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Hand Saws |
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Sharpening steps:
You make me believe in reincarnation because no one could become that stupid in one lifetime. Unknown Sergeant |
Saw Type | Saw Purpose | Rake | Fleam | Drop | Set* | Comments |
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Backsaw | Crosscut | -15° | 20° | 0° | 25% |
Drop: Older texts recommended a drop of 5°. |
Rip | -10° | 0° | 0° | 25% |
Drop: Older texts recommended a drop of 10°. |
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Hybrid | -10° | 0° | 10° | 25% |
This hybrid approach works well with hard woods. |
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Compass Saw | (all) | -5° | 0° | 0° | 25% | |
Hand Saw |
Crosscut
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-15° | 25° | 0° | 25% |
Rake: Higher rake angles make the saw's cutting more aggressive (and faster). For soft, fibrous woods, consider rake = 45° and increase Set. Fleam: With fleam at 10°, a crosscut saw acts more like a modified rip saw. At 45°, it requires more resharpening and is less tolerant of variable grain alignment. For soft, fibrous woods, consider fleam = 30°. In older texts, fleam = drop, and it is common to see both at 10°. |
Rip
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-5° | 0° | 0° | 25% |
Rake: For general, all-around use, set to -5°. Higher rake angles make the saw's cutting more aggressive (and faster). Fleam: For dense wood with wild grain, increase to 10°. Drop: Older texts recommended a drop of 10°. |
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Pocket Knife Saw Blades | (all) | -30° | 30° | 0° | 0% |
There is no set with these saw blades. As with pole pruner saw blades, a feather-edge file is needed to sharpen this saw blade due to the acute angles between this saw's teeth. |
Pole Pruner Saw Blades | (all) | 0° | 20° | 0° | 25% |
![]() When sharpening these saws, a typical, 60° triangular file cannot be used as the angle between the teeth is in the 35°-40° range. Instead, a feather-edge file is needed. These files are quite thin and are able to fit into the small space between this saw's teeth. |
Reciprocating Saw Blades | (all) | 0° | 8° | 0° | 25% | |
Veneer Saw | (all) | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0 | Use a stone to de-burr, and then bevel the sides of the teeth. |
* Set is expressed as a percentage of the saw blade's thickness, before de-burring the teeth.
Another View of Filing Angles
Triangular File Used vs. Saw TPI
Image courtesy Tools for Working Wood
When jointing the tops of the teeth, a saw jointer makes this easier. However, you could also use one of the jigs in the recommended books below. Engler's and Lie-Nielson's books show this best.
When setting the teeth, a saw set is critical.
If buying one, get one with a pistol-grip, and which accommodates 4-16 TPI. The saw set I use is a Stanley model 42W. It works much better than the models 42 or 432. I have not tried the Stanley model 42S nor the model 42X, nor any of those newer ones available on eBay, so I cannot speak to their abilities.
Only set the top 1/2 of the teeth.
Increase Set for saws with coarse teeth. Decrease Set for saws with finer teeth.
For very fine saws, the burr from the filing may give an adequate set. If it does not, you may need to have a second saw set where you have filed down the width of the hammer. This is expecially the case for saws with 15 points per inch or more. Matt Cianci's book, Set & File, shows good pictures of this.
When filing the teeth, the saw must be held solidly along a straight edge. The goals are to
A saw vice like the Gramercy Tools 14" Saw Vise is very good for this, but it can also be made from wood (e.g., a 2x4).
There are jigs in the recommended books below. Engler's and Lie-Nielson's books show the options best.
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For the triangular file, use the specified size based on the saw's teeth per inch (TPI) as shown in the lower picture to the right.
De-burring the teeth is also known as dressing the teeth, or stoning the teeth.
When de-burring the teeth, be sure to use a hard stone or file to even out the amount of set and create a consistent cutting by the saw.
French veneer saws have a variable rake towards the center, and only have a bevel on one side. Best to have a professional re-sharpen these.
Pole Pruner
with Saw Blade
Saw blades on pole pruners also need to be sharpened to work as expected. The saw blade is sharpened following the instructions for a crosscut hand saw.
Lee Valley sells three tools / jigs which are worth investigating:
Blackburn Tools' web page, Saw Tooth Geometry, has good visuals to explain Drop (which they call, Slope), Fleam, and Rake.
Matt's book is one of the first I've seen which not only explains the process well, but also shows the necessary activities in well-done pictures.
If you are only going to get one book for sharpening hand saws, get this one.
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Other recommended books and papers are listed below alphabetically, not by preference.
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