Adding a little fine toothed backsaw to you tool collection may come in handy. Sawing dowels flush is made easy with a fine toothed backsaw. The cutting stroke is always BACK and then a slight lift to push forward. The flexible blade makes a clean neat cut possible.I keep a supply of square and round craft hardwood pieces, because they come in handy for so many repairs or creating a craft piece. I use the little squared pieces to support flimsy drawer bottoms. Once cut to fit, they can be glued and clamped under the bottom. Dowels have so many uses, one being restoring a worn screw hole. A little backsaw can make all this easier and your work neater. They are not expensive and available at any hardware store. Note blade guide finger bent for safety.
We have more tools than enough probably, in our tool collection, including dozens of every different types of saws ... but I must admit I've never seen or heard of a fine toothed backsaw!! Looks like a handy little tool
There is a lot of online info and videos with more details, but I want to address some common mistakes that an occasional user may make. If you hit a nail, rock, or whatever that skins the chrome off the cutting teeth, you must file the worse damaged tooth first and back to where no damage shows. The angle must be kept close to what is marked on the file guide. All other teeth, even if not damaged as much, must be filed back to the same size. If badly damaged a new chain might be easier. If a gas saw, it is easier to do a touch up every gas tank fill. If no damage, 3 strikes per tooth doesn't take long but keeps your saw performing as it should. If a battery, I recommend touch up sharpening every 2 charges. If nothing is ever hit, touch up sharpening will be all that is ever necessary. When you chain gets dull, it gets hot and starts to get loose. If you continue cutting, this can cause bar wear and be a hazard. Be sure your chain is getting oiled. I won't address taking off the bar cover and cleaning, etc., because so many different styles of mounting. I love my little Stihl because it has a rotary tightener instead of bolts and nuts and a thumb wheel tension adjustment. I would refer to your manual on how to loosen bar just a bit then tighten chain so bottom on guides or at top of the bar when pulled up tightly. See photo. Most saws have a flat blade screw adjust for this, some a hex head bolt. Once adjusted,.then tighten the bar cover with proper wrench or hex key. When you stop to sharpen, check the chain tension by pulling up. It should be a bit looser because it is warm, but not way loose or super tight. Note sharpening angle marked on the guide and other hand fingers holding that angle. Remember to keep guide flat and not rock up and down. I have a bar holder clamp I made, but to keep things simple a 2X4 block works just fine for holding bar from moving around. Note photo of how to safely move chain forward. Lift off 2X4 block slightly and put one hand on top of bar on the last sharpened tooth and other hand on the bottom a bit up from the saw and rotate forward to you favorite sharpening position. I always wear gloves and love my Stihl stretch gloves because they are light, but very tough and come in women sizes.
Here is a bigger Japanese backsaw with different tooth size on each side. This is an awesome saw especially for wood furniture repairs and making. If anyone in your family does a lot of woodwork, especially joinery, then they would love this one. Made in Japan and a bit expensive, but amazing!
Thanks, Faye. That may solve a puzzle. One time I sent off a chain to be sharpened and it came back with about half the length of the teeth filed off. I wondered why he filed off that much. I bet I hit a rock with it and badly damaged a few of the teeth.
@Nancy Hart Having a pro shop sharpen a damaged chain, especially if from a long bar, is the way to go and generally cheaper than a new chain. They have the power rotary grinders and it doesn't take that long. When I was building my log cabin, sawing lumber (Alaskan chainsaw mill), and cutting a lot of firewood, I had 4 chains for each for both of my main saws. When one was damaged beyond a routine touch up sharpening, I would change chains and when I was on my last chain, go to town and take damaged chains into the pro shop.
Good know. I just looked it up and there is a Stihl Dealer just 2 miles from my house as the crow flies, who will sharpen chains. I've collected several chains over the years. Ha! They also do repairs. I've got 2 almost identical Echo Saws. One quit running long ago and I've been cannibalizing the parts for the other one. Maybe I'll take the old one in and see if it can be revived. When we first got our goats, my mother and I cut a couple of roads through the woods for the utility vehicle to run on. It was a lot of fun. I would cut, and she would help toss the trees limbs out of the way. Not as much sawing recently. In my spare time ( ) I should clear those roads again.
My husband's hobby was cutting down trees. He claimed it was for firewood or he was going to make stuff, which he did, but his greatest joy was just to cut down big trees.
Here is the type I use fairly often. May be used with teeth facing in either direction; uses a standard hack saw blade, easily replaced or turned around. Will cut fairly "tight" radius of curvature. Very good for drywall openings for electric outlets and switch boxes.
Yes those are really handy, Frank. Nice for sawing off nails or bolts that can't be reached by hacksaw. Great point about blade can be turned to push or pull. It is a necessary for any DIY tool collection.
You should try it Bess. It is a rush to get one down safely and fell it right where you want it. My favorite was sawing lumber with my Alaskan chainsaw mill. It is all behind me now. Cutting up wind fall branches is all I can do. I was reading in a country magazine where it is becoming a thing for the guys to cut the tree and skid it in and the gals to run the chainsaw mill and make the lumber. Secret to cutting lumber is filing a sharper angle on teeth and cutting the rakers down and KEEPING it SHARP! I think woman don't mind taking time to touch up chain every gas fill, but men like to go until it starts cutting slower. Also once the cut is started with the log sloping a bit down, the saw carries itself and isn't that hard to do.
Funny, but at our age (wife and I), we are much better using a computer than a chainsaw or any other "manual labor" type item. When I see programs on HGTV showing Seniors doing an inhouse demolition, then...……… When GNC stores put pictures of Seniors on their walls, again, then...…...
@Cody Fousnaugh Absolutely! Much easier to use computer than a chainsaw. Up until last year I did more shop work and chainsaw work than computer. I decided time to hang up my D ring belt and stop climbing trees. If the branches hit the ground, then they will meet their fate, but should they defy a wind storm and stay high in the tree, then they win and earn their right to drop more leaves for me to rake.