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Thread: Saw Fettling
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15th July 2010, 09:13 AM #31
Peter - there is a bit of lee-way with file sizes, as you will see if you start searching around the various recommendations, but most seem to agree to within a size or so. It's not a mysterious art. The main reason to choose the 'correct' size file is to get the right sort of gullet for your teeth. The bigger the file, and the 'fatter' the taper, the more 'rounded' the corners. If you tried to use a large file to sharpen an 18 tpi saw, you would end up with all gullets & tiny shreds of teeth (try it on a rubbishy old saw & you'll soon see what I mean). The other consideration is to choose so that when the file sits in the gullet, the points of the teeth are no more than 1/2 way up each side of the file, otherwise you will get excessive wear in the middle part of the file as you rotate it on successive runs. Since this is the part cutting the business end of the tooth, you want it cutting as well and as cleanly as possible. A 7 inch file should be fine for a rip saw of that tooth size.
Don't be daunted by your graduated teeth, they should be no more difficult to sharpen than any other, particularly on a rip saw, which is filed straight & level. Let the file sit in the gullet, then just push evenly for the stroke or two it takes. The tricjk is to develop a nice, even & most of all, constant pressure. Most people (myself included) tend to bear down on the file a bit too hard, at first, but with a bit of practice, you will soon get the feel for how much it takes, and how to hold the file just firmly enough so that it takes an even cut on both sides of the tooth. A new file should cut very easily, so when it takes too much pressure to make it cut, you know it's time to break out a new one. It's impossible to say how many sharpenings you should get from a file, because it depends how much metal you take off each time, but the spring steel is a lot tougher on file teeth than mild steel, so you don't get all that many sharpenings out of a new file - maybe a dozen?
I found when I began that I tended to let the rake angle sneak forward on my big rip saw. It is standard practice to file with the trailing edge of a tooth leaning away from you. The file will cut this side more easily, so you tend to cut the back of the tooth & the bottom of the gullet ok, but less off the top of the leading edge of the other tooth. Over a couple of sharpenings, this will change the rake angle to a more aggressive one, making a big-toothed saw like yours bite & skitter instead of cutting smoothly. I make this sound complicated, but you'll soon see what I mean when you start sharpening. Perhaps it's not a bad idea to take a reading of your saws current rake angle and draw it on a sheet of cardboard you can keep for future reference.
It's quite easy to change the rake angle for a more or less aggressive cut, or correct it if it does gets out of whack. Use the same technique I used here,
https://www.woodworkforums.com/f152/d...8-copy-120653/
when forming teeth from scratch. The stick on the end of the file helps you to keep the angle constant as you go. In fact, you can use the stick guide when sharpening, the first time or two, until you feel more confident.
Cheers
(& apologies for another long-winded answer!)IW
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15th July 2010 09:13 AM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
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16th July 2010, 02:08 PM #32Senior Member
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Thanks for the long and valuable reply IanW. There's nothing like learning at the bench but a detailed answer certainly helps in the absence of a teacher. The stick on the end of the file looks good, I understand how that would help.
Now I just need to wait for my files to arrive, perhaps on Monday (shame it's not today)
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20th July 2010, 11:26 AM #33Senior Member
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20th July 2010, 04:11 PM #34
On the topic of making your own saw vice - here's a blog post by Larry Marshall in Quebec City, who has just made his own wooden saw vice. Good advice here.
Cheers
Jeremy
If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well it were done quickly
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20th July 2010, 05:37 PM #35Jim
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20th July 2010, 05:41 PM #36
Good-o - let us know how you find it. I've been recommending these to people, but they may not be as good as they were, and others may not find them as easy to use. As I said, you will find you have to have your face a bit closer to the job than ideal, but at least I can see what I'm looking at!
Cheers,IW
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20th July 2010, 06:29 PM #37Jim
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I had been using one of those magnifying glasses on a flexible stand. You get it just right for a few teeth and then have to move it and lose your place.
The head one seems much better than that and I've just realised it has lights on each side. (batteries not included)
Cheers,
Jim
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20th July 2010, 09:23 PM #38
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21st July 2010, 02:47 PM #39Jim
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2nd August 2010, 09:53 AM #40Senior Member
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just bumping the thread back up again.
basilg, how's your saw sharpening going?
I've been down with the flu (or something similarly horrid) and not made much progress on actual sharpening but have almost finished cleaning the blade of another old rip saw and a nice etch popped out from under all the rust and crud.
If all goes as planned, this coming weekend will be my first sharpening attempt.
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2nd August 2010, 01:20 PM #41
Peter
I managed to clean up the blade of an old saw, & held it in a vice with a couple of bits of wood. I did make an improvement to the blade, but not all the teeth were even & it was not as sharp as I would like it.
I will be giving it another go, but I am in the midst of building an extension to my workshop so that is taking priority at the moment.
Regards
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3rd August 2010, 09:39 AM #42Senior Member
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Keep practicing and you'll get it eventually. Probably a good idea to practice on a less valuable saw that a 1700s Kenyon. Since taking up this whole handtools lark I reckon I've made more iron filings than saw dust. Just keep on filing!
This is a good tutorial:
Sharpening a Dovetail Saw - Fine Woodworking Video
Cheers,
Virg.
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8th August 2010, 07:40 PM #43gravity is my co-pilot
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8th August 2010, 10:45 PM #44
The simplest saw vise I have seen is Thomas Lie-Nielsen's version. His U-Tube video is here
Last edited by Dion N; 8th August 2010 at 10:47 PM. Reason: fixed link
"If something is really worth doing, it is worth doing badly." - GK Chesterton
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