Early Access Video: How to (actually) saw straight.
Added 2024-05-25 11:00:07 +0000 UTCFriends:
I've learned from YouTube comments--and even some forum posts--that precision sawing is a struggle for many woodworkers. It's even a problem for folks who have been in the craft for a while. When it's just you and the saw, there are no jig or guides. You have to make that saw track straight.
In the years I've been doing this, I've learned (and maybe invented) a few techniques that really help.
I thought I would put them together into a single video to help people who need it.
There are a lot of links in this video, so here they are:
Shannon Roger's Workbench Session: https://forum.woodworkforhumans.com/t/wbs-001-shannon-rogers/14428
Shannon on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RenaissanceWW
Saws in this video: (I used my affiliate account to keep the Amazon links manageable).
Bad Axe No. 9: https://tinyurl.com/3hhd5rfv
Spear and Jackson Tenon Saw (affiliate): https://amzn.to/4bwuZw7
Crown Tenon Saw (affiliate): https://amzn.to/3KmwHEh
Suizan Dozuki Saw (affiliate): https://amzn.to/4bT5WmI
Veritas Rip Carcass Saw: https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/hand-tools/saws/back/66066-veritas-carcass-saws
Happy Saturday!
--Rex
Comments
I have made several Windsor Chairs using rehydrated quarter sawn Sapelli that soaked for several days and found it can be draw knifed. Green is still better and great video! Jack
Jack Louth
2024-06-22 02:16:08 +0000 UTCThanks, I'll look them up!
Eric Ezell
2024-05-29 18:55:48 +0000 UTCYeah, for me that mirror is sort of like the rumble strips on the middle of the highway, tells me to flip the board before I wander too far into oncoming traffic;)
John Griswold
2024-05-29 12:56:07 +0000 UTCMan, you are preaching to the choir with that one! I grip everything to death. I've been really working on it, but as you say, it creeps back in. My only real tip is to take a breath every time you pick up a new tool. It's not perfect, but it helps.
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:58:37 +0000 UTCYeah, Nate connected with his inner child on that one. (I made him change it.)
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:57:31 +0000 UTCI think you're not signed in to the forum. It's a forum link. I just double-checked it and it works for me. I think the only difference is I'm signed in. Please let me know if you still have trouble after signing in.
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:56:57 +0000 UTCYou're entirely right about that! A flaw in the sharpening will cause so many headaches!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:54:42 +0000 UTCI think that's very similar to the tips in this video. Just another way of checking your body mechanics...which is the most important thing.
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:54:00 +0000 UTCI hope you find it helpful! That's a tip that i use a lot, but I never know if it makes sense to other people.
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:53:24 +0000 UTCI never in a million years would have connected water skiing with sawing, but I can see how the line applies to both. That really put a smile on my face!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:52:42 +0000 UTCThe back of a cut with a Ryoba is a source of frustration for many people. I have a had a tough time with it myself. One of the best tips I ever heard was: "Only cut the lines you can see." In other words, don't let the saw cut on the back of the board where you can't see it. Cut your top line and down the line facing you, then flip the board and cut along the back line. I've found this technique very helpful, but I like your mirror trick, too!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:51:26 +0000 UTCWow! That's a great little story. I think we all started out with a humble setup like the one you discuss. The first taste of success is addictive. I hope you keep going with small projects and build up slowly. It's really fun!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:48:12 +0000 UTCThere are many ways to skin this cat!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:42:22 +0000 UTCI just passed this comment right along to Nate. I'm sure he'll be touched. Thank you!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:41:46 +0000 UTCI'm delighted to hear that it's helping!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:40:34 +0000 UTCYou can cut very straight lines with a Ryoba. Jon Katz-Moses in particular has some videos on technique that are very helpful. Keep practicing!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:40:09 +0000 UTCTruly, a key detail!
Rex Krueger
2024-05-29 11:39:19 +0000 UTCI try and use the information from Shannon’s video whenever I saw but the lane drawing on all sawing is a great tip and I will employee it! The only thing I really have to work n is that death grip… I try and be conscious of it but it always creeps in!
Gerald Eddy
2024-05-28 17:52:03 +0000 UTCI also had issues with the link, it takes you to a page with this message. "Oops! That page doesn’t exist or is private."
Darrell Adkins
2024-05-26 14:14:49 +0000 UTCHas it been that long since the Workbench Series? Wow! Nate, exactly which sound effect did you use for the magically appearing saw? I turned into an eight year old boy and started giggling. Nice.
Bill Brisky
2024-05-26 09:48:22 +0000 UTCHear hear! Great job, Nate :^)
Thomas Hverring
2024-05-25 23:07:48 +0000 UTCHello Rex, dummy question... The link to the Shannon Rogers session is not working for me... Is this one correct ? https://forum.woodworkforhumans.com/t/workbench-sessions-where-are-they-right-here/20357
Jose Machado
2024-05-25 21:00:09 +0000 UTCGood advice on sawing techniques, Rex. A note to mention: If your saw has a tendency to veer to one side of the cut and start to bind, check the set of the teeth. A saw will tend to cut to the side with the greatest set. This is a particularly necessary task when you sharpen your own saws. Thank you as always and have a great week ahead.
Matt Evans-Koch
2024-05-25 19:42:28 +0000 UTCYep Rex I do much of everything just as you said. 🙂 One thing I learned is when sawing, position your body by setting the saw on the pencil ✏️ line. Put your free hand on the board. Then look at your body position. You will see if you are to close ect.
Dan Delie
2024-05-25 18:39:17 +0000 UTCThanks Rex, we'll done as always. Great tip about extending the lines across the shop. I'm definitely going to use that next time I make a cut.
Dave West
2024-05-25 16:07:04 +0000 UTCMany, many years ago I used the "project the line to a distant point" to help me get out of the water on a slalom water ski. (keep the tip of the ski pointed at the corner of the boat stern.) Worked like a charm. Why I never applied that technique to cutting a straight line (until now) is beyond me. Also works like a charm. Thanks for a great video
Robert Rutledge
2024-05-25 15:36:26 +0000 UTCOne cheater's trick while you are improving your technique is to get a cheap makeup mirror, self standing, and put it on the bench behind the work so that you can see if you are veering off that back line. I do a lot of stock breakdown with a Japanese Ryoba, and for some reason that I don't yet understand the rip cut seems to wander on the far side of the board. Might have to invest in a good western rip saw and build a saw bench...keep these great videos coming!
John Griswold
2024-05-25 14:28:45 +0000 UTCGreat content as always, Rex! I love the way you break down a process into individual steps, and explain each one clearly. Also, you keep things simple, and emphasize the things that actually matter for the topic you're discussing. After watching all your videos for quite a while now, I finally had an opportunity a couple of weekends ago to put as much of it as I could remember into practice. I had to make a simple crosscut on a 1x4 to make a mount for the back of the birdhouse. It was the first time I had had a chance to actually pick up a saw and go at a piece of wood in a very long time. It would have been great to have this video to watch beforehand, but I had absorbed most of it from other videos. All I had for tools were an old, dull, rusty, but good-quality vintage carpenters saw; a plain old Black & Decker workmate; a couple of adjustable adjustable squares and a carpenters square; some clamps; a pencil and a scribe. Also, patience, focus, determination, the excitement of learning and the joy of making. 😎 And that cross cut came out rather good, much to my astonishment! The top of the cut edge was square to the sides, and it was the exactly the length I intended. Well, okay, I did have the saw at a slight angle to the faces of the board, so the cut edge had a little bit of slope to it. But at least the slope was even and consistent. And as it turned out, that little bit of a sloped edge affixed to the back of the bird house will allow rain to shed off it. I wish I could claim it was intentional, but my "mistake" - as most mistakes do - taught me a couple of useful lessons, one of which was completely unexpected. I'll keep that sloped edge in mind for other outdoor projects. The thrill of accomplishing that one little thing has lit a fire in me. Starting is always the hardest part, and I know from experience that a first success seldom attends subsequent attempts. But it doesn't matter - I was outside on a beautiful day, playing with wood and tools, working on a useful, but low-stakes, project for another core passion: wild bird observation and endangered species preservation. And that is as good as it gets. I know a life-changing experience when I have one, and this silly, trival task is one of them. I've begun, and now I can continue. Thank you Rex - for the knowledge, the inspiration, and the encouragement! 🪚🩵
Laura Chalifoux
2024-05-25 14:20:33 +0000 UTCI've also had problems with sawing straight for as long as I can remember. Even when it started straight, halfway through the board the saw would go off the line. Drove me crazy. Until I drew a third line on the back of the board, and first followed that line (together with the top line. Then, when I proceeded through a section of the board I'll switch to the line on my side of the board. Once that's proceeded a bit, I'll straighten the saw and let the board guide the saw, (just keeping the tip up a bit). Most of the time the cut will be dead straight...
Frans van Ballegooijen
2024-05-25 13:38:24 +0000 UTCThis comment is for Nate to read. Great job with the special effects, Nate. I really liked the magical appearance of the saw in Rex’s hand. Your work significantly differentiates Rex’s video content from the “other” guys. You’ve move well beyond the typical talking head approach. Job well done, keep up the exceptional work.
Richard C von Brecht
2024-05-25 13:14:02 +0000 UTCTremendously helpful! Thanks!
L Ko
2024-05-25 12:46:26 +0000 UTCThank you for the tricks and encouragement! Unfortunately As I'm just getting started my one saw is a Ryobi so I may have to rely a bit more on the knife wall technique until I can get something with a rigged spine. Even so, practice makes perfect, and I have some dimensional lumber I can break down and practice on.
Eric Ezell
2024-05-25 11:38:16 +0000 UTCGreat tutorial, Rex! but you forgot, "Don't bear down - LET THE SAW DO THE WORK'...
Bill Dupee
2024-05-25 11:22:04 +0000 UTC
