What Is A Coping Saw? What Is A Fret Saw? What Is A Piercing Saw? What Is A Bow Saw? What Is A Buck Saw? What Is A Plastic Saw? What Is A Floorboard Saw? What Is An Insulation Saw? What Is A Masonry Saw? What Is A Drywall Saw? What Is A Hacksaw? How To Use A Hacksaw? What Is A Junior Hacksaw? What Is A Mini Saw? What Is A Compass Saw? Can You Sharpen A Saw? What Is The 'finish'? When you consider the joinery that each tool is intended to create, the subtle differences in each saw begin to make more sense.
Both the dovetail and tenon saws are from the larger family of backsaws, which have a brass or steel stiffener mounted along the back of the blade. These tools are used to make perfectly straight cuts with high precision; the back does not allow the blade to flex when it is pushed or pulled on the cut stroke.
The blade is usually rectangular or slightly tapered to ensure that the cut depth remains uniform. The tenon saw is the most common form of the backsaw. It is intended to create the cheeks and shoulders of a tenon joint on the end of a piece of lumber. In order for this joint to fit snugly, it is important that the saw create straight and square cuts to a close tolerance.
The teeth on a tenon saw are relatively fine, with14 to 20 teeth per inch TPI. Compared to the dovetail saw, the tenon saw has a taller, heavier blade to make the 1- or 2-inch deep cuts needed for the joint. The teeth on a tenon saw are ground for making either a crosscut or a rip cut.
So which ones do you really need? Should you start with a dovetail saw? What about a tenon saw? Is that like a sash saw? And what on earth is a carcass saw? The only difference is in how the saw teeth are shaped—any size saw can be sharpened for either rip or crosscut. However, many of us find that backsaws, which have relatively small teeth, can often be used for general cuts across or with the grain—though any given saw will cut more easily in one direction than the other.
In my experience, a crosscut saw can be used for ripping, though the saw will cut slowly. But using a rip saw for crosscuts is more difficult and leaves a more ragged surface. So if I had only one backsaw, I would choose one configured for crosscutting. If I could have only two, I would choose one of each. Sharpened for ripping, the dovetail saw is optimized for making shallow cuts in end-grain, such as when cutting dovetails.
Because of the fine teeth, however, a dovetail saw can also be used for small crosscuts—for example, cutting small dowels to length. Dovetail saws typically have a fairly thin blade so as to leave a narrow kerf. The broomstick handles are cheaper but a little more difficult to learn to use.
A small, general-purpose backsaw. It is similar to the dovetail saw, but often sharpened for crosscutting. It can be used for dovetailing, small crosscuts, etc. This is a workshop workhorse, ideal for all manner of small crosscutting jobs—from cutting tenon shoulders to small miters to pretty much any small sawing jobs you can think of.
The one below is my trusty Disston 4, which is now my go-to carcass saw. If I had only one backsaw, it would be this one. While it can sometimes do double-duty as a carcass saw, it excels at ripping cuts. Notice that, compared to a carcass saw, the tenon saw has a deeper blade under the spine. Names and specifications will vary a little from manufacturer to manufacturer. Any good saw manufacturer is going to match the size of the teeth to the kind of work that the saw is best for.
When in doubt, ignore the name and look at the product description. How long is the saw? Is it optimized for crosscutting or ripping? That will tell you all you really need to know. If you have it in your budget, you will be very pleased with one of the many backsaws available from small toolmakers such as Bad-Axe. The saws offered by these makers are heirloom-quality tools that, with care, will last several lifetimes. If you prefer old tools like I do, I highly recommend an old Disston 4, which is the carcass saw I use most frequently.
There are other excellent vintage saws, however. If you find a vintage backsaw in the wild, often the teeth will be dull and need sharpening before the saw is usable.
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