Official Luthiers Forum!

Has anyone tried this Pax 10'' guitar saw http://www.flinn-garlick-saws.co.uk/aca ... Range.html
(found at bottom of page)?

It look exactly like the Stewmac saw, which I don't like the feel of.

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We are all in the gutter but some of us are looking at guitars.

Joe, it would surprise me if it wasn't the same saw...
I have the SM brand one, and to be honest, I disliked it as well at first.
Especially the grip. And it wasn't at all sharp from new.
I made and fitted a pistol grip type handle (still cutting on the pull stroke), and sharpened the blade.
It was like a new tool altogether.
I could slot at least 2 boards in the time it took me to slot one of my earlier ones, and it felt much better in the hand.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

It is the same saw. Works perfectly fine once you sharpen it! Which might seem a little odd but unless you accept throwaway saws you are well advised to learn how to sharpen them anyway. All it really needs is a VERY light stroke on each tooth with a saw file, minimal really. Of course there are other saws that come sharp from the outset.
I don't have a problem with the Gents saw type handle, they work perfectly fine for me.

They look suspiciously like Lee Valley's new tenon saws, which are also available as crosscut or rip style.

Thanks for your replies.
Colin, I agree it is the handle which causes me frustration. Makes my hand sweaty. Make a new one, of course!
Michael, I've downloaded the last file you posted about sharpening saws. Seems like your campaign is working on me at least. Can you advise the right tooth setter to buy that works well with the stewmac saw?

I do suspect that the saw is not a as good as the other Pax saws. Most of them cost over a £100, this one costs £22.

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We are all in the gutter but some of us are looking at guitars.

The early part of Micheal's campaign was what encouraged me to sharpen my SM saw and also to stop using disposable saws.
On his suggestion in another post I have just bought a Somax Saw Set (from Axminster - Blue handle for fine 12 to 26tpi saws) to use on it (15 tpi) and my other saws, a Pax 1776 10 inch Dovetail Saw (what a beautiful tool) and my 2 Atkinson Walker tenon saws.
Got 3 "free" saw files with them and made my own saw vice as well.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

I measured the set on a few of the dovetail saws I have of approximately the same size as the Stew Mac saw. Most were set between .023 to .025 inch.
What is a good way to rehandle them?

The kerfs only .022 on this and the stew mac is .023. So depends on what fret wire you use. I use some stew mac which is sized for .023 kerf. Some of the Jescar wire has various sizes so I can use some of the different size dovetail saws that I have....Mike

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Another day, another dollar.

My way was quick and dirty

2 pieces of pine, rasped out to fit the narrowest part of the original handle.
Clamped on with 3 screws, sanded off the bulbous end, oiled everything.

Proper way is here http://lumberjocks.com/andyboy/blog/29895

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

quick and dirty works! I may try that on one of my saws.

I would only mention that a dovetail saw as supplied is a rip cut, fret slot saw is crosscut.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

I guess I am being sloppy with my nomenclature. What I'm calling dovetail saws are more properly called gent's saws - they have a straight turned handle. Dovetail saws seem to come either way, crosscut or rip, though as you say, rip is better for dovetails.
I have a couple of Stew Mac fret slot saws, so they might be good candidates for re handling.

All saws that are in the region of 16 TPI + tend to be (though not exclusively) sharpened rip cut. A fine tooth rip cut will work perfectly well on crosscutting fret slots, it's just a touch slower and a touch more blow out. Nothing to be too concerned about.
The Pax/SM fret saw is a western toothed saw but switched to cut on the pull stroke. It's somewhat of a compromise but it does work if the teeth are sharp. I don't know why folk are having trouble with the straight Gents saw type handles and why anyone would go to the trouble of rehandling them. They are effectively the same configuration as a Japanese saw and we're only cutting to a depth less than 2 mm's! Maybe some people just hate that type of handle. It's never bothered me.
I've probably got about 6 saws that are suitable for cutting fret slots but I tend to use the Veritas Carcass 14 TPI X-cut. About the sharpest saw (from new) that I've ever bought - apart from a Japanese and a good jet cut hardpoint. Like all saws, it will dull relatively quickly on hard woods like Ebony. The reinforcement spline on the Veritas doesn't really lend itself to a depth stop, although I suppose you could drill the saw steel.