Table of Contents

• Introduction
  
• The Crosscut Saw
  
• How a Saw Cuts
  
• Saw Vise
  
• Filing the Saw
  
• Cleaning
  
• Hammering or Straightening
  
• Jointing
  
• Raker Fitting
  
• Pointing Up Cutter Teeth
  
• Setting
  
• Testing a Saw
  
• Choosing and Using a Saw
  
• Handle Positions
  
• Storing Saws
  
• Glossary
• About the Author

Acknowledgments

This manual would never have been possible without the willing and patient teaching of Martin Winters, accomplished filer from the days when the crosscut saw reigned.

Also, special thanks to Clem Pope, friend and coworker with a mutual interest in crosscuts, and William Harlow, professor emeritus of wood technology, State University of New York, for their many helpful comments and contributions to the text.

There are persons too numerous to name here who contributed knowingly and unknowingly to this manual: sawyers, filers, and others, all of whom have something in common—knowledge about the crosscut saw and a willingness to share that knowledge. To these important individuals I give my appreciation.

Finally, my thanks to staff members of the Technology and Development Center at Missoula for their suggestions during the preparation of this manual.