What are some different types of saws?

Saws are one of the most widely used tools today. Dating back to a time beyond recorded history, saws are commonly used in any activity that involves sectioning softer materials through the use of a harder material that is formed with an abrasive edge. Some saws come in a variety of sizes and shapes today, and they can be powered by all sorts of different media. There are hand saws and saws that run on electricity, natural gas, steam, and even water.

The most basic of all saws is the hand saw. Simple in design, this saw features a blade with a serrated edge and a handle that allows the operator to use manual action to move the blade back and forth. Smaller hand saws are ideal for cutting thin logs in young trees or for doing some type of woodworking with thinner sections of wood. Some hand saws are equipped with blades that cut thin sections of metal without losing the edge. You can use the best table saw under 200 for this purpose.

Perhaps the most commonly recognized of all hand saws is the cross cut saw. Saws of this type are usually about two feet long and sport a series of teeth on the side of the blade. Plank workers have traditionally used a hand-held cross-cut saw, although it is more common for many builders to use a power saw for large jobs.

Chain saws are also used very frequently today. While still being held in the hand, the chainsaw features a sharp chain mechanism that rotates along a guide to create a cutting motion. This means that the operator does not have to use back and forth movements to cut a substance. The chainsaw typically runs on gasoline or electricity, making it easy to use for felling trees and similar tasks.

The band saw is another example of a saw powered by electric, steam or water power. A band saw has a circular blade that rotates similar to a wheel. Often times, the band saw is attached to a frame, which allows the wood and other materials to move against the rotary saw to effect the cut. However, portable band saw models are also available.

For detail work in creating furniture or crown molding, a miter saw is often used. Miter saws are available in manual versions and also in electric models. The design of the saw allows specific cuts that allow a flush joint to be achieved in various sections that enter the construction project. A miter saw can be used to create anything from a picture frame to perfectly fitting crown molding and baseboards.

Many more types of saws are in use today. Many of them are designed for very specific applications, while others are intended for more general use. A wide range of saws are generally available at hardware stores, construction supply houses, and some larger discount retail chains.

What is a gang saw?

A group saw is a type of electric saw that performs several cuts simultaneously. Typically, a group saw functions as both a saw and a protractor, pulling logs through its blades to cut an entire section into boards with a single pass. Previous versions of these tools used a reciprocating saw design, where the blades are perpendicular to the cutting surface, or a circular saw. The most common modern band saw is the band saw.

A typical modern group saw is often one of the intermediate steps in processing a tree into wood. Before the tree reaches the saw, it goes through a series of single-blade saws that remove bark and external variations from the tree. After these steps, the wood is in the shape of a large rectangular box.

This box is sent to the collective saw, where it is turned into boards. These saws have multiple blades, each at the same distance. Most collective saws usually have some type of transport mechanism that connects to the wood, often a belt or chain drive system. This allows users to set the speed at which the wood moves through the sheets. This is important as wood that is moving too slowly can chip and wood that is moving too fast will jam the blades.

Typically, the blades on a group saw are adjustable. This allows workers to change the width of the processed planks to fit desired specifications. This prevents the company from needing multiple saws to cut wood of different widths.

The oldest group saws were often reciprocating saws. This design uses vertical saw blades that move up and down. These saws performed well, but they used a lot of power and had severe limitations on the size of lumber they could accommodate. The length of the blades was a fixed amount; larger blades required stronger motors and stronger blades.

After a few years, many mills switched to circular circular saws. These saws have large rotating blades on the lower deck of the saw. They were easier to use than large reciprocating saws and used less power. On the other hand, the size of the wood that could be cut with these saws was still limited to the radius of the blades that the machine was equipped to use.

Modern collective saws are band saws. These saws feature a rotating band with saw teeth that move continuously around a preset track. Band saws have a top and bottom section, which limits the overall size of wood that can be passed through, but width is a design limitation rather than technology or material like older saws.