karl":2c62ilvu said:
I believe I am right in saying that the (cheaper) jap saws can't be re-sharpened. So how well do the blades hold up before they need to be replaced with a new blade?
This Z-Saw, like many if not most affordable Japanese saws, cannot be resharpened, as the teeth are impulse-hardened. I read somewhere that the Z-Saws are hardened to Rc70, basically as hard or harder than files. Bottom line, forget sharpening those. Some think it is wasteful to throw away blades, but in reality they don't cost more than a professional sharpening service. Of course, if you sharpen your own saws, then a western saw would suit you better, but then you'd miss on what Japanese saws do.
High end Japanese saws can be sharpened, but this is beyond the capability of most people, at least for crosscut saws, as the teeth are shaped in a particular way (three different bevels if I recall). Rip saws are more like Western saws and can be resharpened fairly easily, but the Japanese approach involves more than just sharpening the teeth, it also involves re-tensioning the blade, and only pros can do that. The whole process is called
metate in Japanese, and this is what makes top notch Japanese saws "sing". You have to try one to feel the way it works...
But that Z-Saw should last you a few years of regular use before you need to change the blade. After using the LV rip dozuki (excellent saw!) for a 3-4 years, I purchased another one, partly to see how the new saw would compare to the old one. Well, it was sharper than the old one, but not by much, which leads me to believe that it should easily last me ten years or so of amateur use.
Hope this helps,
DC-C
