Bowsaw - dumb question of the day

Re: Bowsaw - dumb question of the day

paul womack

>Since the blade is under tension, there is no requirment for it to point in any particular direction.

If you're used to western saws you may well prefer to have them pointing away from you, cutting on the push stroke.

BugBear

Re: Bowsaw - dumb question of the day

Joe in a Cleveland suburb

>I wondered if that was the anwser I'd get.

Thanks Paul.

Joe

I could be wrong

Adam Cherubini, NJ

>I could be wrong, but I think there is an axiom to sawing that you must always see the cut as it happens, not the result of the cut after it occured.

The obvious question that arrises is how do japanese saws work. I've seen images of japanese carpenters, working horizontally, bent over the top of the work so they could see the cut. Pretty sure they kneel when sawing vertically such that their eyes are above and hands are below the work piece. I don't think its true that they saw "blind".

Some folks here use japanese saws on western benches. You might say that's doing things the hard way. I prefer to think they are just really fine craftsmen and women (pretty sure my friend Pam works this way). I have long suspected that they saw straight down looking at that cut as it goes. Once the cut is obscured behind the workpiece, the kerf is established and the fine set, typical of at least modern Japanese Dozuki, guides the saw thereafter. In short, I think this approach is commendable, at least for this operation and saw. People seem to be having success with it. But I don't think its an approach that creates good sawing habits that can be used elsewhere (and that maybe okay since few enough of us use hand saws exclusively).

In a pitsaw operation the saw cuts on the pull stroke, but is guided by the "tillerman", who guides the saw's tiller like a helmsman guides a boat's tiller. Strangely enough, the guy in the focsle who stows and hands out sails is called a "pitman" (same as the sawyer in the pit).

So I'm saying if you intend to hold the work western style you should always cut on the push stroke. If you are willing or intending to use your frame saw the way we in the Anglo-american tradition would use a coping saw (eyes above, hands below) you can cut on the pull stroke.

Can I say one more thing?

If you look at early framed saws you see different cheeks (arms) and very different handles on either end. There may be many reasons for this. When I made my framed saws, I purposely made one side comfortable for pushing and the other side comfortable for pulling. The result was a saw that looked a good bit like early saws (go figure).

Adam

Re: I could be wrong

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>But I don't think its an approach that creates good sawing habits that can be used elsewhere (and that maybe okay since few enough of us use hand saws exclusively).

I don't quite understand this, Adam. Are you saying that different sawing habits will be useful outside the workshop? Like maybe cutting a steak? :)

Perhaps the guy at the bottom of the pit is there for strength alone. After the kerf is set there isn't much he could do to change it, is there? Before the kerf is set he can help guide it's development.

Basically, using Japanese saws has added to my repertoire of piece position rather than replaced any. I still often put the piece vertically in a vise, horizontally above and below eye level, angled on a support, braced with body part(s) or not, and on a bench hook (I do reverse the hook for pull sawing).

Often the line will be obscured by saw dust; but by that time the kerf is set. The kerf is more difficult to reset with Japanese saws anyhow; so I just saw through it, blow it away occasionally (but this is simply OC behavior, it doesn't matter whether I can see the line). Paul Alt uses a straw to clear the line.

On bow saws, the only time it matters is if you have and use a little handle at the base for sawing. Otherwise, just turn the whole thing around if you want to try it another way.

Pam