My first Japanese saw. Deeply impressed!!

[Beatsy]

I thought I'd try a japanese saw for cutting square hardwood blocks. I made a simple magnetic jig and cut a few pieces off the end of a length of 66mm x 26mm sapele. I had planned to build a shooting board and a plane skid for further sizing and refinement of the blocks after sawing as they need to be *very* accurately sized and square. But what a surprise I got!! Those blocks in the pics are as sawn! No planing or sanding done at all. Even the offcuts look tidy and useful (2mm thick). Unbelievable really.

I had maybe an hour of "practice" with the saw first (aka sawing loads of random bits of timber into smaller bits of timber), and then got this result on my first serious attempt. I am truly impressed - and an instant convert!! For this application, anyway.

Same blocks, but a better view of the stock they're being cut from.

 

[Fitzroy]

Would be interested to see more photos of your magnetic jig, if possible.

I use both western and Japanese saws and find they excel at different tasks. The super thin kerf and very sharp teeth when new make cutting effortless. The main downside I have found is that in thick stock they can go off track quite easily and they are then hard to get back on track. This could easily be poor technique tho!

 

[Beatsy]

I'm sure I'll continue to use both Western and Japanese saws too, but for this job - Japanese all the way now! There definitely is a lot of technique involved. I currently get deeper "plumb" cuts (before it starts to wander) if I position myself behind the saw, on the line of pull. I'm gradually getting more practiced at using one hand and standing a little more to the side (as per normal sawing) - but for ultimate accuracy, being right behind the saw with the piece clamped down tight works best for me.

Ref the jig. I was sawing a few more blocks this morning and took these phone snaps. Not sure how many pics I can post - let's see...

Although the jig was made for these specific blocks, it can be used on any length of stock. Here, with the little lever upright, the jig is sat on the length of sapele, with the saw held square and plumb by magnets on the other side. The jig can be held in place by hand, but clamped is more reliably accurate.

Here's the view from the other side with the saw removed. Magnets are under the hardwood veneer. Ignore the wear - that was from my first couple of attempts where I angled the saw too much (trying to drive the verticals down plumb ASAP) so the raised teeth snagged the surface. It only knocked some finish off and I don't let the teeth get that high any more.

For cutting blocks, the little lever is tilted over to introduce a "stop" on the back edge. This is placed on the end of the stock with the stop pressing against it.

Note: I turned the wood around here and did the cut it from "this side" instead. Here's the cut result...

Now, to make the square block, the cut piece is turned 90 degrees to put the newly sawn edge against the back of the jig and I use the ripsaw blade (the saw has two edges, rip and crosscut). Here it is setup ready to be cut...

...and here, after cutting. What would normally be thin, mangled waste offcuts are actually very tidy and useful-looking. Don't know what for though...

And the final sawn block. The edges facing the camera are the sawn ones. Never seen anything like it. Also, measuring with calipers, the block dimension tolerances are all better than +/- 0.1 mm - and still improving...

The yellow bit is just sandpaper for more grip on the piece when hand-holding the jig.

Cheers.

 

[Kicked Back]

Just don't let anyone else use it. Ever. They'll put a kink in it before you can blink.