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Thread: Help- I'm seriously "fretting" these dovetails!

  1. #16
    Join Date
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    I noticed on several videos that when using a fret, waste removal seems to be easier and cleaner than with a coping.
    Hi Ryan,

    The fret saw blade is thinner than a coping saw blade. Part of this is the extra metal required to have pins at each end of a coping blade to be held in a coping saw.

    My old standard fret saws do not tension a blade as taught as a Knew Concepts saw. This is one big difference. In my old saws the blades would bow and break if and when they would bind in the cut. The well tensioned blade in a KC saw doesn't bow, hasn't broken yet and cuts quickly and accurately.

    As an added bonus the KC fret saw is bigger than my old saws but is also lighter in hand. Sometimes the momentum of mass is helpful. In some areas a light, delicate touch wins the day.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  2. #17
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    Im starting to think i might end up drawing the same conclusion Mike. Cough up the cash and be done with it.

  3. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ryan Higgins-Winter Haven View Post
    Im starting to think i might end up drawing the same conclusion Mike. Cough up the cash and be done with it.
    You might have a little sniffle as you close your wallet, but for years after you will be thanking yourself for pulling the trigger on a fine tool.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  4. #19
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    yeah... I gotta be honest, Paul's video's are probably the most informative, but they can be difficult for someone with severe ADD to stay with lol. Ive always been one to favor cliff notes myself- But sometimes that wont... CUT it (pun intended). A few more sessions with Paul on youtube taking notes on his chisel only waste removal probably wont hurt me. Neither would getting more experience doing it with just a chisel. The only drawback there for me is this dadgum 24 hour day... that sun is one lazy ball of fire. It'd be nice if he could put in a little overtime now and again. God knows I do! Its not that the using a sharp chisel method is too slow, its that I am not the quickest/most proficient at executing said method.

  5. #20
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    well said Jim

  6. #21
    ....waiting for those reasons not to saw out waste between dovetails. I'll start..... I give up. Can't think of one.

  7. #22
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    Adds more work to the job. Saw the lines, saw the waste, and STILL have to chisel to the baselines? Vs...saw the lines, chop the waste, fit the joint together,,,,in almost the same amount of time. But, with one less tool to keep track of....or buy.

  8. #23
    Join Date
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    Yes, one still needs to chisel to the line. However, paring away 1-2mm of waste has two advantages:

    1. There is less likelihood of bruising or tearing out the edges and the centre.
    2. There is less wear and likely damage to the chisel.

    These are not big factors if all you ever work with is soft woods. However, it becomes increasingly evident as you work with progressively harder timbers.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  9. #24
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    Saw the lines, saw the waste, and STILL have to chisel to the baselines? Vs...saw the lines, chop the waste, fit the joint together,,,,in almost the same amount of time.
    My chisel always wanted to push against the baseline and crush it when chopping on the baseline in soft firs. So the waste would get chopped above the line and then pared to the line. My early gappy dovetails are still holding together, but they don't look as good as the ones that fit snugly.

    Maybe it is time my chopping a dovetail is measured against my sawing a dovetail.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  10. #25
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    Personally, I like playing with sharp pointy things. Using a chisel to chop the waste is just more enjoyable.

  11. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by John Schtrumpf View Post
    Personally, I like playing with sharp pointy things. Using a chisel to chop the waste is just more enjoyable.
    Lets do the math, a fret saw blade has anywhere from 30 to 100 sharp little pointy things depending on the tooth count. So shouldn't be that much more enjoyable?

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  12. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Lets do the math, a fret saw blade has anywhere from 30 to 100 sharp little pointy things depending on the tooth count. So shouldn't be that much more enjoyable?

    jtk
    OK, that made me laugh!

  13. #28
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
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    Lafayette, Indiana
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    FWIW: You might checkout Gesswein's prices on the KC saws.

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