+1 on the Reconditioned stuff. My experience on buying recon (not just Bosch) from CPO and Factory Authorized Outlets has been with zero problems, advertised accessories there, tools run, condition has never been worse than a week of hobby use would have it in.
My theory, unscientific and unproven--is that:
1. a lot of these are just store returns for no reason. My Bosch jig saw had enough pvc dust to tell me that somebody bought it for a home plumbing job and returned for a refund. Other than that one, the rest of them look new.
and/or...
2. all of them get tested more thoroughly than when they left the assembly line as "new tools". I'd speculate that some duds get sorted out that could have been on the shelf of my store--but the testing tech found the problems.
All guess work on my part, but much less of a crap shoot than Craigslist--though i do my share there as well.
earl
