The Correct Saw Can Make All The Difference

By Author: Ivan Cuxeva Jr
Total Articles: 782
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Ever since ancient times, when man had the vision and need to build objects he started to develop a great deal of tools which would let him accomplish the tasks at hand, one of these tools is the saw. The origins and invention of this tool are uncertain, theories change from place to place. In Greek mythology it is said that Perdix, the nephew of Daedalos (mythical architect and sculptor whose name means "cunning worker") invented the saw. Chinese tradition says that the saw was invented by Lu Ban who was a stateman, thinker, carpenter and philosopher. Studies suggest that it actually evolved from variations of Neolithic stone tools.

Whatever the origin may be, saws allowed man to cut wood with great precision, this tool allowed him to build furniture and even houses which no longer relied in stones as their main structural element. Saws are classified by the way they are "powered" these categories are: hand saws and mechanical powered saws. The most basic and popular saw type is the "hand saw" which varies according to the type of wood which needs to be cut.

Large saws were invented in order to cut trees, these ...
... are often handled by two people and have bigger teeth, others have smaller teeth in order to cut fine pieces of wood such as plywood, the smaller teeth allows the saw to cut this material with great precision without tearing it apart. Among the hand saws we have the following types:

- Plywood saw: as described above this tool has small teeth which are close to each other in order to make a clean cut without tearing the fine material apart.
- Rip saw: this tool is used to cut along the grain.
- Veneer saw: this is a double edge fine-toothed saw used to cut veneers which are extremely thin slices of wood (usually 3 millimeters in girth) These are used to produce flat panels placed on doors, cabinets and other types of furniture.
- Crosscut saw: this tool is used when making cuts perpendicular to the grain.

This is how hand saws are classified using a holistic approach, however there are many variations and each is meant for a specific material, if the wrong saw is used on a specific type of wood the material tends to crack which would ruin the end piece, this is the main reason why many variations have been created, the most important concept to remember is that there are different types of material which can't be cut with the same saw.