Hand Saw Sharpening

[justin gunter]

Good Evening,
A while back I purchased a Stanley Miter Box with a Disston saw that I plan to restore. Is there anyone who can recommend someone in the Houston, Texas area that can sharpen the saw? I plan to clean the saw myself but I would like to have it sharpened by a knowledgable person because I have no experience with saw sharpening.
Thank you,
J.D.

[Mark Dorman]

You might ask at one of your local Woodcraft stores.
I use google maps to search sometimes. You just put in your address, enter then clear the line and put in saw sharpening hit enter and see what pops up.

[Mark Dorman]

Holcombe Saw Shop
3692 Texas 19
Huntsville, TX 77320

Conroe Saw & Knife Services
Willis, TX 77318



I don't know if those are good hits or not.
This is one way to search on google maps. Enter saw sharpening service near Spring, TX

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Not to put a downer on Mark's suggestion, but make sure whoever you go to has experience with handsaws - a lot of these places are more geared to sharpening power saws, but that doesn't mean they won't say no. We had a thread here a while back with a creeker who took his saw somewhere and they didn't do a very good job, and removed a *lot* of plate in the process, if I remember correctly.

Mitre saws are a pain to sharpen, mostly because there's so many darn teeth.

[Dave Parkis]

I also suggest you check and make sure wherever you take the saw to has experience with hand saws. I took three backsaws to a local guy who had been sharpening saws for 20 years. Come to find out, he'd been sharpening chainsaws, circular saw blades, etc. It cost me $40 to have him make my saws worse than when I dropped them off. If you're not in a big hurry, I'd suggest sending them to one of the guys here that really knows what he's doing. It might cost you a little more, but you'll get a MUCH better job. My $.02.

[Mark Dorman]

I agree with you Joshua; proceed with caution and ask a lot of questions.
You may want to consider sending it to someone like Matt Cianci or Bad Axe; this is what they do for a living and are very good at it.
If all else fails go to Vintage saws and read up on doing it your self.

[Jim Koepke]

Justin,

Welcome to the inquiring side of the Creek. Looks like you have been watching a long time before venturing your question.

My feeling goes with Mark's. Take a visit to the Library at: www.vintagesaws.com and maybe give this a go on your own.

With a little care and patience you will be amazed at how even a first timer's efforts will improve a saw. There is nothing that will increase your understanding of sawing intricacies than taking the maintenance of your saws into your own hands.

If the thought of doing this to your good say frightens you, purchase a piece of junk saw to try on first.

jtk

[Charlie Stanford]

Good Evening,
A while back I purchased a Stanley Miter Box with a Disston saw that I plan to restore. Is there anyone who can recommend someone in the Houston, Texas area that can sharpen the saw? I plan to clean the saw myself but I would like to have it sharpened by a knowledgable person because I have no experience with saw sharpening.
Thank you,
J.D.

I wouldn't have my sharpening debut be with a mission-critical saw destined to go with your miter box. And I would not clean it before you send it to whomever you ultimately select. Matt Cianci gets pretty good reviews. Google him.

[Jim Matthews]

I agree with you Joshua; proceed with caution and ask a lot of questions.
You may want to consider sending it to someone like Matt Cianci or Bad Axe; this is what they do for a living and are very good at it.
If all else fails go to Vintage saws and read up on doing it your self.

Matt Cianci is quoting a lengthy delay, on the order of months.
Bad Axe has a huge backorder of saws that they're selling.

I would ask them if they know someone closer to your door.
That said, we should be able to sharpen our own saws, shouldn't we?

[Jim Matthews]

+1 on avoiding shops that do this by machine.

It's a recipe for heartache - reduced plated depth and fewer, larger teeth.
This is something worth doing yourself.

[Jim Koepke]

I wouldn't have my sharpening debut be with a mission-critical saw destined to go with your miter box.

For me, that was my third saw.

That is also why my suggestion was to purchase a piece of junk saw for a little practice. If one finds saw filing is beyond their ability, then send it off. It is more likely one will discover how saw filing isn't rocket surgery and become enthusiastic about fixing up more old saws.

jtk

[justin gunter]

I wouldn't have my sharpening debut be with a mission-critical saw destined to go with your miter box. And I would not clean it before you send it to whomever you ultimately select. Matt Cianci gets pretty good reviews. Google him.

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions, they are appreciated.
I was really happy to find the saw and box and want it to be a great performer. I had thought about learning to sharpen my own saws and I have a saw to practice on. I am leaning toward learning to sharpen. I also thought about sending the saw to Bad Axe as well. Also giving them a call to see if they know some one closer is a good idea. Calling Woodcraft is a good idea as well.
My question to Mr. Stanford is why should I not clean the saw before sending it away? I think I read at the Bad Axe web site that cleaning after sharpening will dull the saw. I'm interested in your thoughts.
Thanks again to everyone for posting a reply.

[Charlie Stanford]

Matt Cianci is quoting a lengthy delay, on the order of months.
Bad Axe has a huge backorder of saws that they're selling.

I would ask them if they know someone closer to your door.
That said, we should be able to sharpen our own saws, shouldn't we?

Well, of course we should. But false bravado and early disappointment are not helpful. That's a James Krenov quote for what it's worth.

One needs to learn on a couple or three junque saws, if you get my drift. Again, I would not start the process with my stable of joinery saws.

[Chris Griggs]

Well, of course we should. But false bravado and early disappointment are not helpful. That's a James Krenov quote for what it's worth.

One needs to learn on a couple or three junque saws, if you get my drift. Again, I would not start the process with my stable of joinery saws.


Agreed.

To the OP....Two alternatives who probably have shorter wait periods and reportedly both do very good work. There not in TX and you'll have to send the saw out but you want someone who knows what they're doing.


http://logancabinetshoppe.com/saw-sharpening.php


http://www.secondchancesawworks.com/resteration-and-sharpening-services


But then, yes....make a point to learn to file your own saws at some point. Its a valuable skill to have but I think its good to learn how to use a well filed well tuned saw first so that you know what you're aiming for.

[Chris Vandiver]

Here is a link to very good info in regard to cleaning/refurbishing your saw; http://home.grics.net/~weir/saw_restoration.html

Marv Werner is a very good saw sharpener/restorer. He is located in California. He's one of the best. You can reach him pretty easily over on the woodnet forums. He goes by MarvW over there.

Shipping a saw isn't that costly and a proper sharpening job is well worth it.

[Gary Hodgin]

It's also good to start with a properly sharpened saw both for using and learning to sharpen. I'm working on learning hand saw sharpening myself mainly because there's no one around here that I'm aware of who regularly sharpens hand saws.

I've used Daryl Weir and have been happy with the results. However, it's expensive when you factor in shipping and there's the wait. Recently, one of the options listed above told me there was a 3 weeks backup.

I realize I am unlikely to ever reach the level of expertise of the above, but I'd just like to get "good enough."

[lowell holmes]

I've had several saws sharpened at Circle Saw in Houston. They retoothed an old D-8 saw and sharpened it to 8pti. It is now my goto panel saw.

I would not hesitate to have a miter box saw sharpened there. They are at 2510 Ella Blvd Houston.

They hand sharpened a 12" carcass saw for me.

They will not ruin your saw.

I am not trying to discourage having Daryl or other specialists sharpening the saw.

[justin gunter]

I've had several saws sharpened at Circle Saw in Houston. They retoothed an old D-8 saw and sharpened it to 8pti. It is now my goto panel saw.

I would not hesitate to have a miter box saw sharpened there. They are at 2510 Ella Blvd Houston.

They hand sharpened a 12" carcass saw for me.

They will not ruin your saw.

I am not trying to discourage having Daryl or other specialists sharpening the saw.

I had contacted Circle Saw. They will do a good job?

[Jim Matthews]

It is more likely one will discover how saw filing isn't rocket surgery...jtk

Most rockets, in need of medical attention are beyond surgical intervention.
- OR -
Surgery that can only be performed at high G's followed by a brief moment of quiet at brenschluss?
- OR -
That new chain of Renton drive through robotic surgery clinics, known for their speedy procedure rate?

[lowell holmes]

Well, they have always done a good job for me. I've had 6 or 7 saws sharpened there. You will want to stone the side of the teeth afterwards to get the proper set on the teeth. They do sharpen on a machine.

Their price is low and if you are not satisified with the saw afterwards, some one else can do it again.

If you don't trust them, Woodcaraft is an option.

I'm not trying to sell their service. You posted a request for saw sharpening services in the Houston area. I was just responding.

Good luck!

[Jacob Nothstine]

Just had a 24" back saw for my miter box sharped by Bob of Logan Cabinet shop. He did a great job was real happy.

http://logancabinetshoppe.com/saw-sharpening.php

[Tom Vanzant]

FWIW, Woodcraft of North Houston recommended Circle Saw for sharpening handsaws.

[David Weaver]

IF you can get a place to do a nice job with a machine, I'd think it makes a lot more sense than sending your saw off to a guru, paying for the service and shipping two ways. If you use your saws often enough, that is a an expensive proposition.

I think saw sharpening has taken on almost a circus atmosphere. I saw a dovetail saw on ebay last week that was sharpened with sloped gullets.

Let them do up a fresh set of teeth and start you off with good geometry and you can decide if they're so cheap that you have no interest in sharpening your own saws.