Saw teeth

[BlueTrain]

I did a search here for this and failed to see an answer, so I'll ask it afresh. How does one go about setting the teeth on a saw without one of those fancy gadgets that is apparently required?

This question is probably more appropriate for a forum about log houses and tree felling, if there is such a thing but there's a great deal of lore available here, if only the question is worded properly--and in excruciatingly correct English. I probably won't make it on that account, however, since I'm not a native English speaker (I'm an American).

For some strange reason I went out one day and bought a brand new German made heavy duty cross-cut saw. It cuts (just) okay but on anything thick, say over five or six inches, it gets pinched and sticks. Not long after that, I inherited from my late father-in-law an even larger cross cut saw of unknown make. It had been hanging in a shed not 50 yards from the water's edge, just off the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. It was covered in rust. I brought it home and got most of the rust off with naval jelly or something like that. The strange and frustrating thing is, this ancient saw, probably over 80 or 90 years old, cuts better than the new saw. I believe it is because the new saw does not have a proper set to the teeth.

I am aware there is a tool and a procedure to give the teeth on a saw a correct set, only I don't have one and I'm not about to buy one. Is there another trick to doing this or could there be a different reason the old saw works better than the new one? For smaller stuff, however, up to about three or four inches, neither one works any better than a smallish Swedish bow saw that I purchased over 40 years ago, which is obviously in the prime of its life.

As it happens, however, I also received two chain saws, one of which is electric, so the question is more academic than practical. I'm a little afraid of the gasoline powered chain saw, however.

 

[Paulm]

If the teeth are reasonably large then should be possible to set them with a small hammer, or with a small hammer and punch, but to be honest the setting tools are not difficult to get hold of and mine only cost five or ten pounds secondhand as I recall and gives a much more uniform result.

Cheers, Paul

 

[Mr Adoby]

You need a saw set.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saw_set

It should be realtively easy to make one from a flat piece of iron. You need a metal saw.

I would suggest a simple plate and lever set, something like this:

You make a notch that just fits over one tooth. And an angled stop. You fit the notch over the tip of the tooth and bend the tooth so the angled stop touch the side of the blade. Typically every third tooth is bent one way, every third the other way and the tooth in between is straight. Or every other tooth bent alternating. It has to be long enough to give a lever to make you strong enough to slightly bend the tooth. You could use a smaller piece and fit a handle.

The tooth will bend and spring back. You have to bend it so much that it is slightly deformed and doesn't spring back all the way.

The angle and dimensions depends on the saw, and how strong set you need. You will have to experiment. Start with a small set and increase it if needed.

It is also possible to hammer the teeth or us a pair of flat pliers. But it is hard to get a uniform set that way.

(I hope I am using the word "set" correctly. I had to look it up. Skränkning in Swedish.)

 

[demographic]

How many teeth per inch is the saw?
I might have one you can have for nowt, or failing that the local tool sellers I go to often have them and I doubt it would cost more than a fiver.

 

[BlueTrain]

Thank you all for your comments. The only place I've seen one for sale, if I recall correctly, is from an outfit that deals in large logger-type and mostly old cross-cut saws. But it never occurred to me to ask at the place I bought the saw, which is a large woodworker hobby shop. You wouldn't believe the stuff they have. I beginning to think that nothing ever really goes out of production. It's hard to believe that in a Washington, DC, suburb, a store has a broad-ax, brand new, too.

 

[demographic]

Thank you all for your comments. The only place I've seen one for sale, if I recall correctly, is from an outfit that deals in large logger-type and mostly old cross-cut saws. But it never occurred to me to ask at the place I bought the saw, which is a large woodworker hobby shop. You wouldn't believe the stuff they have. I beginning to think that nothing ever really goes out of production. It's hard to believe that in a Washington, DC, suburb, a store has a broad-ax, brand new, too.

Just spotted where you live, that might cost a bit in postage.

 

[BlueTrain]

As an afterthought, I checked eBay and saw several of various designs. Mostly they looked to be in good shape and most of them appeared to be closely related to pliers. None that I noticed came with instructions but this is not a rush project. None were at all expensive either, although I did not note the postage costs.

 

[HillBill]

http://www.bchw.org/Tech tips/FilerDVD.htm

 

[mrcharly]

I've reset a saw using a pair of pliers, but the saw-set tool shown above looks a much better idea.

doing it with pliers can produce a saw that doesn't like cutting in a straight line.