I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely the
saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting ok, but
just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and has been that way
ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a normal
cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause significant
enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

Puckdropper
--
Make it to fit, don't make it fit.

In article m,
Puckdropper says...

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely the
saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting ok, but
just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and has been that way
ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a normal
cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause significant
enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

Puckdropper

Stick it in the kerf upside down and see if you can feel any drag when
you move it back and forth. If you can't then polishing won't help, if
you can then it's worth a try. Also wax the blade.

But the kerf should be wider than the blade if the teeth are set right.

On 10/14/2015 10:38 PM, Puckdropper wrote:
I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely the
saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting ok, but
just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and has been that way
ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a normal
cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause significant
enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

Puckdropper



I would say it could not hurt. The less friction the less effort you need.

On 10/15/2015 9:55 AM, Leon wrote:
On 10/14/2015 10:38 PM, Puckdropper wrote:
I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely
the
saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting ok, but
just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and has been that way
ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a normal
cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause
significant
enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

Puckdropper



I would say it could not hurt. The less friction the less effort you need.



Just to all a bit more, when the cut degrades try spraying a lube on the
saw and see if that helps. If so, polishing should also help.

Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in
b.com:

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely
the saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting
ok, but just not as nicely.

In a
normal cut the blade contacts the side of the wood.

That does not sound "normal" to me. As J Clarke said, the
kerf should be wide enough to provide clearance for the
blade. I would suspect one of three things:

- The set on the saw is insufficient.

- The set is uneven, forcing you to slightly twist the saw
to maintain a straight cut.

- Tension in the wood is closing the kerf as you cut.

Since this is a log, the latter seems likely. The usual
fix for that is to stick a wedge in the kerf to hold it
open while you cut.

John

On Thursday, October 15, 2015 at 10:18:16 AM UTC-5, John McCoy wrote:

That does not sound "normal" to me. As J Clarke said, the
kerf should be wide enough to provide clearance for the
blade. I would suspect one of three things:

- The set on the saw is insufficient.

- The set is uneven, forcing you to slightly twist the saw
to maintain a straight cut.

- Tension in the wood is closing the kerf as you cut.

Since this is a log, the latter seems likely. The usual
fix for that is to stick a wedge in the kerf to hold it
open while you cut.

- Gullet between the teeth may not be big enough (and/or need fewer teeth per inch) to remove the sawdust effectively. Sawdust, inside the kerf cut, may be jamming the saw blade. Widening the tooth angle would help with shallow gullet.

- Inside the log may be damp, hence the wood is not being "shaved" cleanly, allowing for extending wood fibers to "jam" the blade.

Log! How big is the log? I wouldn't consider anything less than 6" diam.. a log. Anything of large diameters/dimensions would impede a typical handsaw's normal (maybe) effectiveness of removing the loose sawdust effectively.

Lengthen your saw stroke, so that your stroke length is at least twice the diameter of the log, see if that helps, making sure (most of) the sawdust falls free from the saw's teeth, on each stroke. If sawdust collects, clogs the teeth, the wood may be damp or resinous, to some extent.

Don't apply too much pressure on the cutting stroke. You want the saw to cut, not shred the wood. Let the saw do the cutting, not the pressure to force any "tearing" of (some of) the fibers.

Sonny

"Puckdropper" wrote in message
b.com...

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely the
saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting ok, but
just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and has been that way
ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a normal
cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause significant
enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

I'd try paste wax on the saw for a starter... it will get polished smooth
all by itself if you do enough of this cutting.

If the log is green you may need a saw with larger gullets (and fewer tpi)
to carry/clear the swarf... Also make sure that you take long strokes to
clear the swarf as if the gullets are filling up and not cleared due to
short stroking they will hinder the saw's progress.

Wedging the kerf may help on a large log but you need to be cut deep enough
to clear the back of the saw for that to work... I often wedge the kerfs
when bucking trees with a chainsaw as the tension/compression can do
unhelpful things to the kerf.

On 10/15/2015 11:16 AM, John McCoy wrote:
Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote in
b.com:

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely
the saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting
ok, but just not as nicely.

In a
normal cut the blade contacts the side of the wood.

That does not sound "normal" to me. As J Clarke said, the
kerf should be wide enough to provide clearance for the
blade. I would suspect one of three things:

- The set on the saw is insufficient.

- The set is uneven, forcing you to slightly twist the saw
to maintain a straight cut.

- Tension in the wood is closing the kerf as you cut.

Since this is a log, the latter seems likely. The usual
fix for that is to stick a wedge in the kerf to hold it
open while you cut.

John


A couple of more things.
Is the wood wet? if so, this maybe hydraulic drag.
Are the teeth BIG, when you start a cut, there is not much chip to
remove, as you go further in, the chip is not clearing as easily as the
log gets wider. So you might not be clearing the chips and they may be
building up and slowing your stroke since you are moving the chips back
and forth. So is the gullet big and do you have fewer teeth.
A regular hand saw is not meant to cut logs, look at the teeth on a saw
that is meant, they were big teeth with big gullets and few of each.

--
Jeff

On 10/15/2015 12:01 PM, Sonny wrote:
On Thursday, October 15, 2015 at 10:18:16 AM UTC-5, John McCoy wrote:

That does not sound "normal" to me. As J Clarke said, the
kerf should be wide enough to provide clearance for the
blade. I would suspect one of three things:

- The set on the saw is insufficient.

- The set is uneven, forcing you to slightly twist the saw
to maintain a straight cut.

- Tension in the wood is closing the kerf as you cut.

Since this is a log, the latter seems likely. The usual
fix for that is to stick a wedge in the kerf to hold it
open while you cut.

- Gullet between the teeth may not be big enough (and/or need fewer teeth per inch) to remove the sawdust effectively. Sawdust, inside the kerf cut, may be jamming the saw blade. Widening the tooth angle would help with shallow gullet.

- Inside the log may be damp, hence the wood is not being "shaved" cleanly, allowing for extending wood fibers to "jam" the blade.

Log! How big is the log? I wouldn't consider anything less than 6" diam. a log. Anything of large diameters/dimensions would impede a typical handsaw's normal (maybe) effectiveness of removing the loose sawdust effectively.

Lengthen your saw stroke, so that your stroke length is at least twice the diameter of the log, see if that helps, making sure (most of) the sawdust falls free from the saw's teeth, on each stroke. If sawdust collects, clogs the teeth, the wood may be damp or resinous, to some extent.

Don't apply too much pressure on the cutting stroke. You want the saw to cut, not shred the wood. Let the saw do the cutting, not the pressure to force any "tearing" of (some of) the fibers.

Sonny


Exactly.

--
Jeff

A rip saw has little kerf. A cross cut saw has a extra wide kerf.

Martin

On 10/15/2015 4:03 AM, J. Clarke wrote:
In article m,
Puckdropper says...

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how nicely the
saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still cutting ok, but
just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and has been that way
ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a normal
cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause significant
enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

Puckdropper

Stick it in the kerf upside down and see if you can feel any drag when
you move it back and forth. If you can't then polishing won't help, if
you can then it's worth a try. Also wax the blade.

But the kerf should be wider than the blade if the teeth are set right.

On 15 Oct 2015 03:38:34 GMT
Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how
nicely the saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still
cutting ok, but just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and
has been that way ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a
normal cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause
significant enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

smoother oiled saw is what i always thought was best

wax is bad with wet wood

and as usual it always depends on the wood species and the age of the
lumber

and as mentioned internal stresses can wreak havoc

Electric Comet writes:
On 15 Oct 2015 03:38:34 GMT
Puckdropper puckdropper(at)yahoo(dot)com wrote:

I was cutting up a log with a regular hand saw, and noticed how
nicely the saw cut early in the cut. Later in the cut it was still
cutting ok, but just not as nicely. The saw is a patinaed brown, and
has been that way ever since I got it.

So my question is this: would it be worth polishing the saw? In a
normal cut the blade contacts the side of the wood. Would this cause
significant enough drag to make polishing worthwhile?

smoother oiled saw is what i always thought was best

Oil is bad with any wood as it can interfere with subsequent finish.
Ok for firewood, but don't oil your sawblade when cutting project lumber.

As several have pointed out, the set of the saw is the most important
factor.


wax is bad with wet wood

Why would it be any worse that no wax?

Scott Lurndal wrote:


Oil is bad with any wood as it can interfere with subsequent finish.
Ok for firewood, but don't oil your sawblade when cutting project
lumber.


To echo Scott's words - while in some cases, some types of oil may not be a
problem (with some finishes), the rule of thumb is that oil is a contaminate
and will likely affect future finishes. Best to avoid them.


--

-Mike-

"Mike Marlow" wrote in
:

Scott Lurndal wrote:


Oil is bad with any wood as it can interfere with subsequent finish.
Ok for firewood, but don't oil your sawblade when cutting project
lumber.


To echo Scott's words - while in some cases, some types of oil may not
be a problem (with some finishes), the rule of thumb is that oil is a
contaminate and will likely affect future finishes. Best to avoid
them.

OK, I think this is going a bit overboard. Many finishes
_are_ oil - boiled linseed oil being the most notable. And
of course many stains and varnishes are oil based.

Beyond that, many woodworkers routinely oil their tools with
something like Boeshield, with no problems.

I think avoiding silicone based oils is a good idea, but
beyond that I don't think there's huge cause for worry.

John

On 10/16/2015 1:34 PM, John McCoy wrote:
"Mike Marlow" wrote in
:

Scott Lurndal wrote:


Oil is bad with any wood as it can interfere with subsequent finish.
Ok for firewood, but don't oil your sawblade when cutting project
lumber.


To echo Scott's words - while in some cases, some types of oil may not
be a problem (with some finishes), the rule of thumb is that oil is a
contaminate and will likely affect future finishes. Best to avoid
them.

OK, I think this is going a bit overboard. Many finishes
_are_ oil - boiled linseed oil being the most notable. And
of course many stains and varnishes are oil based.

Beyond that, many woodworkers routinely oil their tools with
something like Boeshield, with no problems.

I think avoiding silicone based oils is a good idea, but
beyond that I don't think there's huge cause for worry.

John


To bolster this up, I have used oil on the sole of my plane with no
problems. I have used wax, mineral oil, and 3 in 1. Suprisingly, none
have intefered. I don't use water based finishes much, so most all my
finishes are shellac, or shellac + oil, or oil.

--
Jeff

John McCoy wrote:
"Mike Marlow" wrote in
:

Scott Lurndal wrote:


Oil is bad with any wood as it can interfere with subsequent finish.
Ok for firewood, but don't oil your sawblade when cutting project
lumber.


To echo Scott's words - while in some cases, some types of oil may
not be a problem (with some finishes), the rule of thumb is that oil
is a contaminate and will likely affect future finishes. Best to
avoid them.

OK, I think this is going a bit overboard. Many finishes
_are_ oil - boiled linseed oil being the most notable. And
of course many stains and varnishes are oil based.

Beyond that, many woodworkers routinely oil their tools with
something like Boeshield, with no problems.

I think avoiding silicone based oils is a good idea, but
beyond that I don't think there's huge cause for worry.


OK.

--

-Mike-