Finished building my first handsaw!

[David Kuzdrall]

Thanks to the advice of folks on this forum and two fantastic vendors (Issac @ Blackburn Tools and Ron @ Bontz Toolworks) I have completed my first handsaw.

My goal was to build something a bit larger than usual as I typically dovetail 3/4" - 7/8" stock and would like to gang rip the tailboards at times. What I ended up with is a 12" saw with 2.75" under the spline and a handle patterned after a Sheffield Constantine design with a more aggressive hang and sized to my hands.

I used quartered walnut for the handle and shaped it with a drill press, scroll saw, spindle sander and rasps. The flats on the top and bottom of the handle were sanded by using PSA backed sandpaper stuck to an old card scraper. This allowed me to get into the tight areas and keep from rounding over the profile for a nice, sharp look.

The saw back is slotted brass that was compressed at Scott Smith's place using one of his presses for a compression fit (I also put some blue loctite in for good measure).

The finish is Danish oil topped with some thinned varnish. I still need to buff on some carnuba to the entire saw to officially "finish" it but I will likely wait a few more days to ensure the handle is cured.

Now I really need to learn how to sharpen these things...

Thanks again to Ron, Issac and Scott Smith!

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[David Weaver]

That is a *very* good first saw. You made a smart move by enlisting the advice of folks who have done it to come up with a good saw, one that will be as good as anything you can buy (which makes the effort worthwhile).

The hang and the plate together look pretty good, it will be a fairly aggressive saw with regular rake (i might be telling you things you know long ago now), but the aggression pays off when you want to use it up high in a moxon vise or something, or when you have to cut tails or pins in something much longer than the height of your bench.

[Steve Voigt]

Gorgeous looking saw!

[Chris Vandiver]

Very nice!

[C Scott McDonald]

Wow, I have big hands so I have always wanted to build my own saw so I can make a bigger handle for a more comfortable grip.

Nicely done.

[Chris Griggs]

Very nice indeed. Better than my first for sure!

[Max Withers]

Beautiful handle! How did you design it?

[Scott T Smith]

Outstanding David!

[Peter Pedisich]

David,

Nicely detailed!! very crisp, nicely proportioned, and who doesn't love Walnut?
Thanks for sharing.

-Pete

[Derek Cohen]

Very nice line to the handle, David. How does it feel in the hand? Rounded off enough?

Teeth ppi? Did you go coarser than 15 or16 for 3/4" boards?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[David Kuzdrall]

Very nice line to the handle, David. How does it feel in the hand? Rounded off enough?

Teeth ppi? Did you go coarser than 15 or16 for 3/4" boards?

Regards from Perth

Derek

the saw feels good in the hand, and yes it is round off enough. The sharp transition line on the contour of the grips is mainly for show, the angle where they meet is actually very shallow and can not be felt when gripping the saw.

The saw was punched at 14ppi, rip but I still have to file it. My other, traditional DT saw is 16ppi so I still have a finer one in the till when needed.

to answer a previous post regarding the design process....

the pattern was drawn in DraftSight, a free open source CAD that is similar to older versions of autocad. I first located a pattern on backsaw.net that I liked, dimensioned it the a fellow creeker imported it into the Dwg file. I then gripped as many different saws that I could find to determine the ideal dimensions between the horns and on the inside of the grip to best size the saw to my hand. I then redrew the saw handle using these key dimensions, a more aggresive hang and referencing design elements from the original pattern but being careful not to simply copy.

thanks for all the compliments!

[Mike Holbrook]

It is a thing of beauty! I am wondering what tools you used to get such a neat job on the handle. I made a Wenzloff half-back kit and I have reduced the handle twice now, trying to get it just right using Iwasaki and Gramercy rasps.

[Jim Matthews]

While I admire the look, I can't help but wonder about the longevity of a handle with this grain orientation.

Do you have a spare handle made?
I'm leery of so much unsupported grain on the lower horn.

Good onya to get Ron Bontz in your corner.
That guy gets it right.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Great job David!

The grain orientation doesn't seem different from what I normally see, to m, Jim. I'd certainly rather have the strongest orientation through the "neck" of the saw between the handle and the cheek.

Maybe I'm off, I've never done this before.

[Isaac Smith]

Very nicely done, David, especially for a first try. Good job on getting the saw bolts flush and tightly fitted. It's not always easy to do.

[David Kuzdrall]

While I admire the look, I can't help but wonder about the longevity of a handle with this grain orientation.

Do you have a spare handle made?
I'm leery of so much unsupported grain on the lower horn.

Good onya to get Ron Bontz in your corner.
That guy gets it right.

As far as my research shows, I selected the optimal grain orientation. The orientation in the neck area is key but I do see where your comment is coming from. Time will tell but that lower horn on mine does not look too much more delicate than those on the Bad Axe saws with similar grain orientation.

[David Kuzdrall]

It is a thing of beauty! I am wondering what tools you used to get such a neat job on the handle. I made a Wenzloff half-back kit and I have reduced the handle twice now, trying to get it just right using Iwasaki and Gramercy rasps.

The tools I used for shaping after the profile was cut on the drill press using forstner bits and on the scroll saw were:
10" cabinet makers rasp, coarse, from Liogier (this was used the least)
8" cabinet makers rasp, med/fine grain from Liogier
handle makers rasp from Gramercy (would have used one from Liogier but the backorder is deep at the moment)
rats tail rasp from Liogier just for the transition in the handle where the spline terminates

[Maurice Ungaro]

David, great job! Look forward to seeing some results of its use!

[David Kuzdrall]

David, great job! Look forward to seeing some results of its use!

The first result will be the construction of a saw vice !

[Jim Matthews]

Gotcha.

I've never made one of these, and can't figure out where the real forces are applied.
(Unless I drop a saw, and it invariably lands handle first.)

[jason thigpen]

That is a great first saw! Looking forward to seeing your second and third attempts in the future. You are going to enjoy that quarter sawn walnut. I used some for a miter saw handle a while back and haven't regretted it once.