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My two dovetail saws posted previously are now on the way to their new owners. I'm not sure what the allure of the words 'dovetail saw' is but I'm not going to argue. Here is the beginning of four more.
Attachment 335077
These will be from the upper left, 16 ppi Lie Nielsen style tote in Palo santo. Upper right 15 ppi double-cove in Palo santo, lower left 15 ppi Wenzloff style in Palo santo and finally a 15 ppi triple cove in Nogal on the lower right.
Rob, sometimes, I fear, people just recognise the words "Dovetail" & "Tenon", even though they may have little idea of what the words mean. :C But to so many wood warriors, dovetails represent a pinnacle of woodworking, & to cut dovetails, you need a dovetail saw, of course. I hope none of your customers get a saw and never use it (like the large, glossy cookbooks that grace some people's kitchens! :U). It would be a great pity if any of your saws languished in a display cabinet & never saw service, they look like they want to go to work!Quote:
Originally Posted by rob streeper
When it comes to backsaws, I think saws used for dovetailing are perhaps the ones that most need attention to details. If you want dovetailing to be gap-free (& let's face it, gappy dovetails just don't do much for your reputation, do they?!), yet fast enough to be practical, a saw that makes sawing as accurate & intuitive as it can be, turns a chore into a pleasurable process. With enough practice & persistence, I'm sure you could make acceptable dovetails with just about anything that cuts wood, but having a truly nice saw that fits you like an extension of your arm, with a handle that puts the tooth line horizontal when held at your normal comfortable working height, can sure speed up the learning, and render the whole process so much more enjoyable. Your saws deserveto be sought-after! :U
Cheers,
Thanks Ian,
I suspected that the desire for a dovetail saw in many buyers may be 'aspirational' rather than practical, something along the lines of 'I have therefore I am.' or 'I've got the saw so I'm ready if I ever want to cut dovetails'. I've bought all of my dovetail saws second hand, all of them in new condition. I know they're handy for lots of other work but they seem disproportionately popular. In my recent eBay selling I noticed that the dovetail saws drew the most attention by a significant margin.
Cheers,
Rob
Hi Rob. Your sales are not overly bad. IMO your prices on your completed backsaws are a little low when you consider the additional work load required to make your own folded backs.
If you were looking at reducing your current man hours per saw, an easy option would be to switch over from folded backs to using slotted backs. But that decision does hinge on what you see as being non negotiable values within your saw making work.
regards Stewie;
Hi Stewie,
In the first batch of saws I put out for sale I intentionally under-priced as I'm an unknown quantity in the marketplace.
The time I spend per saw is still declining with each succeeding series. I find that batching helps a great deal.
I haven't updated recently on the saws that are the subject of this thread but at this point all are inletted, the blades are toothed, the plates are profiled to the handles and the handles are shaped and ready for refinement. I estimate my total time per saw at this point, including set-up and clean-up, at about two hours.
I'm staying with the folded backs because Bad Axe is the only other maker who does them. In addition I really like the opportunities they afford that milled backs don't have such as the fact that they are easily removed from the saw plate after assembly. Plus, I really like the way they look.
Cheers,
Rob
Rob, TFWW saws are folded backsQuote:
Originally Posted by rob streeper
Cheers
Peter
Quote:
Originally Posted by Heavansabove
Hi Peter, I wasn't aware that Grammercy was making folded back saws, I thought they only made the pinned type. $260 for a saw and $150 for a plate, back and two screws? Man, Stewie's right, I gotta raise my prices, I'm selling way too cheap! Gotta stock beer for the summer.
Made some progress today after doing an emergency gas fill on the heat pump. All are now inletted, screw holes drilled and counterbored and I changed the back on the triple cove to a heavy brass (1/8" folded sheet) because the light back looked disproportionately small with the relatively large triple cove handle. Now for the finishing, fixing small errors and finishing...
Attachment 335549
A little progress on finishing the handles today.
Attachment 335830
Should have this batch wrapped up tomorrow or Monday.
Ready now for the final touches. All need final seating of the screws, setting and touch-ups here and there.
#23 Wenzloff style handle. 16 ppi, 0.015" plate filed rip. Palo santo handle.
Attachment 335922
#24 Traditional Tools Co. / Stewie style double cove handle, 15 ppi 0.015" plate filed rip and taper mounted. Palo santo handle. The curves on this one aren't settled yet...
Attachment 335921
#25 triple cove handle with heavy brass back. Peruvian walnut handle, 15 ppi filed rip and 0.015" plate. This one needs to be engraved yet.
Attachment 335923
#26 with Lie Nielsen style with medium brass back. Palo santo handle, taper mounted 16 ppi filed rip and 0.015" plate.
Attachment 335924
I took Pedders suggestion about screw positioning to heart here, not only does it look somewhat better I find that inletting the blade is much easier.
Rob ,
I'm in love with one of your saws .
Sorry it's not a sexually thing lol.
The 26 now I seriously can't believe what I am about to write .
But well hell it's the new year and please don't show my wife.
That's a sexy saw .
There I did ,I'm proud of me .
Well done, that one really looks great I really love it .
Ok I stop drollllling now
Thanks Matt,
Like anything, the more I do this the easier it gets, Four saws, pretty much complete, in a week is a new personal record. Each one gets easier and I'm happier with the results.
As to #26, even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while, I wish that I could say I had intended it to turn out pretty but it just came together that way of it's own accord.
Cheers,
Rob
Hi Rob
Four saws in a week
I would love to get four done a year
Maybe by letting go you created a masterpiece unknowing lee
Maybe you just need to become one with a saw
Well done they all look great
Hi Rob. I prefer the look of the original more refined triple cove handle.
It has that wow factor.
More like this;
http://www.jimbodetools.com/Rare-and...aw-p35939.html
Stewie;
Hi Stewie,
This is the handle I modeled. I copied it out from WK Fine Tools.
Attachment 336124
I've of course never met this saw in the flesh but if it's sized like most early tools the handle is likely to be uncomfortably small for my hand. People back then were smaller and their tools are smaller too. I've had similar problems with other modern saws. Wenzloff's dovetail saws feel particularly small to me, even the Lie Nielsen back saws are somewhat cramped. This one is the right size for me. As I began work on this particular saw I realized that my medium weight brass back was too small visually. Worked fine but it looked like a bee-bee in a boxcar so I changed it out for the heavy back pictured. I still think the proportions could use improvement but don't despair, I have four more of these blanks cut.