Crosscut n00b (UK-based)

[Niftyprose]

Hello guys, I posted recently seeking advice (chainsaw options for part-timers, basically) and got some really interesting responses. I will update that thread in due course, as I promised. This is a spin-off query and I thought it was best to post it as a new thread. 

 

I need to be able to get into a difficult-of-access patch of woodland, so my original post concerned small, light chainsaws suitable for extended use. SBCK, one of the respondents, suggested that I might like to try using a really good handsaw instead. I had never considered doing such a thing but the idea grew on me. I spent a couple of weeks reading up on hand saws, in particular cross-cuts, and then started trawling Ebay and Gumtree.

 

Those sites are mixed blessings. On the plus side, there's a lot more old saws on the market than you might imagine. On the minus, it's hard to assess things like tooth wear and degree of pitting in a photo, plus you're up against people who will pay £30 for a piece of junk to hang on a pub wall. 

 

I assumed I'd turn up a Disston or Atkins with "cutter" and "raker" teeth, and I read up on how to sharpen those designs using jointers, spiders and so on. But mercifully I didn't yet shell out good money for a raker gauge! I turned up a 33" Tyzack saw, UK-made I believe, with a non-US tooth pattern that had no rakers. I'd call it (probably incorrectly) a "W" pattern -- see attached photo. From what I can see, this was the favoured European design in the nineteenth century and was still preferred by some on this side of the pond in the last century.

 

Can anyone give me any pointers (ahem) on sharpening? I'm guessing that the basics of filing the cutters are the same as for a US saw, but that the system of setting teeth left and right is different. 

 

TIA for any help. NP.

Edited June 26 by Niftyprose

[Niftyprose]

Aha! According to Wikipedia, this tooth pattern is properly called "Great American" -- which is a bit odd, since I've seen non-US instances from the 19th century. Anyway, I've been able to find a filing guide. Happy to discuss if anyone needs it, otherwise I'll just get on with the job. NP.

[Stere]

https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/pubs/pdfpubs/pdf77712508/pdf77712508dpi72.pdf

[GarethM]

Or just go and buy a 21" Bahco bowsaw and just replace the blades like a normal person.

 

Why do I get the mental image of a carharts ensemble?.

[Niftyprose]

Tchah! Lidl own-brand head-to-toe. (Two Ts in "Carhartt", too.)

 

Stere, thanks for the Forestry Service guide. It's good on what I think is called the Champion tooth pattern, but not so forthcoming on the so-called Great American, which is what I've got.

[GarethM]

I think we can safely assume my attire is more hobo chic.

 

I'm a farmer, you never judge what we wear at the farm supplies, usually it's like the more hobo the bigger the Bentley.

 

Just trying to say, make it more a hobby don't make it a chore or that weird guy down the pub that has an encyclopedic knowledge of rare cheese grown from cultures taken from pygmy goats off and island that fell into the sea 🙂

Edited June 27 by GarethM

[Muddy42]

I would sharpen that with a triangular file.  I clamp the saw between two thin pieces of wood and set it in a vice.  Then, like sharepning a chainsaw, some teeth are sharpened from the left some from the right.  Just follow what has been done previously. Eventually you need to reset the 'set' (the amount each tooth sticks out left or right to prevent binding) with a special tool, but I do this infrequently.

 

21 inch bowsaws are cheap and excellent.  Replace the blades regularly to avoid fatigue.

[Niftyprose]

Thanks again Muddy. Should have said that I've used a bowsaw for years but don't like the Bahco blades as well as the old Sandvik ones, and *really* don't fancy them for the size of timber I'm dealing with. I hope the cross-cut saw turns out to be a better solution. I'll post here with an update in due course, in case anyone's interested. (Will omit any further discussion of clothing styles.) NP

[sime42]

Yep, updates on stuff like this are always welcomed on here. 👍 I'll be interested to see how the old school saw turns out.

[openspaceman]

21 minutes ago, sime42 said:

Yep, updates on stuff like this are always welcomed on here. 👍 I'll be interested to see how the old school saw turns out.

My take is the kerf will be wide, which means more effort compared with a large Silky.

 

My order of preference would be 50cc saw with lo profile chain, Silky bigboy, 21" bowsaw then conventional saw.

 

As with all cutters keep them away from dirt.

 

Get a feather edge diamond file to sharpen the Silky.