Rake for dedicated crosscut backsaw
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I heard Paul talk about backsaws and sharpening anything above 9 or 10 tpi all with a rip tooth pattern.
I know he has a collection of backsaws he files differently for different uses.
I sharpen all my Rip cuts progressively, mostly.But I wonder how to file a rip pattern for a backsaw that will be dedicated to crosscutting, I know he made a drawing in a blog post once, but was just wondering if anyone has an idea at which rake to rip file a saw for dedicated crosscutting. I know it looked very relaxed, but would like a figure to aim ?
Thanks!
29 December 2022 at 5:32 pm #785020I’m not sure what you are asking.
First off, I don’t know what filing rip cuts progressively means. You file saw teeth, not rip cuts.
Do you mean you file your saw teeth as rip saws with progressively steeper pitch along the saw plate from toe to heel, or what?.Second, I don’t think paul said that a saw dedicated to cross-cutting should be filed as a rip saw. I think he meant that for general purpose use it doesn’t make a lot of difference in small tooth sizes. A rip pattern in small sizes will be adequate for most cross-cutting and is a little easier to file. Tage Frid said the same thing 50 years ago.
But if your goal is to have a dedicated cross cut saw, I think you should file it as a crosscut saw like several centuries of craftsmen have done before you. The cross cuts will be faster and smoother and with a little less effort. It’s only a little more involved that filing a rip pattern. You just have to keep track of which direction each alternating tooth is filed. And you might want to use a slightly finer file to get an adequate gullet.
Here is a video by Paul on filing a saw as a crosscut saw
And there is a Bad Axe saws treatise on filing, which I think is invaluable in explains your options.
Just Google “ bad axe filing “ for that. Your likely first hit will show you geometries for Rip, crosscut, and Hybrid patterns.But if you want to file all your fine saws with a rip pattern, , you can do that also. Just file your saws with a more rake, say 10° or 15° or so for the saw you are going to only crosscut with.
Saws will start easier if you put a little more rake in the teeth for the first inch or two. Saws with the front face of the teeth dead vertical will be harder to start in crosscut situations.- This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Larry Geib.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Larry Geib.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Larry Geib.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by Larry Geib.
29 December 2022 at 11:00 pm #785037“First off, I don’t know what filing rip cuts progressively means. …”
I’d assume it refers to the practice of giving a more aggressive ‘rake’ to the teeth progressively from the toe of the blade to the heel.
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