Patent ID: 6944959

Claim:
A saw blade clamping arrangement for a power tool including a housing, a drive shaft mounted for reciprocating motion relative to the housing, and a saw blade releasably interconnected with the drive shaft for reciprocating motion along a longitudinal axis, the saw blade clamping arrangement comprising: a clamp support interconnected with the drive shaft; and a control member connected to the clamp support, the control member including a first portion for selectively creating an operative connection between the saw blade and the drive shaft when the saw blade is positioned relative to the clamp support in a first of at least two distinct orientations, the control member further including a second portion for selectively creating an operative connection between the saw blade and the drive shaft when the saw blade is received by the clamp support in a second of the at least two distinct orientations, the control member being linearly movable between a first position creating the operative connection between the saw blade and the drive shaft and a second position permitting removal of the saw blade.