New lightweight and powerful Bosch jigsaw

Lightweight and powerful, the new JS5 Orbital Jigsaw from Bosch Power Tools and Accessories is the ideal option for woodworkers, remodelers, serious DIYers and others who are ready to move up to a pro-caliber jigsaw.

Long known for industry-leading innovation and performance in the jigsaw category, Bosch’s latest offering delivers both without breaking the bank. For example, Bosch’s exclusive One Touch™ blade change system enables one-handed blade changes. This feature provides quick and easy blade changes during any project.

The variable speed dial allows users to precisely control the saw’s 5.7 amps of power and match speed of cut (500-3,100 SPM) for a smooth and quality finish on their workpiece. Users can even adjust the type of cut – from smooth to aggressive – simply by using the saw’s 4-position orbital action feature and choosing the appropriate blade.

The Bosch JS5 offers top-notch comfort and control, thanks to a counterbalanced drive system that minimizes vibration and a soft-grip handle and body that reduce user fatigue. Visibility is maximized by an adjustable dust blower, designed to keep sight lines clear during use. The lightweight JS5 barely tips the scales at five pounds.

The Bosch JS5 Orbital Jigsaw comes complete with a rugged carrying bag, blade, anti-splinter insert and an Allen wrench. The saw is covered by a one year warranty. It is now available through authorized Bosch distributors nationwide, and retails for $109.00. To find out more, users may visit www.boschtools.com or call 877-BOSCH-99.

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Chain Saws

In 1925, the German company Stihl invented the world's first electric chain saws. Two years later, another German company, Dolmar, experienced first gas-powered saw. Since that time, life as a professional tree fellers, and the "business owners" country houses has improved. After all, who with the same speed and dexterity can cope with a sawing logs for the terraces, and the harvesting of firewood for the fireplace? Only she, chain saws.

Any house, as is well known, begins with the workpiece material. And without material is not any building? Of course, without the wood. Wooden detail can be found even in a stone cottage. If the floors, windows, floors and skirting and not smell the resin, the erection of the house at the time still used wooden rafters. But is the home of a single plot out alive? Various tools holders and, finally, children's sand is not made of wood most often made. Logs, piles, slabs - all large wood construction and decoration products "Chain Saw" cuts and polished with ease. Not resting it and after construction: you have to saw firewood for the fireplace - no problems, too many patients and branch into apple orchard cut – please. I keep it anywhere. And everywhere chain saw is on the first place.

Band saws 101

When looking to cut precise curves in wood, in most cases there is no better tool to choose than the band saw. That being said, a quality band saw will do a lot more than just cut curves. They are great for cutting tenons and some smaller rabbets, for ripping small pieces of stock and for resawing thin strips from larger pieces of wood.

With all the different band saw types, sizes and options available, how do you know which band saw is right for you?

Types of Band Saws: There are two main types of band saws, floor-standing cabinet models, and units that are shorter, for mounting either on a dedicated stand or on a bench top. Cabinet models are typically built for professional use, whereas the smaller units are better suited for the home-based woodworker. The cabinet models have have more features and larger motors, and usually feature a stronger frame which leads to more consistent cutting. That isn't to say, however, that one cannot get professional results from a bench-mounted band saw.

Main Features: The two main things to consider when choosing a band saw are the depth of cut and the throat. The saw's depth of cut is the distance from the table to the upper blade guides. Many band saws are marketed on this feature alone, which tells the prospective buyer how thick of stock can be cut using the band saw. However, some saws that have only a six-inch depth of cut can have an optional riser added to the unit which extends the depth from six inches to twelve. This allows some less expensive saws to be able to cut thicker stock, particularly when resawing.

The throat is the distance from the blade to the vertical frame section of the body of the saw. This distance determines the width of cut that can be completed on the band saw. The throat on a free-standing cabinet band saw typically exceeds the 12 to 14-inch throat of smaller, bench-top models. When you see the term "18-inch Band Saw" advertised, realize that it is the throat measurement to which the manufacturer is referring.

Size of Motors: Another consideration is the size of the band saw's motor. Most home-level models incorporate a 3/4 to 1 horsepower motor, whereas professional models will have larger motors with variable speeds. For woodworkers, the variable speed won't really matter, as slower than max speeds should be incorporated when cutting metals and some hard plastics.

Additional Features to Consider: Every band saw should have a cast-iron, steel or aluminum alloy table which tilts up to 45-degrees for angled cuts. The table will typically be about 16-inches in both width and length, equipped with a miter track. Look for band wheels that have tires with cleaning brushes to keep the wheels clean. Look also for a unit with a built-in dust collection port, for connecting to your shop vacuum.

Two very useful options that you should add to your band saw (if it doesn't come already equipped) are a rip fence and a miter gauge. These two add-ons will prove very useful when ripping, resawing and cross cutting.

Set-Up: When setting up your band saw, read the instructions that accompany the unit very carefully. There are numerous fine adjustments which are necessary for the band saw to cut properly. Failure to follow these instructions, which include setting the blade tension and adjusting the blade guides, thrust bearing and side bearings, will decrease the performance of the saw and make blades much more likely to break.

Not only will the owner's manual help you set up your saw properly, it will help you become much more familiar with the proper methods for safely cutting with your saw. A band saw is among the safest of power woodworking tools, but the saw is must be set up properly before use. A band saw is a fun tool to work with, but only if used correctly.

Bandsaw Template Sawing

The fastest way to reproduce identical parts is with a machine guided by a template. Most woodworkers are familiar with the technique as it applies to a router: A bearing, which is fastened to the end of a router bit, runs around the edge of a template fastened to the workpiece. The template is then fastened to the next workpiece, and the process is repeated. All pieces, whether there are 6 or 600, are exact copies because the same template is used to guide the router.

This concept can be applied to a bandsaw for reproducing curves. Rather than drawing the design on the stock and care fully sawing to the line, a template is attached to the stock and the cut is guided by a stick that is secured to the table adjacent to the blade (see the drawing above). This permits you to saw faster because you don’t have to concentrate on following the layout line. Instead of following the line, you simply push the stock past the blade while maintaining contact between the template and the guide.

Bandsawing with a template is definitely a fast way to produce any number of curved parts. But the technique does have a major shortcoming: You can’t saw inside corners. In fact, the technique is most beneficial for bandsawing large, sweeping curves such as chair rockers.

Also, because making an accurate template may consume a considerable amount of time, the benefit gained by sawing with a template may not outweigh the cost. Nevertheless, bandsawing with a template can be a quick, accurate method for producing large quantities of certain types of work

For a template, you’ll want to use a material that is stiff, strong, and easy to work I’ve found that a high-quality ply wood is ideal. Inexpensive plywood isn’t suitable because it typically isn’t flat and it has voids in the core between the veneer layers. Consequently, the guide will catch in the voids and spoil the workpiece.

Making a template is much like making a pattern: You simply draw the design and carefully cut it out. It’s also important to sand or otherwise smooth away any irregularities. If you don’t take time to smooth away errors, they will be duplicated in any work for which the template is used.

The guide is simply a stick that extends from the blade of the bandsaw to the edge of the table. The business end of the stick, near the blade, is notched to fit around the blade. It’s also convex in shape to easily follow the curves of the template. The other end of the stick clamps firmly to the table edge.

With the setup complete, the actual sawing becomes the easiest part of the job. As you’re sawing, always keep the template positioned against the guide.

Securing a Template You can attach a template to your workpiece in a number of ways. My favorite method is to tack the template to the stock with small brads. If you allow the heads to protrude, it’s much easier to pull the brads out again. Obviously, you don’t want to use brads if the holes will show in the finished work, but typically you can position the brads in an area where they won’t be seen or where the offending holes in the stock will later be removed during joinery and construction.

Another option for securing a template to a workpiece is to use double-sided tape. The cloth tape used by woodturners is strong and readily available from many woodworking supply catalogs. I’m not a fan of this tape because the application is so slow it can often negate any benefits of template sawing.

A third option is to construct a jig that includes the template profile plus toggle clamps to secure the work. Toggle clamps are quick to operate and are ideal for most jig clamping situations. Because constructing the jig takes time, I reserve this method for parts that I reproduce often.

Make the template a little long I make the template approximately ½ in. longer than the stock so that the tem plate contacts the guide before the work reaches the blade. This ensures a safe, accurate start to the cut.

This article is excerpted from The Bandsaw Book written by Lonnie Bird and ©1999 by Lonnie Bird and The Taunton Press.

Tuning a Band Saw

Unplug bandsaw when installing and centering blade. Adjust tilt of top wheel so blade is running dead center on the wheels, spin the top wheel by hand to check. The tension should be just enough to prevent slipping on the wheels but not enough to stretch the blade, the wider the blade the more tension required. If there is too little tension the blade will not cut straight, increase a bit at a time until you feel you can control the cut. Some inexpensive or damaged blades will wander no matter what you do. Set guide blocks to miss the teeth but support the rest of the blade. Wrap a single layer of 24# paper around the blade to set the side clearance. The back up roller should be set so it does not turn when idling but will support the blade when cutting. Condition the back of the blade, with the blade running hold a sharpening stone against the back corners of the blade to round them off, this will allow you to cut sharper corners with less binding. Check if table is set square to blade, otherwise your cut will not be 90 degrees. Set fence to blade, most band saws do not cut parallel to edge of table so the fence has to be adjusted accordingly. Mark a line about 3" from and parallel to the straight edge of a 12" square scrap of plywood, make a cut into plywood following the line for about six inches. Stop the saw, keeping the plywood in the position it was in while making the cut. Align the fence to the straight edge of the plywood. There are many variables when setting a band saw, each blade will have its own characteristics, often you may find that you have to go back and tweak some of the previous settings again as you go through the procedure. It can be a time consuming exercise, but well worth it in the long run.

 

Types of saws

There are a number of different categories of saw, all with the same purpose of accurately making larger pieces of material into smaller pieces of material. The first and largest division is between hand-powered saws and mechanically powered saws.

Note that the names used for different types of saw are by no means universal. Names have changed over time and even today the same name may be used for different kinds of saws in different parts of the world or by different manufacturers. Also, the same saw may be referred to by different names.

Hand saws

Hand-powered saws fall into three divisions, which are defined by the way they hold the blade stiff (a requirement to get an even, clean cut).

A Hand saw uses either simply a blade thick enough to be stiff, or cuts on the pull stroke which reduces the stiffness requirement. This division includes the following specific types of saws:

• Crosscut saw, for making cuts perpendicular to the grain
• Rip saw, for cutting along the grain

• Two-man saw, for cutting large logs or trees
• Plywood saw, fine-toothed blade to reduce tearing of plywood
• Veneer saw, two edged saw with fine teeth used to cut veneer
• Hacksaw, fine-toothed tempered blade under tension for cutting metal, bone, and other hard materials.

Although their use is dwindling the jigsaw and sabre saw (unpowered tools) may also refer to blade style saws.

Back saws

The second category of hand saws keep a thinner blade stiff by reinforcing it with a steel or brass back. Back saws are differentiated by length of blade. While this list is not definitive, they are generally named, from longest to shortest: Mitre Saw, Tenon saw', "Sash saw", "carcase saw" and Dovetail saw. These saws also have a handle that is vertical in relation to the blade. A saw with a straight handle that extends from the top back of the blade is referred to as a Gent's saw. Finally, some Dozuki saws, which are an Eastern-style (cut on the pull stroke) saw have backs and are classified as back-saws and a tenon saw.

• One type of hand powered Miter saw (makes precisely angled cross cuts) uses a backsaw.

Mechanically powered saws

Portable sawmill

Mechanically powered saws mechanically move the teeth past the wood while the saw itself is held stationary. This is accomplished in one of three ways: the teeth are along the perimeter of a flat, circular blade; the blade reciprocates up and down rapidly; or the teeth are along one edge of a continuous band. They are more specifically differentiated as follows:

Circular blade saws

• Circular saw, machine-driven for industrial sawing of log and beams, typically found in sawmills - also name given to smaller hand-held saws
• Table saw, circular blade rises through a slot in a table. It is the most common piece of stationary woodworking equipment. The smaller direct-drive versions that can be set on a workbench are called workbench saws. Smaller belt-driven ones generally set on steel legs are often called Contractor's Saws. The heavier, more precise and more powerful, often driven by multiple belts, with an enclosed base stand as an integral part of the saw are called Cabinet saws. A relatively new version, called a hybrid saw, has the lighter weight mechanism of a Contractor saw but with an enclosed base like the Cabinet saw.
• Radial arm saw, versatile machine used mainly for cross-cutting where the blade is pulled on a guide arm through a piece of wood held stationary on the saw's table
• Rotary saw, for making accurate cuts without the need for a pilot hole in wallboard, plywood, and other thin materials, also called a spiral cut saw or a "RotoZip". The latter is a trademark owned by Bosch Tool Corp. who pioneered this type of saw - design is similar to a small wood router, bits are similar to a twist drill, some cut on the upward twist, some cut downwards
• Electric miter saw, (also called chop saw, cut-off saw or power miter box) – for making accurate cross cuts and miter cuts. The basic model has its circular blade fixed at a 90° angle to the vertical, a compound miter saw's blade can be adjusted to other angles. A sliding compound miter saw has a blade which can be pulled through the work similar to the action of a radial arm saw, which gives a greater capacity for cutting wider workpieces.
• Concrete saw, usually powered by an internal combustion engine and used with a Diamond Blade to cut concrete or asphalt pavement.
• Abrasive saw, which uses an abrasive disc for cutting rather than a toothed blade. Abrasive saws are used for cutting very hard materials, such as metal.

Reciprocating blade saws

Electric hacksaw

• Jigsaw or saber saw (mainly US), narrow blade for cutting irregular shapes, typically held in one hand with the barrel perpendicular to the saw blade. Historically, the term jigsaw was also commonly used for what is now usually called a scroll saw.
• Reciprocating saw or sabre saw (mainly UK and Australia), action similar to a jigsaw, but much larger, more powerful and with a longer stroke with the blade parallel to the barrel. Normally held in both hands, useful for demolition work or for cutting pipe. Sometimes powered by compressed air.
• Scroll saw, saw for making intricate curved cuts (scrolls), the first of which were pedal powered. Traditionally called a jigsaw.
• Dragsaw, internal combustion powered saw used for bucking logs before the advent of the chainsaw.
• Sternal saw, used in surgery to open a patient's sternum.

Continuous band

• Band saw, with motor-driven continuous band
• Chainsaw, motor-driven, for felling trees

Saw terminology

• Heel: The end closest to the handle.
• Toe: The end farthest from the handle.
• Front: The side with the teeth (the "bottom edge").
• Back: Opposite the front ("top edge").
• Teeth: Small sharp points along the cutting side of the saw.
• Gullet: Valley between the points of the teeth
• Fleam: The angle of the faces of the teeth relative to a line perpendicular to the face of the saw.
• Rake: The angle of the front face of the tooth relative to a line perpendicular to the length of the saw. Teeth designed to cut with the grain (ripping) are generally steeper than teeth designed to cut across the grain (crosscutting)
• Points per inch (25 mm): The most common measurement of the frequency of teeth on a saw blade. This is measured by setting the tip, or point, of one tooth at the zero point on a ruler, and then counting how many points are contained within one inch (25 mm) of length, counting inclusively. There will always be one more point per inch than there are teeth per inch (e.g., a saw with 14 points per inch will have 13 teeth per inch, a saw with 10 points per inch will have 9 teeth per inch). Some saws do not have the same number of teeth per inch throughout their entire length, but the vast majority do.
• Teeth Per inch : Another common measurement of the amount of teeth residing in any one inch length of a saw blade. Usually abbreviated as TPI, eg a blade consisting of 18TPI (Teeth Per Inch).
• Kerf: Width of the saw cut. On most saws the kerf is wider than the saw blade because the teeth are flared out sideways (set). This allows the blade to move through the cut easily without getting stuck (binding). However, some saws are made so that the teeth have no set on one side. This is done so that the saw can lie flat on a surface and cut along the surface without scratching it. These are referred to as flush cutting saws. The term kerf is often used to mean the width of the saw blade. However it is the width of the cut so it is the width of the blade plus any wobble created during cutting plus any material pulled out of the sides of the cut. This distinction can be extremely important. If you try to use a blade that is too thin you can get excessive wobble and actually get a wider kerf.

A saw is a cutting tool

A saw is a cutting tool that uses a hard blade or wire with an abrasive edge to cut through softer materials. The cutting edge of a saw is either a serrated blade or an abrasive. A saw may be worked by hand, or powered by steam, water, electric or other power.

In a modern serrated saw, each tooth is bent to a precise angle called its "set". The set of the teeth is determined by the kind of cut the saw is intended to make. For example a "rip saw" has a tooth set that is similar to the angle used on a chisel. The idea is to have the teeth rip or tear the material apart. Some teeth are usually splayed slightly to each side the blade, so that the cut width (kerf) is wider than than the blade itself and the blade does not bind in the cut.

An abrasive saw uses an abrasive disc or band for cutting, rather than a serrated blade.

According to Chinese tradition, the saw was invented by Lu Ban. In Greek mythology, Perdix, the nephew of Daedalos, invented the saw. Historically, however, saws date back to prehistory, and likely evolved from Neolithic tools or bone tools.

References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saw