Congrats to Mike Wenzloff

[Brett Baldwin]

I just paged through my latest issue of FWW and thought I recognized a back saw. Sure enough, Mike was written up in the tool section for his superior saws. We all knew how good they are already so now the word is out even more. Well deserved IMHO.

[Jake Darvall]

Good on you Mike. Good looking saws alright.

[Zahid Naqvi]

congrats Mike, it is well deserved.

[Mark Stutz]

Actually, I'm a little upset about that. Now he will be so swamped with orders that there will be no point in even placing an order for another saw.:mad: ;) :D

Seriously, I have three of his early, Type 1 models, and love them. Congratulations, Mike...well deserved praise.

Mark

[Mike K Wenzloff]

Thank you all for the kind words.

And Mark--we are taking a series of steps to lessen the current backlog (think huge) and hopefully be able to maintain a lesser lead time in the future.

First is the larger leased space and a couple people--one for the shop, one for the office--which is like adding two people to the shop as I'll be freed up to work more. That will be followed by a person who packages and ships (aside from some shop grunt work). And of course, some upgraded equipment.

As I mentioned on another forum, we have made many saws for various forum members for which I am thankful. But it is the encouragement and the day to day wise words shared with me via PMs, emails, and phone calls that is priceless to me.

Take care, Mike

[Jim Becker]

Kewel...I'm going to have to check that out...my issue just arrived.

Congrats Mike!

[Mark Singer]

Mike well deserved! You are making the best saws!

[Ryan Cathey]

That will be followed by a person who packages and ships (aside from some shop grunt work).

Man, too bad you don't live closer Mike. That'd be the perfect job for me!! :D

[Chuck Nickerson]

"Great, now my saws will never be done." But Mike deserves the write-up. I just need to find these folks sooner in the publicity cycle. :-)

[Mike K Wenzloff]

Thank you all for the kind words.

Well, Ryan, the same could be said about you <g>.

Chuck--no worries...Mike

[Dave Anderson NH]

I have 2 of Mike's saws, a half back and a custom sized and made dovetail saw. Both are exquisite performers in addition to being beautiful. The half back gets used primarily for quickie crosscuts at the bench and the 18tpi 7" small dovetail saw is designed and used for thin stock where a longer saw is awkward.

Congrats Mike

[Steve Clardy]

Congrats Mike

[Bob Smalser]

I'd one day like to see you displace Roberts and Lee and Thomas Flynn in this country with a better, taper-ground hand saw. That's severalfold your size now, but it's certainly possible.

[Andrew Homan]

I'd one day like to see you displace Roberts and Lee and Thomas Flynn in this country with a better, taper-ground hand saw. That's severalfold your size now, but it's certainly possible.

Does anyone currently sell Roberts and Lee in the U.S.? I've seen Thomas Flynn for sale from a variety of vendors but have only seen R&L from English vendors over the last couple of years. At the moment, there is not as much variety in handsaws (appropriate for cabinetmaking) being sold in the U.S. as there is in backsaws. I think that I spotted a LN crosscut handsaw in a Rob Cosman video, but that is from several years back and there is no sign that they are about to start making them.
-Andy

[Michael Pilla]

Highland Woodworking sells the Roberts and Lee saws.

hth,
Michael

[Don Orr]

...well deserved. Also saw the mention on the back page of Pop. WW recently. :D Great job all around!

[Andrew Homan]

Highland Woodworking sells the Roberts and Lee saws.

Thanks, at first I just saw backsaws there but now see that they stock 26" rip and crosscut saws. Still, not nearly the complete line:
http://www.toolpost.co.uk/pages/Woodworking_Tools/Roberts___Lee/roberts___lee.html
-Andy

[Mike K Wenzloff]

Thanks for the note Bob.

I think there will always be a fundamental cost issue. We do make any size taper ground hand saw. Shortest we've done is 16", longest is 30". Nearly any handle style.

As for "lines" of saws, TBT carries the 20" and 26" Kenyon rip/cross cut saws that are taper ground. There is another company in Maine (no, not them) which we will be making 5 hand saws for at the start of 2008. Those will be 28" and 24" rip/CC models, all taper ground, and a larger backsaw.

Take care, Mike

[Bob Smalser]

When any of those companies can hands-down beat out a run-of-the-mill D-8 made before 1928 in taper, polish, edge retantion and ease of sharpening, I'll pay attention. So far I haven't seen or heard of one, and I'll settle for a D-8. Equaling a #16 or #12 is beyond my wildest dreams.

You're our last hope, Obi Wan.

[Wiley Horne]

Hi All,

Just to join the chorus......Mike is a premier maker in terms of both quality and customization. People are going to look back and say "I wish I had ordered from Mike when he was getting started." My saw is 28" rip, 6 ppi, breasted, progressive rake. He made it with a strong taper and fairly light set. The teeth-to-back taper is about 10 thousandths toward the far end and 7 thousandths midblade. The set is 6 or 7 thousandths each side. Very, very sharp saw. The handle wood is magnificent. It's the hand saw pictured on Mike's website.

My suggestion is get on the wait list right now. He's receiving orders from around the globe. Because there's no one else in the world doing what Mike's doing, in a western saw, and if you go to Japan to get his level of customization, you pay multiple times the price. Buy the best and it only hurts once.

Wiley

[Ken Werner]

I'm jumping in here too to wish Mike well. He sure does make a sweet saw. Mine rests between jobs in a place of shop honor.

[Ryan Cathey]

The D-8 was the first saw that really made me think that I could possibly completely powerless. Mine is a ripsaw with the thumbhole and is super sharp. I found it in a antique shop and probably overpaid (20 bucks) but man when I first tried it out and it chewed up 1/4" to 3/8" each pass on some 4/4, wow...just wow.

[Andrew Homan]

There is another company in Maine (no, not them) which we will be making 5 hand saws for at the start of 2008.

Ooo ooo I think I know who that is! 28" rip sounds good to me. My current rip saw is a 20" pax, I think I often get 1/4" to 3/8" per stroke with it, in ash, birch, and maple, but it would be nice to have a longer, more aggressive rip saw.