The Japanese saw or is a type of

saw A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, Wire saw, wire, or Chainsaw, chain with a hard toothed edge used to cut through material. Various terms are used to describe toothed and abrasive saws. Saws began as serrated materials, and when man ...

used in

woodworking Woodworking is the skill of making items from wood, and includes cabinetry, furniture making, wood carving, joinery, carpentry, and woodturning. History Along with stone, clay and animal parts, wood was one of the first materials worked b ...

and

Japanese carpentry Carpentry was first developed more than a millennium ago in Japan. It has been involved in the construction of a wide variety of structures, such as temples, dwellings, and tea houses, as well as furniture, with the use of few nails.Hideo Sato, ...

that cuts on the pull stroke, unlike most

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an saws that cut on the push stroke. Japanese saws are the best known pull saws, but they are also used in China, Iran, Iraq, Korea, Nepal, and Turkey. Among European saws, both coping saws for woodworking and jeweler's saws for metal working also cut on the pull stroke like Japanese saws. Cutting on the pull stroke is claimed to cut more efficiently and leave a narrower cut width (

kerf A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, wire, or chain with a hard toothed edge used to cut through material. Various terms are used to describe toothed and abrasive saws. Saws began as serrated materials, and when mankind learned how t ...

). On the other hand, a pull stroke does not easily permit putting one's body weight behind a stroke. This can be readily solved by using a vice or clamping. Another disadvantage, due to the arrangement and form of the teeth, is that Japanese saws do not work as well on hardwoods as European saws do. Japanese saws were originally intended for comparatively soft woods like cypress and pine whereas European saws were intended for hard woods like oak and maple. The popularity of Japanese saws in other regions of the world has resulted in the manufacture and production of a number of Japanese saws outside of Japan.

Types of Japanese hand saws

; : A type of backsaw. The Japanese means "attached trunk", thus a saw with a stiffening strip attached, i.e., a backsaw. Although similar to a Western backsaw, a Dozuki saw has a much thinner blade that excels at precise cutting. Dozuki saws are designed for cutting tenons and dovetails, types of

woodworking joints Joinery is a part of woodworking that involves joining pieces of wood, engineered lumber, or synthetic substitutes (such as laminate), to produce more complex items. Some woodworking joints employ mechanical fasteners, bindings, or adhesives, ...

, also referred to as joinery. ; : Multi-purpose

carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. C ...

saw with two cutting edges. The Japanese means "double blade". There is a

cross-cutting Cross-cutting is an editing technique most often used in films to establish action occurring at the same time, and often in the same place. In a cross-cut, the camera will cut away from one action to another action, which can suggest the simulta ...

(''yokobiki)'' 横挽き blade on one side and a

ripping Ripping is the extraction of digital content from a container, such as a CD, onto a new digital location. Originally, the term meant to rip music from Commodore 64 games. Later, the term was applied to ripping WAV or MP3 files from digital audio ...

(''tatebiki'' )縦挽き blade on the other. Ryoba saws are often described by their blade length (in millimeters). Shorter saws, around for example, are for general carpentry. A longer saw, around , would be suitable for larger work, like timber-frame joinery, for example. ; : A saw with teeth along only one edge, like a Western saw. These are supplied as either rip saw or cross-cut type blades. An advantage of this saw is that it is easy to use with a saw guide. "Kataba" translates from Japanese as "cutting on one side." Kataba saws are commonly used for larger work when a Ryoba saw is not suitable, or for flush-cutting. ; : A small ''ryōba'' saw used for cutting into the flat surface of a board rather than from the edge. The blade has a convex curve which can begin the cut anywhere on the surface. Azebiki saws are used for cutting mortises, grooves in mid-panel and sliding dovetails. ; : A thin saw used for cutting curves, the Japanese version of a keyhole saw. The name means "turning cut". ; Kugihiki: A thin flexible flush-cut saw with unset teeth on one side, designed for trimming the ends of

dowel The dowel is a cylindrical shape made of wood, plastic, or metal. In its original manufactured form, a dowel is long and called a ''dowel rod'', which are often cut into shorter ''dowel pins''. Dowels are commonly used as structural reinforceme ...

s, tenons, and other protrusions flush with a surface.

Other Japanese saws

; Oga: A large two-person pit saw used for

large boards in the days before power saws. One person stood on a raised platform, with the board below him, and the other person stood underneath them.

References

Saws A saw is a tool consisting of a tough blade, wire, or chain with a hard toothed edge used to cut through material. Various terms are used to describe toothed and abrasive saws. Saws began as serrated materials, and when mankind learned how to ...

Types of Japanese hand saws

Other Japanese saws

See also

References

External links