Without a hand saw, it’s hard to imagine an arsenal of tools from a home craftsman or a locksmith. Its other name is a hacksaw. With this tool you can file branches in the garden, shorten the fence for fence and do a lot of work, where you need to change the length of a wooden product: laminate, planks for farming, etc.
Perhaps you did not think, but the right choice of a hacksaw determines not only its service life, but also the convenience of work, the quality of the cut. Consider the main parameters of the correct choice of this tool necessary in the economy and carpentry.
How to choose a saw?
A hacksaw for wood is available on the market in different versions. What products may differ:
- The shape and size of the tooth;
- Canvas size;
- Steel grade of which the working part (cloth) is made;
- Handle shape.
A hacksaw with a change in one of these parameters can dramatically change its characteristics. Also, sitting comfortably in the hand of one master, will not fit another. These factors must be considered when choosing a tool for different purposes.
Tooth size
This parameter affects the quality and speed of work. For the convenience of determining the size and number of teeth, the TPI designation was introduced, indicating the number of teeth in one inch. This parameter can be seen in the description of a hand saw on wood, often the value is applied to the blade.
Joiner's hacksaw is selected, first of all, according to the size of the tooth. So, for ordinary wood, small and large are suitable, and for “delicate” materials such as fiberboard, a fine-toothed saw is needed. In stores, you can now find similar notations: “for wood”, “for drywall”, etc. Their main difference is the size of the teeth, optimal for sawing each of the materials indicated on the label.
The teeth are distinguished in shape, depending on this, the tool acquires a different purpose:
- The hacksaw for longitudinal sawing is equipped with triangular-shaped teeth with oblique corners. Their appearance resembles hooks that are sharpened on both sides. Because of this, the saw glides along the wood fibers and cuts the blade evenly, almost without nicks.
- The tool for cross cutting is equipped with teeth in the shape of an isosceles triangle. A mechanical hacksaw of this kind is sawed when going back and forth, but it can only be used to process dry wood.
- The mixed sawing hacksaw is equipped with both types of teeth alternately arranged one after the other. Long curved saws the material in the forward direction, the triangles during the reverse movement expand the channel for passage and catch the chips and sawdust. In modern models, cloves alternate with voids. This allows the saw to be used on dry and freshly sawn wood; coarse unnecessary fibers are removed through the holes.
Steel selection
For the tool to last longer, you should choose high grades of steel for the production of cloth. Better if it is stainless.
The teeth may be red-hot or normal. Ordinary can be sharpened at home, saws with red-hot teeth - disposable, after wear nothing can be done with them. They are easy to recognize by the dark color as in the photo.
Blade length
This parameter is determined by the size and pitch of the saw tooth.
- The mini-hacksaw is always equipped with small frequent teeth, the length of its blade does not exceed 350 mm;
- The universal hacksaw has an average tooth size and a length of not more than 550 mm;
- The wide hacksaw is equipped with large teeth with increased pitch, the length of its blade is more than 600 mm.
In addition to the length of the canvas can vary in shape. The traditional saw has the shape of a rectangle narrowed on one side. This is a universal type of tool with which you can cut anything.
The rounded canvas is adapted for working with branches and other objects at a distance: it is lightweight, glides easily on wood without much effort.
Handle shape
This part of the saw determines the convenience of work. The tool should ideally blend in with your hand and be comfortable. For the manufacture of pens using various plastics, pleasing to the body. An important note - the material should not slip if the hand suddenly fogs up. To do this, recesses and grooves, a rubberized overlay are provided in the handle housing.
Varieties
By combining these factors, manufacturers have developed and day produce standard products with different canvases, the shape of the handle and tooth. To understand how to choose a hacksaw for wood, first you need to familiarize yourself with existing types of saws.
Type 1: Classic
The main type of saw that almost every man has, even far from construction and carpentry. This hacksaw can have a blade of any length with a different number of teeth, often the tool is equipped with replaceable blades that come with the purchase.
Type 2: Narrow
Its other name is a circular hacksaw. It takes the name from the main application - it cuts out lines of various shapes, and, moreover, it does it neatly and clearly. It is also used for sawing through round, square holes. The saw blade is narrow, the teeth are frequent, can be located both on one working plane, and on both.
When working with a saw, one should be careful: in case of uncertain motion, the blade will turn in the opposite direction, therefore the choice of a hacksaw for wood with a narrow blade should be stopped on a product made of high-quality hard steel, which will not bend during the sawing process.
Type 3: Pickaxe
The hacksaw with a pickaxe is equipped with a stiffener (thereby the pickaxe), which prevents the blade from bending during operation. Thus, the tool is not able to make cuts lower than the width of the working part of the saw.
The hacksaw is always equipped with a convenient handle at an angle of 450 to the canvas for easy performance.
Type 4: Onion
For plumbing, a beam saw is indispensable: it serves for cutting rough parts of the trunk, knots, for cutting figures out of plywood and other wood materials, sawing wood along and across the fibers. The use of a beam saw is so wide that it alone can replace a small woodworking machine.
A large range of ongoing work obscures the main disadvantages a bit:
- Bulky. A beam saw is a complex structure, its bearing part is made in the form of a large curved arc, to which a thread-narrow blade with teeth is attached.
- Fragility. It is necessary to work with the tool with extreme care: during operation, the blade can fly off the mounts and break, it requires frequent replacement.
Type 5: Reward
Saw with a reward requires a lot of effort to master working with it. This is a tool resembling a planer. It is equipped with two handles. Its main application is the cutting of grooves and spikes, the depth of the holes and recesses can be of different sizes, moreover, on rocks of any hardness.
Type 6: Folding Tool
A mechanical hacksaw that you can take with you on a hike or on vacation. It is compact, lightweight, when folded, completely safe. Folding hacksaw has small teeth, a short pointed blade.
Proper selection
In addition to accounting for the main varieties of saws, the choice of a hacksaw for wood should be carried out on request for a certain type of work:
- Swing for longitudinal sawing;
- Transverse copes well with wood across the fiber;
- Stud for cutting grooves, spikes and technological recesses in products;
- Circular for cutting holes of various shapes;
- Folding wood saw
These types of hacksaws for wood summarize the above model of the tool. The selection should be made for its main purpose, for which a selectable type of tool is purchased. For households, it is advisable to purchase a saw with interchangeable blades or to have several hacksaws of various types in the arsenal.
How to decide
This amount of new information is not easy to put into practice, because we will give you some tips on how to choose the right saw in sequence.
- The first factor to be taken is which material to be cut will go to work and what is the desired cut quality. Carpenters working with small wooden products choose small saws with a short blade. For a joiner, it is better to use large teeth and a blade - this master does not require high precision work, speed is a priority. The folding garden hacksaw is ideal for summer residents who will only cut through trees and shrubs.
- Frequency of use. Determine how often you have to work with the tool. If the need is rare, take a saw with red-hot teeth, if often there will be a need for sharpening - from ordinary steel.
- The quality of steel should be high for the tool with any frequency of use. The higher the grade of metal, the better the product. Before buying, grab the tool in your hands and carefully bend the blade to 450. Good metal is resilient and when you release the end of the saw will restore its shape without shifting the central axis. Noticed deviation - return the hacksaw to the seller.
- Price in this case is a guarantee of quality. Of course, provided that the seller is honest and does not offer you a fake. A good product cannot be cheap. Choose in the middle price range, if the wallet allows - do not stint on an expensive saw. Select a manufacturer by confidence rating and give preference to its products in the store. In most cases, this tactic allows you to avoid buying something incomprehensible instead of a good tool.
- Take a hacksaw tool in your hand. You should be comfortable holding it. The material of manufacture can be one-piece plastic with a rubberized handle.
Adhering to these simple rules, you can easily choose a hacksaw suitable for your needs.