Crosscut saw sizing question

Eyes Wide Open · #1 11/14/10, 06:00 PM

This is EWO's husband:
I'm interested in purchasing a one man crosscut saw for tree cutting. The saws that I am considering come in 32" or 36" length, and i'm wondering what size is best for me. I found an old post elseware that suggested that longer is better because you can make longer smoother cuts, and said you would want bigger than 36" inch if you have long arms. My arms are average, and i'm about 5' 7".
Anyways if anyone has experience about what the difference would be I would appreciate it. The 36" is pricier, and i'm willing to pay it if it makes a difference, but don't want to if I would be more comfortable with the 32" or it wouldn't matter much.

Thanks for the help!

fitwind · #2 11/14/10, 07:31 PM

Well I don't have a lot of experience with crosscut saws, but would say the length of the saw should be twice the length of the tree you cutting....

mldrenen · #3 11/14/10, 08:34 PM

a good quality crosscut saw will cut wood well, feel comfortable and balanced in your hand, and last a few lifetimes. the one thing they will not do, is sharpen themselves. i have a nice old Diston one-man crosscut that i don't dare sharpen myself, and it would cost me an arm and a leg to have the local sharpener set the teeth.

crosscut saw teeth have to be set and sharpened, and it's not a job for the faint of heart.

if you learn to sharpen, any decent quality saw will do fine. this one is about as cheap as i'd go and still expect quality. you can spend several hundred on a nice saw, but for the amount of use yours would see, this saw will be more than adequate:

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/200...w.aspx#Reviews

overthrow · #4 11/14/10, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eyes Wide Open

This is EWO's husband:
I'm interested in purchasing a one man crosscut saw for tree cutting. The saws that I am considering come in 32" or 36" length, and i'm wondering what size is best for me. I found an old post elseware that suggested that longer is better because you can make longer smoother cuts, and said you would want bigger than 36" inch if you have long arms. My arms are average, and i'm about 5' 7".
Anyways if anyone has experience about what the difference would be I would appreciate it. The 36" is pricier, and i'm willing to pay it if it makes a difference, but don't want to if I would be more comfortable with the 32" or it wouldn't matter much.

Thanks for the help!

Hey EWOs hubby, I have an old, tube steel frame crosscut that is 36", I haven't used it for years, but when I did, I was glad it wasn't any shorter. I think its much easier and faster when you can saw with a full stroke. If you have to stop the stroke before your arms are at full length, it will tire your arms faster. I never had the blades sharpened, I just bought new ones, but I'm sure you can find a saw sharpener that can also set the kerf on the teeth. Look for one of those shops that sharpen band sawmill blades, they have all the equipment including kerf setters to make those dull blade like new again.

texican · #5 11/14/10, 11:51 PM

36" minimum. If I were buying a new one I'd go 48".

If you buy one new, to my knowledge, you're going to have to sharpen it yourself. There are online guides from the Forest Service. Also a guide on Youtube showing the step by step sharpening/setting procedure.

I've cut down trees with one and two man saws, and bucked firewood with one and two's. The longer the better... you've got more options.

If your buying, go ahead and start searching for sharpening and setting tools and gauges... reckon you could 'do it' without the specialized tools, but you'd have to be an expert... and if you were an expert, you'd already have the tools.

Good luck! I have about 4 one man saws and half a dozen two man saws. I have the knowledge and the skill set... but I don't use them. The Stihl chainsaw is so much faster... I keep them around for the day when there's no more fuel for the saw.

Eyes Wide Open · #6 11/15/10, 09:35 AM

This is EWO now, the wife version

I love you guys! That's why I sent the hubby here.

But I wanted to ask - maybe my husband already knows but I don't... mldrenen, why is sharpening the saw not for the faint of heart? I've never sharpened anything, not even a kitchen knife, but I mentioned to the hubby that the skill in general would be a useful one for us to acquire. But, um, if my husband is risking cutting his head off sharpening the saw, I'll pass

mldrenen · #7 11/15/10, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Eyes Wide Open

But I wanted to ask - maybe my husband already knows but I don't... mldrenen, why is sharpening the saw not for the faint of heart? I've never sharpened anything, not even a kitchen knife, but I mentioned to the hubby that the skill in general would be a useful one for us to acquire. But, um, if my husband is risking cutting his head off sharpening the saw, I'll pass

it's not dangerous, it's just a skill that will take a lot of practice to get it right. there are multiple surfaces that need sharpening, and the teeth of the saw need to be set. improperly set teeth can make a sharp saw cut like crud. some tooth patterns are easier to set than others. the saw i linked to earlier in this thread has what appears to be a pretty simple tooth pattern to sharpen and set.

for more detailed information about what sharpening a crosscut saw entails, download the pdf from the US Forest Service:

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_bas...p/crosscut.pdf