, bone and plastics for model makers but does not print throat on Amazon. Retailer pages quote figures around 285–290 mm, and those sit outside what we can treat as an Amazon claim. The Pebaro WPB705 set lists a 3 cm blade-length field, which is listing noise. If the cut must start far from the edge, favour a frame with a stated throat bullet. If the part is small, reach matters less than blade quality and support.
A clamp that holds the next blade
Even the right frame fails in the post if the clamp will not hold tension. Review files on the kept saws repeat missing blades on arrival, snaps on the first stroke, wing nuts that will not close, and Eclipse thumb screws that stripped on the first change. The Pebaro set earns praise as a kit, yet at least one buyer says the screws will not stay tight. When you compare stars, weigh review count and the repeated fault, not a single five-star photo.
A board, a V-slot, or the Pebaro stand changes how likely a tight blade is to survive a pull stroke. Tension and internal cuts are on how to use a fretsaw.
What this page leaves elsewhere
This buying guide stops at frame family, blade end, a throat you can verify, clamp quality, and support. It does not pick one listing per job. That split is on the best fretsaw page, and it does not walk through the cope stroke for skirting. The Dremel MS20 is the only powered listing in the main table. Choose it when repetitive thin shapes justify about £99.95 and the manual's 18 mm cut, not when you wanted a hand bow for one pierced panel.
Consumer law is a backstop, not a spec sheet. The General Product Safety Regulations 2005 require everyday products to be safe in normal use, and the Consumer Rights Act 2015 covers a saw that arrives without the blade the listing promises. Return an incomplete or bent frame rather than fighting a clamp that never held.
Common questions
Is a coping saw on the Fret Saws list a fretsaw?
No. Amazon's Fret Saws node is led by coping saws with pin-end blades and shallower throats. A deep fretsaw for sheet work is a different frame. The rank list alone will not show you that split, so read the throat and the blade end before you treat the first result as the tool you searched for.
How deep a throat do I need if the cut is in from the edge?
For a pierced shape well inside a panel, UK guides point to a fretsaw throat around 300 mm. For dovetails or curves at the end of a board, a coping saw near 150 mm is often enough. Match the tool to where the cut starts, not the keyword printed on the shelf.
Will a pin-end coping blade fit a fretsaw clamp?
Not in a plain-end fretsaw or jeweller's frame. Pins and clamps are different systems. Mixing them usually means the blade cannot be mounted safely, so spare packs have to match the frame you already own rather than the name on a mixed bestseller list.
Why does the Bahco 302 Amazon row say a 300 mm blade when tool shops say 130 mm?
The 300 mm figure on Amazon aligns with cutting depth in the bullets. Trade listings separate a 130 mm consumable blade from the deeper throat. Use retailer specs to buy spares, and use the bullet throat to judge how far the bow reaches into the sheet.
When is a jeweller's saw the frame, not a deep fretsaw?
When the work is pierced metal or miniature sheet at a bench pin and the bow is only a few inches tall. Those frames share plain-end blades with fretsaws, but they do not offer the Bahco 302's deep throat. Shop the height of the bow, not the word fret in the title.
Is a 30 cm product size the same as throat?
No. Parcel dimensions are not cutting depth. Only a stated cutting depth, or a throat figure from a retailer you trust, counts as reach. A box length that happens to read 30 cm does not tell you where a cut can start inside the sheet.
When is the Dremel MS20 the wrong purchase?
When you need a deep hand bow for occasional pierced sheet, or when the stock is thicker than the manual's 18 mm limit. It is a mains-powered craft saw with pin-end blades, not a substitute for a plain-end hand frame on every job.
Related pages
Sources
UK workshop guides, HSE and legislation.gov.uk, the Dremel MS20 manual, GreatArt's Pebaro set page, and the amazon.co.uk listings compared here. Listings captured on 20 October 2026.
- InterDIY: hand saws buyer's guide (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- UK Workshop: coping saw or fretsaw (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- Workshop Heaven: jeweller, coping and fret saws (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- HSE: PUWER overview (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- HSE: wood dust (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- Dremel MS20 manual (retrieved 20 October 2026)
- GreatArt: Pebaro fretsaw starter set (retrieved 20 October 2026)