Need a folding saw

[GLOOB]

Originally Posted by wheelgunslinger View Post
Yeah, I just don't like the biomechanics of folding saws...

[<SNIP!>]

With a bow-saw, you get a lot of biomechanical efficiency when you cut that's less fatiguing and more powerful on the up and back strokes.

Same here. Plus, the physics of folding saw design makes it distressingly easy to bend, break or otherwise malform the blade -- even the good ones.

I take it you guys have never used a Japanese pull saw. Back muscles and fatigue don't enter the equation. This is a bit of hyperbole, but cutting down a tree with a pull saw it about as taxing as playing the bow back and forth on a violin.

Pull saws are immune to bending under use. My traditional carpentry Japanese pull saw is extremely thin and floppy, and it gives me no issues. It'll occasionally bow up a little on a bad return stroke, but the spring steel just pops back, unharmed. And on the cutting/pull stroke, there are no bending forces at all. The folding versions are thicker. They don't flop around at all and can be worked completely carelessly without bending around. I would say the folding version of this saw is even more bulletproof than the full size.

Shark saws and Silky saws both fit this category. The teeth cut aggressively with near zero downward force, no catching. No muscling, no nothing.

As for ergos? For gosh knows how many decades (centuries?) the handle on a Japanese pull saw is just a basic stick, at a slight cant with the blade. And for the biomechanics of how you use a pull saw, it's just peachy. The folding version's handle is better than the traditional handle, seeing as it provides this same angle or a reverse cant for cutting from the underside.

Downsides for the folding pull saw? Shorter blade than a full size saw. And wider kerf (but still thin and fast compared to western style saws!). That's really it. If you examined how the handles attach on my saws and the blade thickness/stiffness, you'd probably come to the conclusion that the folding saw is stronger in every way. And if you used them, you'd come to the conclusion that either one is strong and comfortable enough to do what it's supposed to.

 

[Nighteyes]

I take it you guys have never used a Japanese pull saw. Back muscles and fatigue don't enter the equation. This is a bit of hyperbole, but cutting down a tree with a pull saw it about as taxing as playing the bow back and forth on a violin.

Pull saws are immune to bending under use. My traditional carpentry Japanese pull saw is extremely thin and floppy, and it gives me no issues. It'll occasionally bow up a little on a bad return stroke, but the spring steel just pops back, unharmed. And on the cutting/pull stroke, there are no bending forces at all. The folding versions are thicker. They don't flop around at all and can be worked completely carelessly without bending around. I would say the folding version of this saw is even more bulletproof than the full size.

Shark saws and Silky saws both fit this category. The teeth cut aggressively with near zero downward force, no catching. No muscling, no nothing.

As for ergos? For gosh knows how many decades (centuries?) the handle on a Japanese pull saw is just a basic stick, at a slight cant with the blade. And for the biomechanics of how you use a pull saw, it's just peachy. The folding version's handle is better than the traditional handle, seeing as it provides this same angle or a reverse cant for cutting from the underside.

Downsides for the folding pull saw? Shorter blade than a full size saw. And wider kerf (but still thin and fast compared to western style saws!). That's really it. If you examined how the handles attach on my saws and the blade thickness/stiffness, you'd probably come to the conclusion that the folding saw is stronger in every way. And if you used them, you'd come to the conclusion that either one is strong and comfortable enough to do what it's supposed to.

You mean... like these? Interesting, for sure.

http://www.japanwoodworker.com/category/13932/folding-contractors-saws.aspx

 

[GLOOB]

Yeah, like those.

Key points are the blades are thin, no need for blade thickness or a frame. Thin kerf = faster easier cuts. Teeth are super sharp. All the good ones are made in Japan with induction hardened teeth - even the American and UK brands have blades made in Japan. The teeth also are sharp along the sides, making them very effective in green woods and other tough materials where other saws can have difficulty clearing their own kerf. I've seen woodworkers use this kind of saw for finishing of notches/dovetails by pressing the side of the blade against the wood. Faster than a chisel.

 

[NJ Rich]

I go with the larger SVEN Folding Saw. I have a spare washer and wing nut taped to the frame "just in case". It does all the general cutting I need in a winter camp and it's folding style works well with my backpack. I backpack with a friend or two and having a hatchet is the second addition.