# Dovetail saw recommendations



## Anonymous (19 Jan 2005)

Hello all, I've been considering buying a dovetail saw for some time now. I've read reviews, etc., and I would like to hear what people have and recommend.

So far its either an Adria, or a Pax/Lynx, I've also thought about finding a good older user and fixing it up a bit.

Cheers

Regan


----------



## Philly (19 Jan 2005)

Regan
The Lie-Nielsen Indepence dovetail saw is a dream-do check it out! Looks almost identical to the adria except for the curly maple handle , I cannot fault mine.
Hope this helps
Philly


----------



## ike (19 Jan 2005)

Hi Regan,

The Adria dovetail saw is a dream-do check it out! Looks almost identical to the Lie-Nielsen Indepence except for the Bubinga handle , I cannot fault mine. I have to admit the Adria handles swung it for me, just cos they match my LV planes and AI chisels - sad ain't it!

Hope this helps 

Ike :lol: 

Seriously though, they're extremely competitive!. I believe someone else on the forum recently got a PAX dovetail saw.


----------



## Ian Dalziel (19 Jan 2005)

Regan,
I have only returned home late last night from work. I bought the Pax 1776 dovetail saw but havent used it yet. I ordered mine with the rip cut tooth formation
Its looks and feel are of solid quality, looks very similar to lie-nielsen and adria but(feel another purchase coming along) unless someone has got all three for side by side comparison tests then i think all are equally good. 
more down to a matter of choice, the fact that you stay in canada, adria would swing it for me as import costs for the lie nielsen or Pax push the prices up that little bit further
As for buying an older saw for fixing up i'd say go for it as its a good way of learning how to sharpen and how to set teeth and keeping your tools in tip top condition without the worry of ruining an expensive saw

regards
Ian


----------



## Alf (19 Jan 2005)

Regan,

With all the high-end DT saws like the Adria, L-N and Spehar you're pretty much paying for the sharpening job done on it IMO. And that, by its nature, won't last forever. So you need to either be able to sharpen it yourself, or have a good saw doc to send it to. Don't know what the situation with the latter is in your part of the world, but over here good saw doctors are thin on the ground, so option one is the one I favour. Personally the idea of taking a file to a £90 saw fills me with fear and horror, so I'd go with the fixing up an old one every time. If I've got to learn to sharpen it, I might as well do it right from the beginning on a £5 saw I reckon. Of course if you _do_ have access to a good saw doc then it's even easier. Buy the cheaper old saw and get the nice saw sharpening job done on it for a fraction of the cost of a new saw. If neither sharpening it yourself or sending it out is an option then seriously consider a Japanese back saw. You can always fit a Western-style handle to it if you prefer. (Finally remembered to take a pic, Adam!)






Cheers, Alf


----------



## Adam (19 Jan 2005)

Alf":3geec84a said:


> If neither sharpening it yourself or sending it out is an option then seriously consider a Japanese back saw. You can always fit a Western-style handle to it if you prefer. (Finally remembered to take a pic, Adam!)
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Nice one ALF. I reckon I need this, as I'm still finding I can't keep the blade vertical with the standard japansese handle. For everyone who is wondering whats going on, I cut about 80 dovetails by hand with a japanese pull saw, only to find as I made each cut I'd been wondering off. slightly, after a quick discussion with ALF, the solution seemed to be to make a western handle and put it on a japanese blade. ALF of course had already done this _ages _ago. :roll: Before you ask, all those pins had to been cleaned up by hand using a chisel.

Adam*

*Who would have used the woodrat but wheres the challenge in that? It'd have been just too easy. I'm cutting more and more by hand these days, as I've decided its the more fun part, rather than the scary part of the project. I still can't match the 'rat for quality though :?


----------



## Alf (19 Jan 2005)

Sorry it took me so long to remember to do it. :roll: Oh, and don't make the mistake I did; angle the handle up and away from the edge, otherwise you get an inadvertant depth stop in some applications.  

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Anonymous (19 Jan 2005)

If you're looking for the dovetail saw for actually handcutting dovetails, then could I suggest you consider something slightly different.

The Verital Dovetail Guide, combined with a regular Japanese dozuki (don't need to get the veritas one - any will do) works wonders. 

A tip with using it though - put a mirror (such as a small shaving mirror) behind the work piece, so you can see how far the saw's cut on the back without stopping and leaning over.

Just something to consider - I have the pair of these, and they produce lovely clean cuts that need little cleaning up (once the waste has been cleared), and using them really is simple.


----------



## Anonymous (19 Jan 2005)

Thanks for all your suggestions and I have certainly taken note, and please keep 'em coming. 

From the suggestions, I think regardless of what saw I buy I will be getting an older one to work on the sharpening. Finding sharpening places isn't too hard over here, but the thought of paying someone to do something that I could very well do myself seems a little silly.........that said I will probably develop a new "rip/cross/erratic" filing hybrid :wink: 

Very well done on the handle and Japanese saw Alf!


----------



## bugbear (20 Jan 2005)

> Personally the idea of taking a file to a £90 saw fills me with fear and horror,



Personally the idea of letting the local hardware store loose on a £90 saw fill me with more horror!

I'm the best saw sharpener I know. It's not that I'm good, it's that the competition is thin on the ground.

BugBear


----------



## Alf (20 Jan 2005)

bugbear":2i452tfm said:


> > Personally the idea of taking a file to a £90 saw fills me with fear and horror,
> 
> 
> 
> Personally the idea of letting the local hardware store loose on a £90 saw fill me with more horror!


No, that'd be perfectly safe. My local would say "no, I'm afraid we can't do that. You'd be better off throwing that one away and buying one of these <pulls plastic handled hardpoint from rack> instead". I know this because it actually happened to me... :roll: 

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Midnight (20 Jan 2005)

> I know this because it actually happened to me...



I assume the offending party benefited from a Mk1 withering look that chilled his very soul..????


----------



## Alf (21 Jan 2005)

It was more a look of total disbelief IIRC. The withering scorn kicked in after I'd left the shop, which could be viewed as both a Bad Thing and a Good Thing I suppose. :lol: 

Cheers, Alf


----------



## ijam (21 Jan 2005)

Espedair Street":37gcrggm said:


> A tip with using it though - put a mirror (such as a small shaving mirror) behind the work piece, so you can see how far the saw's cut on the back without stopping and leaning over.



What a fantastic tip!  Cheers!

Ian


----------



## Anonymous (25 Jan 2005)

ijam":193zgc81 said:


> Espedair Street":193zgc81 said:
> 
> 
> > A tip with using it though - put a mirror (such as a small shaving mirror) behind the work piece, so you can see how far the saw's cut on the back without stopping and leaning over.
> ...



Oh, um  not sure I can take credit entirely - I'm sure I read it somewhere....but nice to be appreciated


----------



## Philly (1 Feb 2005)

Alf
Don't know if you've seen the latest issue of F+CM? There's a beautiful sycamore box by John Bullar, hand dovetailed. In the article he has a saw suspiciously like yours! Cuts on the pull, far end is ground to a knife edge then fine teeth for a short length, followed by rip teeth. Made it him self-the results are fantastic!
Check it out next time your in WH Smith's :wink: 
regards
Philly


----------



## Anonymous (1 Feb 2005)

I vote with Alf & Bugbear. I use old saws. For backsaws, I use Disston #4's. Most I got for $2 or less except for my 8" (kinda rare) which I use for dovetails. I am not a good saw sharpener but I get good results by being careful. As Alf said, no matter what you buy, you will have to have it sharpened eventually. 
As to the saw wandering, if the set of the teeth is a little off, the saw will wander off line. Make a series of vertical lines on a board and saw each one. It the saw wanders in the same direction each time, lightly run a stone along the side of the teeth on the side that is pulling off line.


----------



## Alf (1 Feb 2005)

Roger Nixon":3knh6xms said:


> Most I got for $2 or less except for my 8" (kinda rare) which I use for dovetails


So Roger, what did you have to pay for the 8"? $3? :roll: My favourite's an 8" too, s'matter of fact. It's not beautiful, the back isn't brass, the handle is so-so, but it just feels _right_.

Philly, will do. I had a flick through F&C this morning as it happens, but I was not grabbed enough to buy. :? 

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Anonymous (1 Feb 2005)

Actually, Alf I paid $20! The most expensive saw I own except for a cheap(!) ryoba. My favorite saw is a Henry Disston (no sons) 12" #4 tenon saw from the 1840's. Somewhere around 1900 someone decided the 50-60 year old handle needed replacing which killed most of the collector value but it is a wonderful saw to use. Well worth the $2. :lol:


----------



## Alf (1 Feb 2005)

Roger Nixon":1fng5a99 said:


> Actually, Alf I paid $20!


Yikes! What's that? A bit over £10? Ooo, in that case I'll have a gloat 'cos mine cost £4  

Cheers, Alf


----------



## Anonymous (1 Feb 2005)

Yes, Alf, I am a foolish spendthift :lol: . Your 8" No 4 sounds a lot like mine. I had to look for a long time to find one until fellow galoot Josh Clark posted one on the Old Tools list.

Mine has the boxy beech handle like this one





. 

All my others have the finely shaped apple handles






I've been thinking about replacing the beech handle for an early apple one but I hate to mess with something that is working well.


----------



## Alf (1 Feb 2005)

Gosh, mine's not a Disston. We don't get many of them round these parts; we have the originals from Sheffield.  :lol: No, mines a no-name, second (third) line jobbie with steel nuts of the nastiest sort. It could only be worse if it had those rivet type saw "nuts" really. The handle's a little bit boxy, but not bad. Hmm, sounding less like a gloat the more I type. I think I'll shut up now... :wink: 

Cheers, Alf


----------

