Tenon Saw

[Joel Goodman]

I am looking for a tenon saw -- I'm thinking 14". I notice that Mike Wenzloff and Adria use a sawplate of .025 -- the LN is .032 but their 16" is .02. Bad Axe has a bunch of choices but I think in the .02 to .025 range for a 14" saw. My dovetail saw is .02 and for a ham fisted idiot like me I'm thinking that would be too fragile for such a big saw as the 16". To complicate matters I have a $70 credit at LN so that makes their saws very attractive. Does anyone have the 14" rip (or 12") tenon saw from LN and how is it? Is the thicker than usual sawplate an issue? What were sash saws traditionally?

[Andrew Hughes]

Hi Joel,I have a Ln rip saw and Adria rip.I like the Adria better Dont know what is it is but i seem to do better with the adria.For my best work i reach for the adria saws.Hope this helps. Andrew

[Joel Goodman]

Adria has got the thinner sawplate -- I wonder if that's why you like it better?

[Chris Griggs]

I have the LN 14 crosscut, but not the rip. When I first got it I found myself wondering if I wouldn't like a thinner sawplate better - now I don't think it would matter all that much. The plate on the LN is certainly thicker than a DT saw, but it doesn't seem unusually thick by any means. I think it's the same thickness as my 16" vintage Disston tenon saw which I love, possibly even slightly thinner.

I have also tried the Adria 12 inch crosscut, but not the rip. Kinda comparing apples to oranges here but the Adria cut nicer then the LN I have. This may be due to the thinner plate and smaller size, but my hunch is that it has a superior sharpening job compared to the LN. Don't get me wrong - the LN is a great well sharpened saw, but the Adria seems a step up in terms of how it actually cut.

This shouldn't really be all that surprising. When you by a Bad Axe, Adria, or Wenzloff, etc... you are buying form people who specialize in sharpening saws, and for me that came through when I tried the Adria.

Anyway, if I were buying a 14 inch tenon saw now in the <$200 price range (I believe Bad Axe and some Wenzloffs are a little pricier), I'd go with the Adria or the Wenzloff that Lee Valley sells over the LN.

However, personally, I'd choose a 16" over a 14" for a tenon saw. Just my two cents...

[James Owen]

Have both the rip and x-cut 14" LNs. Like them both very much. Got to play a bit with the longer 18" Bad Axe tenon saw that a student brought to one of my classes; also a very fine saw. Have also used several vintage Disston and other off-brand tenon saws: don't know that I see any real difference in any of them, as far as cutting goes. Main difference is the comfort of the handles..... Don't think you can go wrong with any of the premium grade tenon saws....

[Bob Smalser]

Why spend more than required? Make one.

Miter saws are worthless without the miter box, and sell cheap. With nothing more than a hacksaw and grinder you can cut one down into a perfect carcass saw also suitable for tenons.

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/9131162/271956084.jpg

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/9131162/397744325.jpg

I like to have two of each because I work in green and airdried softwoods as well as dry, cabinet hardwoods....one filed crosscut and the other rip.

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/9131162/274961556.jpg

[Steve Branam]

Bob, why cut the back off the end? Is that to reduce the weight for better control, or some other reason? My wife picked up a miter saw and damaged miter box for me at an auction last year. The saw is pretty heavy, so I could see lightening it up to use without the box.

[Bob Smalser]

Bob, why cut the back off the end?

???

The tip is profiled so the saw can reach into tight places in boatbuilding or carcass work during restorations.

The heel of the lower saw came from the factory that way.

[Jim Matthews]

The relief at the back of the saw is there to keep me from cutting my thumb, again.

[Bob Smalser]

???

http://www.disstonianinstitute.com/glossary/glssawillus.gif

[David Weaver]

Get any of the saws, choose specs now, and then when you get them, forget about looking at more saws and reviews of saws unless you find out you can't actually build something with yours.

I would choose a .025 or .020 sawplate for a 14 inch tenon saw. My english 14 inch tenon saw is .02, and I put together a 16 inch saw with a .025 plate and a thick spine. I wouldn't like a thinner plate on it.

One thing that building your own saws (kits or not) does for you is get you to realize that once you have a saw that works, you don't need to keep running around looking for more arrows - it's the indian that counts. Somehow, putting your own together or doing like Bob has done and making one the way you want doesn't necessarily make a better saw that you could buy, but it takes away the urge to buy because ... why would you swap out something that you made for something that you didn't?