Saw refurbishing

[Unib]

I'm a bit worried what this forum, and Lumberjocks has done to me...

I now own a modest file of rusty old rubbish which were once hand saws. I've started my first couple of resorations with a 26" Disston and a Tyzack 22" panel saw. They've been dunked in Corro Dip and I've started cleaning them up with wet and dry. My question is – am I better off removing the teeth set completely before cleaning up and resharpening or leave them as they are. I guess there better off with no set for filing sharp but I'm kind of new to saw sharpening so not sure what the best approach is?

Any advice would be great.

 

[jimi43]

has some great tips on saw sharpening techniques.

Nice to see someone else using Corro Dip! How did you find it worked on rust?

Jim

 

[matthewwh]

If there is an existing pitch to follow and you want the saw to be of that pitch, then it is a heck of a lot easier to file to existing gullets than to cut new ones.

 

[bridger]

clean without disturbing the teeth. unless you want to change to a different tooth count or the teeth are too bunged up to salvage, do the minimum you can to arrive at the tooth pattern you want- joint, set and file.

 

[Richard T]

I'd ignore set until you've done the main filing. Most saws have a few low teeth to file all the rest down to so by the time you have got to a state of evenness there will be next to no set left.
Then, of course, you need to set and having done so re touch as all the cutting angles will have altered with setting. This is needed more with a rip saw as the teeth need to meet the wood flat; less so with the points of a cross cut.

 

[Cheshirechappie]

On cleaning sawblades, I've had good results with 240 grit wet-and-dry used with water and scouring powder, followed by a good flush under running water, and then working through the grits to 1200. That left a surface that still had a 'patina' of oxidation, but felt very smooth to the touch. More elbow grease would have taken all the patina off and left a high polish, but all I wanted was a smooth cut, not shiny newness. If you overdo the elbow-grease around etches (which can appear as you take the rust off), you can abrade them away, so if one does appear and you want to keep it, go easy in that area.

Another point to watch is straightness of toothlines. All the old saws I've seen had toothlines like waves on an ocean. One common problem is that as the teeth near the heel don't do much cutting, they don't need sharpening as often, so the saw develops a 'dip' in the middle of the toothline. It may be worth offering a straightedge to the toothline and seeing if things need straightening up a bit.

On set, I agree with Richard T - forget about it until you've got the new teeth shaped to your liking. You'll probably find that you'll lose quite a lot of the old teeth anyway, so whatever set was on them will go with them.

Edit to add - It might be worth noting before starting which way the teeth are set (just at the extreme ends will do), so that after reshaping, and tooth metal left from the old teeth is set to the same side. If they are set the reverse way to previously, it might cause some of them to break off.

 

[Unib]

Thanks for all the great advice everyone - much appreciated.

jimi43 – I find the Corro Dip to be great, I've de-rusted a number of planes with it and after 24 hours soaking they've come out completely rust free and silver – I was a bit worried they'd come out black but they were fine. I got a meter long garden planter tray to soak my handsaws in, it worked perfectly. Unfortunately I neglected to take in to account getting the Corro Dip into its contain after – I picked the tray up which resulted in a bit of a wave; I ended up with about a litre of Corro Dip all over the workshop floor.

 

[bugbear]

Another point to watch is straightness of toothlines. All the old saws I've seen had toothlines like waves on an ocean. One common problem is that as the teeth near the heel don't do much cutting, they don't need sharpening as often, so the saw develops a 'dip' in the middle of the toothline. It may be worth offering a straightedge to the toothline and seeing if things need straightening up a bit.

I used to do that, but found it very difficult to keep the narrow straight edge (or rule) held against the saw teeth for viewing from a distance.

I now use a planed up mahogany 50mmx10mm lath, which is much easier to handle and view, and accurate enough for the purpose.

A spirit level might also serve.

BugBear