Crosscut Saw Thread

I wouldn't worry to much about getting the handle "perfectly round". Most saw handles are 1-1/4" or 1 5/16" diameter. I've found old saws with handles made from branches, shovel handles, baseball bats, broomsticks, curtain and closet dowels, and even steel pipe! I have a friend that buys 1-1/4" cherry dowel stock to make his handles. When fitting a branch just use the handle clamp to select branch diameter, cut to length, drill the hole, and your good to go!
 
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Filing the Disston perf lance i posted earlier. Just like the hand saw, it didnt need a terrible amount of jointing, only about a dozen passes before i could get to filing. Later in the week, i'll get to sanding the plate, but this came with two Atkins no.25 loop handles which are thankfully not seized. this was the first time i was able to use the set anvil that mr. brian rust sent me a few years back.


too bad i cant FIND MY FRIGGIN RAKER GUAGE
 
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Found the raker gauge! Its always the last place you look aint it.
what I didnt find, however, was a clear explanation on how to use it. I initially set the gauge to 12 on the indicator, filed the rearmost raker, and thought to myself: "that aint right"
so i read over the instructions again. "to set the gauge to a depth of 1/64", place the indicator between 0 and 8" so i plug those numbers in to a conversion chart, turns out i missed the little blurb that says "one graduation is equal to four thousandths"

so that raker got set to 0.048" instead of 0.012", which is great, but at least it wasnt one in the belly of the saw. I did reset the gauge afterwards to a depth of 0.016"
this guage is by far the most initiallt confusing tool ive seen, and it has a very good chance to heavily damage saws when in unknowing hands. so PSA to new users of the simmons raker gauge, it measures in 1/250ths, not 1/1000ths
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Before you start filing rakers with that type of gauge, it's a good idea to make sure that the filing plate is level with the top plates when tightened down on the ramps. If your going to rely on the number graduations, you also want to check the zero setting is accurate..... a worn or bent filing plate can change the results. I have seen a couple of these that had been modified to be used as a tapered filing plate. Sometime it is easiest to adjust these gauges by adjusting the plate to the rakers of a saw that has a known raker height!
 
I've got it here with me, i just checked it and when set to 0, the gauge seems to be just the slightest amount proud of the actual 0 point, so I don't believe it's too terribly worn, but it's not entirely accurate either

that being said, i'm no machinist so i think i'll leave well enough alone and leave it a l o n e unless it proves to be an issue. I had a feeling this was a possibility with this type of gauge. thank you guys for the advice
 
My first post. I’m on page 30 of this thread. I apologize if I’m asking what has already been addressed: How do you set the joiner to follow the arc of a breasted saw? I’ve seen this mentioned in videos, but not found the “how” part. Also, is Old Axeman still around? I was thrilled to see that was Bernie, who I’ve enjoyed his videos for so long now.
 
Great thread! An interesting historical note, when I started my career with Cal Fire in the mid-70s, we were not equipped with chainsaws on our engines.
Instead, mounted behind the cab was a 2 man crosscut saw aka the misery whip, with the saw handles stored in the engineer's compartment.
I don't recall ever using it on the fireline, but as a teenager working trail crew on the Sierra National Forest, we regularly used the "whip" to clear trails of downed trees.
 
RunAndGun10 said:
My first post. I’m on page 30 of this thread. I apologize if I’m asking what has already been addressed: How do you set the joiner to follow the arc of a breasted saw? I’ve seen this mentioned in videos, but not found the “how” part. Also, is Old Axeman still around? I was thrilled to see that was Bernie, who I’ve enjoyed his videos for so long now.
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you dont really, it doesnt matter too much. most of the saws i see do see a good 1/16" - 3/16" difference in length between belly teeth and tip teeth on particularly worn saws, but it generally doesnt affect the cutting ability. if you were unaware, the belly serves two purposes, first and primarily, when the saw is rocked by having two sawyers, the belly makes sure there are always cutters in contact. Second, a deep belly will raise the tips, making it easier to buck fallen logs.

that being said, 3/16" over the course of 3-8 feet isnt a big deal
 
phantomknives said:
you dont really, it doesnt matter too much. most of the saws i see do see a good 1/16" - 3/16" difference in length between belly teeth and tip teeth on particularly worn saws, but it generally doesnt affect the cutting ability. if you were unaware, the belly serves two purposes, first and primarily, when the saw is rocked by having two sawyers, the belly makes sure there are always cutters in contact. Second, a deep belly will raise the tips, making it easier to buck fallen logs.

that being said, 3/16" over the course of 3-8 feet isnt a big deal
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Thanks. I suspected that was the case, glad to have it confirmed. I appreciate your reply.
 
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