I’ve been on the fence in ordering a couple Wenzloff and Sons hand/panel saws for a while now (hell, I would have had them already). Both a rip and a crosscut.
Example reasons for the crosscut: cutting down longer boards to make them easier to deal with in a smallish shop, and also initial squaring off of wide table tops and such after glue-up (don’t have a sliding table on my table saw, and couldn’t fit one in my shop anyway). I frequently work with thicker boards as well, so that’s a factor.
One example use for the rip saw is sawing a flat surface along airdried logs in order to have a starting point for jointing either by hand or on my 12″ jointer, or going straight to the bandsaw.
The questions: length? For crosscut, I’m thinking 10-12 ppi, and for rip, 8-10. Opinions? Thanks.
Edited 7/29/2008 3:30 pm ET by sykesville
Replies
call Mike Wenzloff and ask his recommendation; he is very accommodating and not at all pushy. jmho, ymmv.
. . . and i am still patiently awaiting my saws from him.
I've got enough handsaws to outfit several of these handtool forums, but I still treated myself to a couple of Mike Wenzloff's very fine saws. Got two 16" half-back saws in 9 pt. crosscut and 7pt. rip late in spring. Truly a pleasure to use!
I would suggest you telephone Mike and BS with him about what type of work you intend to do and he'll come up with some suggestions as far as ppi and type of sharpening job. You can also specify what type of wood you want him to use for the handles.
T.Z.
I recommend you buy those saws post haste. Mike's back log isn't going away soon and he's heading to a conference in November chocked full of potential customers who will get to see at least some samples of his wares first hand. What I would do if I were you is I'd contact him IMMEDIATELY and place an order and ask him if you can change the order later. Give the guy some money and get on his schedule. I seriously wouldn't wait 20 minutes. Mike makes the best hand saws made today. And that's coming from a sawmaker.
As to the saws you need, you need a rip saw sized to your stroke. Kneel on a saw horse like you are holding down a plank. Hold a tape measure in your left hand, with that hand on the horse. Pull the tape with your right hand like you are sawing a board. Record the dimension. You want a saw that's a little bit longer. Chances are if you are much over 6', you'll want a 28" saw. If you are 5'9"-6' a 26" saw will be best. 5'9" and under, get a 24". I find female workers have shorter strokes so I would subtract 2" for each. My wife is 5'11" and I think she'd be more comfortable with a 24" saw.
For the cross cut, ask Mike's opinion. Mine is that a 20" x-cut saw is ideal for just about everybody. The reason is that your stroke is different, the cuts are shorter, and a small saw is easier to use with boards on the bench, sawing off table tops etc. It's really a different job. Long x-cuts make more sense for guys doing carpentry, sawing framing lumber etc.
As to teeth, your x-cut sounds right (ask Mike). But the rip sounds too fine. Choose teeth based on stock thickness. For softwoods, 3-4ppi is awesome. For hard I like 5-8. I think Mike file's progressive pitch and rake. He's good at it so just ask him what saw for the wood you are cutting. He needs to know hard or soft woods (and I'm talking about hardness not whether they loose their leaves or not) and typical thickness.
Have fun with your hand saws!
Adam
Adam, I'm sending you an email. Same title.
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