Flush Cut Saw Recommendations

[Tommy Emmons]

I am looking for a flush cut saw to cut 3/4" plywood. I bought a saw from Woodcraft that has 20 tpi and cuts on the pull stroke. It is sooooo slow. Do I need a cross cut saw or what so that I can cut a piece of 3/4" plywood flush with a shelf. Would a cross cut saw damage the shelf? Any recommendatiions would be appreciated. I did a seach and did not find a match that dealt with this issue. Thanks in advance.

[Mike Henderson]

A flush cut saw is usually used to cut small things, like a wooden plug standing proud, and not big things. I bought one from Lee Valley and it works fine for trimming small things flush.

Mike

[Bob Smalser]

Plywood and hand tools are generally a poor mix, and I can't imagine many situations where I'd allow thick, 3/4" plywood to overhang so it had to be cut flush with any precision, let alone using hand tools. Find another way if you can.

Otherwise you need a couple serious crosscut saws with enough taper to run without set. That means a Disston #12 or #16 like I used here on half-inch Doug Fir. Two or more because plywood will dull them quickly.

http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL12/1104763/7309305/95249350.jpg

[Tim Sgrazzutti]

Plywood will quickly wreck any handsaw, and if it's one like your japanese saw that can't be resharpened, then you're SOL. Me, I'd make sure the edge was flush at assembly, but if it didn't turn out that way, I'd use a flush cut bit on a router to clean it up.

[Pedro Reyes]

Like Bob said, handtools and plywood = bad. Plywood is filled with very abrasive adhesives which damage your carefully sharpened tools, in addition you may be cross cuting a layer and ripping the next on plywood so handtools are a poor choice.

If you still can avoid having to cut flush and rather cut to measure, then do that and use whatever powered saw you have (jig, circular, table). If not I would use one of those multipurpose Shark saws from the Mega-lo-mart (orange box) and cut as close as I could without damaging the sides and then sand (painful).

sorry I can't offer any simple solution, it is an unusual situation.

/p

[Mike K Wenzloff]

I am looking for a flush cut saw to cut 3/4" plywood. I bought a saw from Woodcraft that has 20 tpi and cuts on the pull stroke. It is sooooo slow. Do I need a cross cut saw or what so that I can cut a piece of 3/4" plywood flush with a shelf. Would a cross cut saw damage the shelf? Any recommendatiions would be appreciated. I did a seach and did not find a match that dealt with this issue. Thanks in advance.
fwiw, there's nothing wrong with the saw you bought, it just isn't made for this application like Mike wrote.

If you have no choice but to cut the ply in-place, there is a relatively good option.

A Shark Saw brand saw like the one in the picture has a 9 tpi rip and a 17 tpi cross cut side. The 9 tpi rip cuts ply extremely well and the replacement blades are relatively inexpensive. But there is set to the saw, so you cannot flush cut with it. The set is fairly little.

Make sure to apply tape (a couple layers) against the shelf edge to help protect it. Layout a cut line a skosh out from the shelf's edge and plan on sanding.

http://www.sharkcorp.com/Graphics/ARTsharksaw/102440.jpg

The best thing to do if possible is cut to size before putting the ply in place, test fit, plane and sand to final size--and plan on sharpening the plane blade before, during and after using it.

Take care, Mike

[Doug Shepard]

I've done Mike's Sharksaw suggestion and it works very well but you'll still have a bit of sanding to do. They do also make replacement blades for it with more TPI for a smoother cut, but that's going to slow it down, so there's a trade-off there. I'd do Tim's suggestion of a flush trim router bit - fast, clean, and should need very little additional cleanup.

[Tommy Emmons]

Sorry that I did not explain the situation more clearly. I have a friend who tried to modify his built-in existing entertainment center to accept a large flat screen TV. He went at it, initially with a recipricating saw and has a mess on his hands. That is why I am trying to help him salvage the operation. He has a plywood shelf (horizontal) that intersects a vertical plywood support board. The support board has been notched (sawsall) back about 8 inches. This has left a 1/2" tall piece of plywood standing above the shelf. We need to cut this 8" piece of plywood to be flush with the shelf. The alternative is to cut many vertical cuts down to the level of the shelf and remove the "stalks" with a chisel and then sand. It will not look great in any case, but it will salvage the existing entertainment center. Thanks for the input so far.

[Bob Smalser]

This has left a 1/2" tall piece of plywood standing above the shelf. We need to cut this 8" piece of plywood to be flush with the shelf.

The 20-dollar Shark saw shown will work fine on small jobs like this one.

[Tony Zaffuto]

Can't say anything else to help with the sawing, but I will add that your friend better pay attention to the structural integrity remaining in the entertainment center. Flat screen TVs weight less that traditional tube TVs, but there still is cosiderable weight. Don't know if it is the bout of flu I've had now for the past six day, but I can't visualize what it is you are cutting away.

T.Z.