cordwood saw

[AndyMA]

Diesel Boy,

All that said, I would never cut wood with a buzz saw again. They are pretty dangerous, and I think I can cut a lot faster, and have a lot more energy at the end of the day, using a good chain saw.


Knute

I have one I've never used for my Economy Tractor. Just the thought of that BIG blade makes me cringe. Be careful.

Andy

 

[Diesel_Boy]

i've used mine to cut up about 15 cords of wood so far. i find it is much faster than a chain saw. but there is another reason i use it. if i fill up my chainsaw with gas and cut with it until it runs out of gas, that is my limit per day. any more than that, and my right wrist is slightly numb for about a day or so. carpal tunnel may be starting, and with all the vibration from the chain saw, i don't want to make it worse. however, i can buck up a lot of wood to 4 foot length with a chain saw, and let the cordwood saw do the rest of the work. that doesn't bother my wrist at all. i am extremely careful with it, though. but it is time for a sharpening. which is why i started this thread. thanks for all the input, and any more tips on angles or file guides would be helpful.

 

[MikeD74T]

Diesel Boy, Here is a good tutorial on saw sharpening. Welcome to Vintage Saw's Saw Filing Treatise
It is for straight saws but the principles are the same. The rake is relative to the a line between the tip of the tooth and the center of the blade. My father had a cordwood saw that he had sharpened on site by a local saw doctor. They would reverse the blade & run the saw with a large file held lightly against the teeth to achieve the same height. Kind of like a crude lathe. As a child I was warned "never do this", as an adult I wouldn't hesitate as I regocnize the potential hazard. With my table saw I hold a file on the table with a block of wood & very slowly raise the blade into the file until all teeth are topped. The side angles were filed by eye but by a professional.
To get good side angles you can clamp a board slotted lengthwise that will drop over the teeth and with a marked reference angle drawn across the board, like a chainsaw filing plate. You can also mark the rake angle with a Sharpie marker using a straight edge from the blade center to the tooth and adjust +/- from there.
I know why you like the cordwood saw, I get the same thrill watching 5" oak get instantly severed. It teaches respect for machinery in a big way.
MikeD74T

 

[Justaplain]

The splitter was what put the "buzz" saw out of work. We use to cut 4 ft logs then split with sledge and wedge, then onto the buzz saw. One guy built a 4 ft spitter with a back hoe cyl. but that was a bear. A New flat file is the key to keeping those babies sharp. bcs

 

[jimmysisson]

I have to agree about the wrist fatigue. I stopped using a cordwood saw years ago when I started to work up wood alone. There's just too many operations to felling, bucking, and splitting to add moving lengths then offcuts around the cordwood saw. I find just bucking with the chain saw quicker overall. That said, there IS something very satisfying about the zing as the sharp blade makes that quick chop.
The sharpening is straightforward if it's right once. Many of these I've seen have been hand-sharpened to points, not set, set too much, etc. A Farmall A (15-16 hp) running the saw arbor 1:1 would go through 8" oak easily with a sharp blade, but slow to nothing with a dull one.
Jim

 

[bandsaws]

I sharpened cordwood saws for a living if you run into any trouble contact me. Donald Waugh. Waughsbandsaw@verizon.net 978-827 5557.