Pair Of Shop Made Backsaws

[Mike Allen1010]

Below are some photos of a pair of what I would call "sash" saws I recently built with parts from Wentzloff and split nuts from TFWW.

The handles are Cocobolo finished with blonde shellac and wax. The longer saw is 16” x 3” depth of cut with a .020” thick saw plate. Filed crosscut, 12 points per inch.

The smaller saw his 14” x 3” depth of cut with a .018” thick saw plate. Filed crosscut, 14 points per inch.

I prefer backsaws that are longer, with thinner saw plates than may be typical. I built these saws for use on my bench hook/mini miter box for trimming rails, styles, drawer sides etc.

This is about the fourth generation of backsaws like this I've built. In earlier versions I struggled with accurately fitting the split nuts and introducing bows in the Saw Plate with the attachment of the split nuts.

Thanks to the coaching of many here on the Creek, particularly Ray, Klaus, George etc., this time around I've been able to lick these problems and this latest generation of saws works very well. They are a pleasure to use.

The things that overtime worked best for me are:

· Drill press not hand drill
· Punch not drill holes in saw plate
· Slit not laminated brass back
· Practice

There are many here that are much more expert than me and better qualified to comment on the "right" way to build saws.

I have one more thin-plate dovetail saw (birds eye maple) in process and when that's done, my till of shop-made backsaws will be complete (12 in total). The downside is I'm going to need to get rid of some of my vintage rehabilitated backsaws to make room for the new arrivals.

I never would have attempted to build these saws if it weren't for the inspiration and expertise I got from everyone here on the Creek and I'm really grateful for both.

Thanks for looking,
Mike

[Maurice Ungaro]

Gorgeous work! I'm sure the coaching helped. I'd have screwed it up 6 ways to Sunday.

[george wilson]

Very pretty saws!!

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Looks terrific - nice job on the double notches, too - I was just working on that detail on a repaired handle, and it's harder than it looks . . .

What did you use to punch the plates?

[jerry nazard]

Very nice!! Looking forward to seeing the dovetail saw!!

-Jerry

[Dave Beauchesne]

Mike:

Looks like you want to give Klaus und Pedder a run for their money - seriously, verrrrrry nice work.

Dave B

[Salem Ganzhorn]

Mike I really like those!
Thanks for sharing!!
Salem

[Pedder Petersen]

very, very beautiful!

Have a lot of fun with them. But I fear you will continue to make saws. It is highly addictive.

Cheers
Pedder

[Klaus Kretschmar]

Beautiful saws, Mike!

The wood choice and the grain orientation are perfect. The shaping of the handles you did great. I like especially the tight fit the spine has in the handle, you know what you are doing. And the finish of the handle and of the spine is an eyecatcher as well. It gives a very nice touch that you sculpted the toe of the spine this way. Those carefully made details make the difference, the appeal of the whole saw benefits.

As Pedder said, take care, saw making might get addictive!

Cheers
Klaus

[Mike Holbrook]

Nice work Mike! I am further up the same slope. I fear you are encouraging me to slide even further down. Mike Wenzloff warned me about drilling holes in saw plates, but I confess I have no idea how to punch holes in a saw plate, even if I were Bruce Lee? I am waiting for the WATCO on the handle of my Wenzloff Half-Back kit to dry. Then I get to see if the carriage type bolts will work in the lousy semi mortises I attempted to cut inside the holes for the bolt heads. You are so right about that being a tough job. I want try it again without a corner chisel or some specialized tool. I guess Gramercy has that figured out with their nuts that use special washers instead of carriage type bolts. A set of those Gramercy nuts is relatively expensive though and I find it hard to locate them on their web site too. There must be some better way to attach handles to saw plates. I am not so sure I like the idea of the Gramercy "toothed" washer as I am concerned they may destroy wood like the carriage bolts often seem to. Maybe a simple split lock washer would work the best, if there is one thin enough in a usable metal.

Did you polish those blades? I have been working my kit blade with a little Brasso trying to get a little more reflection. May need some very fine sandpaper. I think you ordered plain, no nut holes, plates from Wenzloff as I don't think plates that long are normally available that thin. I too am trying to get longer thinner plates, it is another challenge we face. I will probably just buy a couple saws so I will have the tools to cut the large tenons for my work bench. Wenzloff has been so backed up and Mike said he may change his product offerings for kits/parts as well and I can get finished saws for the price of Gramercy's kits. I like the LN large tenon saw with the thin plate for ripping tenons but at present their 14" CC tenon saw is .032. The LN Carcass Saw has a .020 blade but the blade is only 11". The Adria Large Tenon Saw has a 14x4 blade that is available CC in .025 so I think it has moved to the top of my list for a CC bench saw although I would prefer 14 - 15 ppi over the 11 ppi it comes with.

One can become a little spoiled concerning getting exactly what one wants once the slide down the custom tool slope starts.

[David Weaver]

Nicely made saws, mike. You get the marathoner's trophy for making 12 of your own saws!

[Bill White]

Want me to try 'em out for ya?
Beautiful work there old man.
Bill

[Chris Griggs]

Those are sooooooooooooooooooo nice! Very inspiring Mike!

[Mike Allen1010]

Thanks everyone for your nice comments; they really mean a lot coming from the talented people here on the creek.

One of the great things about the creek is this community of people with a shared interest in woodworking and hand tools. Somehow my wife just doesn't seem to appreciate my shop made tools as much as the folks here!

Josh, I used an inexpensive hand punch I purchased from Harbor freight for around $15 area I don't remember the model number, but it looks like a large staple gun with interchangeable size punches you thread into the tool. Punching the holes in the thinner plates is pretty easy, but once you get up to .025" and .035" thick plates, I have to lean on the handle pretty hard.

Mike, I use the Gramercy split nuts exactly because for me the "star" washers are a lot easier than cutting mortises for the square shank of the saw bolts. That said, I love Mike W. saws and saw parts as they give me the flexibility to build the specific kind of tools I'm interested in. Mike has always been extremely helpful in providing the specific kinds of parts I'm looking for, even if they're not standard sizes. If you ask him, he will probably let you order any combination of length,width, PPI and thickness you want, you just indicated in the drop down comments section the specific, nonstandard dimensions you're looking for.

I lightly polish the plates with Brasso and a buffing wheel. I try not to heat them up too much -- I don't know if it matters but I really don't know much about metallurgy and I'm afraid of investing all the time and energy to build the saw, just to warp it with final polishing.


All the best, Mike

[Tom Vanzant]

Mike,
That sounds like a Greenlee punch or copy of it. Very good tool within its limits.
Tom

[Mike Holbrook]

Mike, Mike W is a great guy to work with, very helpful as you say. He has offered to make quite a few mods from the standard in our conversations as well. I am sure I will be back for more kits & parts once he gets caught up. I have decided that I can't make everything though, my tool to make list is pretty daunting at the moment.

I agree that the "star" washers are easier than the PITA job of cutting those little mortises in those difficult spots. I would love to hear your long term experience on how they affect the wood they are used on. I have multiple old saw handles I am trying to figure out how to restore. My largest stumbling block on handle restoration at the moment is destroyed wood in the area of old bolt mortises. My question on that particular type of toothed washer has to do with whether or not they wear the wood under them away or soften it until the bolts want hold.