Oscillating Multi-tools – Speed Selection

I’ve got a Stanley oscillating multi-tool. Seems great. But I cannot find any advice on what speed to use for each blade. There is nothing in the manual and google is not helping.

Any suggestions?

I only ever use mine (Fein) for cutting wood, but generally, if I were, say, using a jigsaw, I’d be going high speed for wood, lower speeds for metal.

I find the speed settings pretty redundant. Its more about the amount of pressure you apply to the cut. Besides, they aren’t designed for extended use so if the blade starts to overheat while you’re ripping a 4×2, back off and let it cool a bit. 😕

Don’t know anything about speed but Used a fein one today for the first time. Awesome tool

I tend to match speed to the material im cutting through

Hard woods and metali go slow and soft / thin wood i go quicker

As your man above says dont force it.

Bosch gop250 here.

Also, while they can be used as a plunge saw, this can cause the blade to heat up, blunt it more quickly and overheat the motor. Gently moving from side to side gets your cut done faster.

Another Bosch gop250 here. I tend to leave it on speed 3 or 4 which is mid range. Only really use on wood. When I first bought it I used it at speed 6 thinking faster the better. The teeth tend to be small and closely spaced though so going fast just leads to more smoke than action.
Fantastic tools, use it way more than I imagined, it’s saved loads of time and made a neater job on things like splicing and repairs to sliding sash windows.

Thanks for these tips. Already proving to be a sensible buy. Had to chop through the skirting board to get it out from behind some pipework. I’d have never have done it without.

Yeah. They are brilliant. I often wonder how plumbers ever got anything done quickly without one and also a wet vac. Best two tools I’ve purchased.

Mines has been invaluable for chopping out mdf windowsills and making the slot bigger to accept my new deeper thicker windowsill without destroying the plaster

Also gears – after a minor altercation with a push fitting popping the other week i can confirm a wet and dry vac will work as a pump in a pinch for pumping water out a crawl space into the garden 🙂