Got back out to the shop and made the little guide blocks as seen in the Vintage Saws site tutorial.
The use of the blocks really did help to maintain the rake angle and give you something to hold on to when filing. I continued to file all the teeth from one side until they all had a uniform shape.
After the teeth were shaped, I set them using a standard set with a range of 4-12 TPI settings. I used a set similar to this one:
I jointed lightly once again and filed the teeth lightly from both sides this time (alternating every tooth). It’s important to file the teeth that are set away from you. I ended up using two passes on each side to remove the flats and file the teeth to sharp points that do not reflect light on the cutting edge. Here’s what I ended up with:
I’m pretty pleased. Remember what the teeth looked like originally? Here you go:
I was able to take a saw that literally could not cut, and sharpen it to a real decent cutting saw that cuts straight (or as straight as I can cut) and fits snug in the kerf without binding:
A little more technical info:
The saw blade is .020” thick and it now has an overall set of .006” or .003” per side, achieved by systematically honing the sides of the teeth to reduce the set. I think it took 3-4 passes per side with a coarse diamond hone. After setting the teeth, the saw had an overall set of .012” (with the saw set on it’s finest setting). Even that would be a lot better than the original .022” of set the saw came with, which would make the kerf .042” or twice as thick as the blade!
This saw with 13 TPI filed RIP with an 8 degree rake angle cuts fast and clean.
Next, I’ll tune the crosscut saw…
-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA
10 comments so far
Tomcat1066
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776 posts in 690 days
posted 658 days ago
Looks really good! Some very nice cuts there!
-- "Give me your poor tools, your tired steel, your huddled masses of rust." Yep, I ripped off the Statue of Liberty. That's how I roll!
MsDebbieP
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14156 posts in 1054 days
posted 658 days ago
I think you are very patient
-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)
Bob #2
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3037 posts in 915 days
posted 658 days ago
Dorje, your passion is really evident with this project. Most would cave in a buy a high end saw and miss the adrenaline rush of doing it yourself.
Good on you man.
Bob
-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner
Mike Lingenfelter
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458 posts in 1008 days
posted 658 days ago
A lot of good information. I haven’t tackled sharpening a saw yet, but it is something I will have to try. I’ll have try some black and white pictures. I really like the detail and contrast you get with your photos.
-- http://theinquisitivewoodworker.com/
GaryK
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9521 posts in 882 days
posted 658 days ago
Pretty good information there. Good job.
-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.
Jeff
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996 posts in 987 days
posted 657 days ago
Awesome. Thanks for the update! Those are some nice kerfs you cut and nice touch with the shot of the vertical placement of the saw.
-- Jeff, St. Paul, MN
mranum
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94 posts in 310 days
posted 298 days ago
Doing some reading on learning to do this, and I must say that this is an excellent blog.
-- Just remember,it was a lone amatuer that built the ark, and a team of experts built the Titanic.
Karson
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25793 posts in 1294 days
posted 298 days ago
Some more great info. Thanks for the blogs.
-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †
Karson
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25793 posts in 1294 days
posted 298 days ago
Is this saw set up to cut on the pull or the push stroke?
-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †
Dorje
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1767 posts in 890 days
posted 298 days ago
Thanks guys -
Karson this is a western style saw, so it cuts on the push…
mranum – good luck with your sharpening adventures…
I still need to try some more of this!
-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA