DOH! or The Continuing Saga of Learning The Art of Saw Filing

[Jim Koepke]

It seems every time I put file to saw a new mistake of my own making is learned.

My recently acquired Jackson "Warranted Superior" back saw taught me another.

(read about the purchase here) (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?183546-Sometimes-It-s-Nice-To-Get-Out)

The saw teeth were a real mess. It had been filed for crosscut. I wanted it to be rip. So after a few sessions jointing and filing it was finally given some set and put to wood.

The saw actually cuts well and with a little tuning tracks very well. It also taught me why a smaller saw is preferred for cutting dovetails. Much easier to control for those short cuts where tracking to a line is important.

So, you may be wondering what was the "mistake?"

I should have marked some teeth for what way they were set before all the jointing and filing. Even though the filing and jointing took the teeth down pretty far, some of the new teeth snapped when setting them. I was giving them the least amount of set that my Stanley 42X will accommodate.

Just one more lesson on the road of saw rehabilitation.

I have been telling my wife that one of the next tools on my wish list is a saw tooth punching set up.

jtk

[Bill White]

That's why I'll probably send my W. Butcher backsaw to somebody. I'd go NUTS tryin' to figger out all the nuances. I'll take a plane iron or chisel any day 'cause I know what I'm doin' on those dudes.
Hey, wanna try on my saw?
Bill

[David Weaver]

I haven't filed as many saws as some here, but I have filed a lot of them, and I have not had them snap like that. The saw may be made of a plate that has too much carbon, or one that is excessively hard or not properly tempered.

Of course, I could have just been lucky so far, too. I also use a 42x, so it's not the set.

It is good practice, though, in general to mark them so you don't snap them off especially if they've been set hard or you're going to set them a good bit. On saws that have had their teeth filed down pretty far, i've never bothered, and I haven't had a lot of regard for doing it (i.e., i've been lazy and not burned by it). I guess it's easier to keep track of which way the teeth went on a crosscut saw.

At the lowest setting on a 42x, it should almost be as if you're setting only the tip of the tooth, and perhaps that's where the tooth was bent by the last set done on the saw. If it continues to snap teeth like that in the future, you may want to dedicate it to be a no-set saw, as you'll have use for that at some point, anyway.

[Jim Koepke]

If it continues to snap teeth like that in the future, you may want to dedicate it to be a no-set saw, as you'll have use for that at some point, anyway.


It is almost a no set saw now since it has been rejoined and filed again since my first post. It also got me started on a new track. One is to keep a record of how the first tooth at the heel of the saw is set. Second is to take some time later to check my saws and see if there is a standard practice of how teeth are set starting at the heel.

Now that I am getting a little better at filing saws I want to try making one from scratch. Just have to figure out where to find or how to make the slotted back. May just end up bending some brass stock.

jtk

[David Weaver]

I think bending it is a tall order because it has to be dead nuts straight. Mike wenzloff stocks saw backs, and cheap as you'll be able to find a suitable piece of brass. I'm not aware of anyone who makes folded backs and anneals them during the bend (and I haven't talked to Mike, I'm just guessing by the looks of the back, but there doesn't appear to be anything that you can't sand out).

He also has slotted backs, and you might want those if you don't want to deal with sanding out the signs of stress in the folded backs. I think slotted backs are against my religion, so I haven't tried to make a saw with one.