Crosscut Saw Thread

Matt, my brother lives outside of Wenatchee. That's the dry side of the state - probably just as dry as Idaho or drier.
 
Square_peg said:
Matt, my brother lives outside of Wenatchee. That's the dry side of the state - probably just as dry as Idaho or drier.
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Oh, I see. Yeah, I've been there plenty of times. That probably is drier than here. This year is especially bad, though. I was thinking you were having a bunch of fires over there close to Kent...I kept thinking, "that's weird." ;)
 
M3mphis,
Can you recommend anyone local that can sharpen a saw. I have picked up the basic tools to do it myself but I would think there would be a learning curve. And I have so many irons in the fire right now. I just can't do it all.
 
Picked up a new saw yesterday. Found it in a local antique shop at a price I couldn't refuse - 40% less than I've seen any similar quality saws before. It's a 90" lancetooth with short teeth. Very little actual wear on it. Came with a set of handles with complete and matching hardware though the wood handles themselves don't match. I haven't found a name on it yet but I haven't done any cleaning yet either. It's a taper-ground blade.

Also found this 2-1/2" auger. Under the rust it looks OK. The feed threads are pretty clean. The handle is toast but there's enough remaining to show me what I need to duplicate. I've been looking for a few augers but I'd prefer them to be in the 1" to 1-1/2" range. But it was cheap and I just couldn't pass it up.

Saw_and_auger.jpg
 
That saw is sweeet :cool:
I've got a couple of one man crosscuts, but I've been really wanting a nice two man lately.
But I can't buy one because I spent all my $ on axes... And a practically brand new vintage 1950's LL Bean 100% wool double Mackinaw jacket, but that's another story :D
 
I haven't bought many axes lately so I was due. Now if I could just stop buying railroad tools.
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Nice saw. Do you have the new Crosscut saw filer DvD with Warn Miller, Call MTDC(Missoula Tecnology and Development center)406 329 3900 I think they are Free.Then You need sharpening tools. The list goes on for the needs!
 
moosecreektrails said:
Nice saw. Do you have the new Crosscut saw filer DvD with Warn Miller, Call MTDC(Missoula Tecnology and Development center)406 329 3900 I think they are Free.Then You need sharpening tools. The list goes on for the needs!
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I picked up a copy of that DVD last week Moose. I haven't watched it yet though. I already have all the rest of their crosscut and axe booklets.
Good stuff!
 
moosecreektrails said:
Nice saw. Do you have the new Crosscut saw filer DvD with Warn Miller, Call MTDC(Missoula Tecnology and Development center)406 329 3900 I think they are Free.Then You need sharpening tools. The list goes on for the needs!
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Right on! I now have one in the mail!

Pegs, nice saw and auger! 90"er, eh? Pretty long one there.
 
I've recently acquired some better tools for sharpening my crosscut saws. The Simonds file and raker gauge came from ebay. The spider gauge is home made. I'm not going to go thru the whole process - you can find that on the web. The bottom line is that my 36" perforated lance-tooth saw now cuts great. The evidence is in the wood shavings. The long strips are referred to as 'noodles' and they indicate a saw that is cutting well.

Tools_and_noodles.jpg


My 48" one-man is up next. Then eventually I'll get the 90-inch two-man saw in shape.
 
:cool: Thank you for starting this discussion. Like wow, groovy, totally awesome. I have little or nothing new to offer but will keep checking this in order to learn. I am certainly no lumberjack, but I have cut enough wood to know the value of a good saw. Recently, I was rereading the Aldo Leopold (1887-1948) book "A Sand County Almanac" and was struck by how often this pioneering environmentalist mentions axes and crosscut saws. I also remember that my own father grew up on a Wisconsin farm before WWII and must have cut many cords of wood without a chainsaw.

As a Peace Corps volunteer in Western Samoa. I introduced several families to the the tubular frame bow saw (36 inch blade). Because people cook with wood fires and also have to clean up after typhoons, the simple and inexpensive bow saw works well. Later, I taught environmental science on several Pacific islands and covered the chapter on "appropriate technology". Too many of the islanders believe that a chainsaw is needed to cut firewood quickly and efficiently - they have not heard about Paul Bunyan or seen photographs of loggers cutting down California redwoods. They are astonished that a myopic school teacher actually knows a little bit about cutting wood.

Thanks for the useful post. Faiaoga
 
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Square_peg said:
Tools_and_noodles.jpg
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Peg, You sure did a nice job sharping & tuning up you saw. That's some sweet looking noodles. What did you use for a saw vice to hold the saw when you worked on her?

I have a few saws and all the tools needed to joint & sharpen them, but just haven't done it. A proper saw vice is one thing I'm lacking. I've been considering making one.

Tom
 
Thanks, Ott.

For now I'm just holding my saws in my leg vise or my bench vise. It works OK for my one-man saws. But I'm like you, I'm going to need to build a proper saw vise for my 90-inch.

I had that saw out on the trail today. It was the first time with a crosscut for 3 of our volunteers. They loved it! And they'll be back.......
 
I have two old saws hanging in my cabin, they are pretty rusty, but they still look pretty decent under the rust. What's the easiest way to remove the rust from such a big part?
 
It also works to use kerosene, fine grit sandpaper and a lot of elbow grease ;)
I've restored several crosscuts that way.
You can also thrown in little WD-40 just for good measure.
Be careful around the etchings though :)
 
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