Shannon is a brilliant teacher. I couldn't saw to save my life until I stumbled across his videos and practised his techniques. I like the way he analyses what he is doing for the viewers' benefit. This video is very good and reinforces his excellent instructions. He's got a great workshop and fantastic tools. I'm envious. Thanks, Shannon.
I bought a 12" bad axe dovetail saw and really struggled starting the cut. It would bog down, skip and bind--even after following advice in other videos. The exercise at around 7:30 was key for me. I also think a factor was that I was accustomed to pushing the saw away with weight down from using Japanese saws for many years.
Very clear instructions, great demonstrations. I find TRW to be among the finest instruction available on UA-cam. I ALWAYS learn something new. It's funny but I'll watch one of his videos on something i thought i knew very well, and i always walk away having learned something new. Great content, well delivered.
One of the best instructional videos on the subject of sawing I’ve ever seen. Those are some great exercises to work from. One cannot improve without deliberate practice.
absolutely! I've been doing this for more than a decade now in The Hand Tool School. Either I get on a Zoom call with members or they submit video. Most sawing issues can be fixed in minutes when you can see yourself sawing. But especially when someone else can watch and in real time have you adjust your technique to fix the cut right there. The feeling of cutting alignment can't be overstated.
Thank you so much for publishing this video! I've been wanting this exact thing for a long time and have scrounged up a few short articles here and there, but having it in video form is way richer! Everyone seems to want to focus on getting projects done, I want to practice in-between to make the projects more enjoyable. Thank you for filling this much needed space and covering the not-so-glamorous topics :) You are and extremely skilled teacher.
Great training video Shannon! I can't believe I'm wanting to learn what I was taught in my high school wood shop class at the age of 54. I sure have an appreciation for hand woodworking and I am eager to learn and incorporate some new old skills into my shop and woodworking journey. Thank you John
Thanks for a very informative video, very helpful. I’m a hobbyist woodworker and recently started “warming up” before sawing, what a difference it has made to my accuracy. I’ll now follow your advice and hopefully continue to saw better. I have learnt that the more accurate your sawing, the quicker the project goes, as it ultimately leads to less planing, particularly on cross cuts. A nice square crosscut leads to a couple of passes on the shooting board and you’re good to go. Thanks again, UK Dave.
Thanks for sharing these great exercises! As a beginner woodworker, I've been struggling with hand sawing and these tips and techniques are really helpful. I especially appreciate the emphasis on proper posture and grip, as I've found those to be crucial for making accurate and clean cuts. Looking forward to practicing these exercises and improving my sawing skills. Thanks again!
Your explanations of the why as well as the how, especially in the fifth exercise, really opened my eyes! I’ve watched Paul Sellers and tried to imitate but without much success. But you explained the why if each stroke-each movement-and my brain is reeling! Can’t wait to get to my shop and pick up a saw!
Saw the ears off a what now? Lol! Great exercises Shannon. I think these will help me with my dovetails for sure! I get so tense and strain my neck and shoulders worrying about precision. I need to remember this is what I love to do and just relax!
Believe it or not, these techniques worked on my bar of Cracker Barrel cheese this morning using my new serrated Cutco Cheese Knife. Perfect little squares and so yummy a practice session…..
Some great tips! Your workbench sessions with Rex Krueger is still one of my favorites! So much information! I'll combine this with my "saw freehand dovetails as uncle Frank (Klausz)" that I'm doing right now. (I'm no Frank Klausz but it's fun!)
Seeing you starting the big rip saw on the forward stroke reminded me of when I started to practice that, my uncle seen me do it and asked why I don't drag it back like everyone else. I explained to him what I learned from you and why it's done, told him if I could do it with a big rip saw then I could do it with any saw. The best sawing tip I learned from you is "taking a step back", this drastically improved my sawing ability and accuracy 😁 As for practice, I mark out dovetails in scrap and saw them, then I saw more tails inside the originals until there is no room left, I don't mark these and try to keep them as close to the original kerfs as possible, a plumb cut gets dropped in the middle. If I break through into a kerf beside the one I'm cutting or the little sliver breaks lose, then I cut off at my baseline and start again. On thicker sections of scrap I practice tenons, I mark 4 cheek cuts as normal about 1\4inch in from the sides of the board. Then I mark another set about 1\2inch in from the sides, and so on til I run out of room on the board..... the end grain looks like a grid pattern. The cheek cuts are about 3inch deep. If I can't drop every one of those cheek cuts where they're supposed to be, il saw the board off as the baseline and do it all again. I tend to start my tenons on the far side, make a shallow kerf across the top and then jus keep dropping the handle to my baseline, think you once called this the "Wearing method"...... I find it "awkward" tracing the saw forward, I'd rather trace it back to me, same for sawing the walls of a dado; I've tried breaking that into 2 parts like you showed, but I have more success starting on the far side. I'm wont mention my first thought when I seen the dribble marks on your stool........ Il always have the mind of a 12 year old boy 🤣
You can tell how humid it is in my shop by the drops along that wall from the condensation on the HVAC ducting that runs along the ceiling there. Great exercises. I'm a fan of sawing two lines then halving that then halving again and again and again until you have nothing left. Good warm up but also good for the eyeballing skills.
Excellent! Very usefull, clear and precise explanations, thank you. How about something similar about japanise handsaws? As they work under tension, they require a different training.
My experience with eastern style saws is pretty limited so I'm not sure I'm the guy to instruct on that topic. But for what it's worth all the body alignment and relaxed approach aspect still apply whether pushing or pulling the saw.
Thank you so much Shannon. All of your videos related to sawing or saws themselves go straight into favourites. Along with a prayer mat. This is an invaluable video. Can I ask about dominant eyes please? I'm mostly right handed with a right dominant eye. Yet counterintuitively I prefer to saw to the left of the line and do a better job of sawing plumb. Thanks again. Cheers Alan
I think the eye dominance thing is overstated. Set the saw on your line then focus on aligning your body with a comfortable and balanced stance. Once that is established you can shut your eyes and saw accurately honestly.
@@RenaissanceWW Thanks Shannon. I agree because to look at the line as I'm suggesting, then my body can't be straight. I'll do the practice 👍. Cheers Alan
this is the one instance where it is ok to blame the tool. So right, if its poorly tuned you can saw straight but it takes a LOT more skill...and a sore wrist.
When cutting your dovetails, place the board in your vice so all your cuts are vertical. This way your muscle memory is always the same. Do one side of the all the tails, then move the board in the vice so the other half are now vertical. You will always be naturally better when dealing with nice square movements.
I agree with this to an extent but this does you a disservice when it comes to compound angles or any situation where you can't saw vertically. Ultimately all woodworking can be simplified to working to a line. Being able to saw to a line regardless of where it is will serve you better. Then you look at 90 degrees just like 23, 65, or 78.55678 degrees. After 90 degrees is also an angle.
It is kind of funny. So much of this video is what I already know but this reinforcement is very good. If you get the technique right everything else falls into place. My take away is "muscle memory", if you build it with this video's good start you can saw anything.
As good an instructional here as can be found anywhere……
Shannon is a brilliant teacher. I couldn't saw to save my life until I stumbled across his videos and practised his techniques. I like the way he analyses what he is doing for the viewers' benefit. This video is very good and reinforces his excellent instructions. He's got a great workshop and fantastic tools. I'm envious. Thanks, Shannon.
I bought a 12" bad axe dovetail saw and really struggled starting the cut. It would bog down, skip and bind--even after following advice in other videos. The exercise at around 7:30 was key for me. I also think a factor was that I was accustomed to pushing the saw away with weight down from using Japanese saws for many years.
Thanks! This is the answer to much frustration!
Very clear instructions, great demonstrations. I find TRW to be among the finest instruction available on UA-cam. I ALWAYS learn something new. It's funny but I'll watch one of his videos on something i thought i knew very well, and i always walk away having learned something new. Great content, well delivered.
One of the best instructional videos on the subject of sawing I’ve ever seen. Those are some great exercises to work from. One cannot improve without deliberate practice.
Great advice will be practicing these techniques for sure.Thank you.
These exercises are what I needed to improve my sawing skills. Thanks for sharing. Greatly appreciated.
1 that James Wright gave us was to set up a camera record a check out my alignment.
absolutely! I've been doing this for more than a decade now in The Hand Tool School. Either I get on a Zoom call with members or they submit video. Most sawing issues can be fixed in minutes when you can see yourself sawing. But especially when someone else can watch and in real time have you adjust your technique to fix the cut right there. The feeling of cutting alignment can't be overstated.
Thank you for this. I’m much less intimidated by sawing now!
Really, really useful: thanks so much!
Thank you so much for publishing this video! I've been wanting this exact thing for a long time and have scrounged up a few short articles here and there, but having it in video form is way richer! Everyone seems to want to focus on getting projects done, I want to practice in-between to make the projects more enjoyable. Thank you for filling this much needed space and covering the not-so-glamorous topics :) You are and extremely skilled teacher.
Great training video Shannon! I can't believe I'm wanting to learn what I was taught in my high school wood shop class at the age of 54. I sure have an appreciation for hand woodworking and I am eager to learn and incorporate some new old skills into my shop and woodworking journey.
Thank you
John
You are a rare instance who actually have a shop class memory to fall back on. That will help you greatly.
Brilliant!! Ive seen so many "how to saw videos" most cover the same stuff but you had some new great tips and exercises here 👍
Thanks!
Thanks for a very informative video, very helpful. I’m a hobbyist woodworker and recently started “warming up” before sawing, what a difference it has made to my accuracy. I’ll now follow your advice and hopefully continue to saw better. I have learnt that the more accurate your sawing, the quicker the project goes, as it ultimately leads to less planing, particularly on cross cuts. A nice square crosscut leads to a couple of passes on the shooting board and you’re good to go. Thanks again, UK Dave.
Thanks for sharing these great exercises! As a beginner woodworker, I've been struggling with hand sawing and these tips and techniques are really helpful. I especially appreciate the emphasis on proper posture and grip, as I've found those to be crucial for making accurate and clean cuts. Looking forward to practicing these exercises and improving my sawing skills. Thanks again!
Thank you
Thank you for these tips and advice
Very nice of you sharing your experience, Shannon. Exactly what I need now after a bit of a break with woodworking 😉
Thanks for the motivation to get out to the shop
Your explanations of the why as well as the how, especially in the fifth exercise, really opened my eyes! I’ve watched Paul Sellers and tried to imitate but without much success. But you explained the why if each stroke-each movement-and my brain is reeling! Can’t wait to get to my shop and pick up a saw!
I think about sawing a lot. Glad you got something out of it.
Saw the ears off a what now? Lol! Great exercises Shannon. I think these will help me with my dovetails for sure! I get so tense and strain my neck and shoulders worrying about precision. I need to remember this is what I love to do and just relax!
I didn't catch that part either, and I skipped back about 7times....... I wanna know what was said too so I can have a new term to use 🤣
A gundark! Star Wars reference.
@@RenaissanceWW Oh! Now that would certainly require some relaxed control ..and bravery!
Believe it or not, these techniques worked on my bar of Cracker Barrel cheese this morning using my new serrated Cutco Cheese Knife. Perfect little squares and so yummy a practice session…..
Another well done exercise and explanation Shannon. Great stuff for teaching old and new makers.
Some great tips! Your workbench sessions with Rex Krueger is still one of my favorites! So much information!
I'll combine this with my "saw freehand dovetails as uncle Frank (Klausz)" that I'm doing right now. (I'm no Frank Klausz but it's fun!)
I enjoyed that Rex collaboration. Good to hear it holds up.
@@RenaissanceWW It sure does. That session blew my mind. Thank you for that! 😃
Thank you for sharing a forgotten technique nowadays.
Very educative video ! The one on push stroke starting was alredy so fruitful to me 👍
Thank you very much 🙏
Thank you so much for some great advice. I am off to the shop next to practice these drills. I am sure it will help. Cheers!
Seeing you starting the big rip saw on the forward stroke reminded me of when I started to practice that, my uncle seen me do it and asked why I don't drag it back like everyone else. I explained to him what I learned from you and why it's done, told him if I could do it with a big rip saw then I could do it with any saw. The best sawing tip I learned from you is "taking a step back", this drastically improved my sawing ability and accuracy 😁
As for practice, I mark out dovetails in scrap and saw them, then I saw more tails inside the originals until there is no room left, I don't mark these and try to keep them as close to the original kerfs as possible, a plumb cut gets dropped in the middle. If I break through into a kerf beside the one I'm cutting or the little sliver breaks lose, then I cut off at my baseline and start again. On thicker sections of scrap I practice tenons, I mark 4 cheek cuts as normal about 1\4inch in from the sides of the board. Then I mark another set about 1\2inch in from the sides, and so on til I run out of room on the board..... the end grain looks like a grid pattern. The cheek cuts are about 3inch deep. If I can't drop every one of those cheek cuts where they're supposed to be, il saw the board off as the baseline and do it all again. I tend to start my tenons on the far side, make a shallow kerf across the top and then jus keep dropping the handle to my baseline, think you once called this the "Wearing method"...... I find it "awkward" tracing the saw forward, I'd rather trace it back to me, same for sawing the walls of a dado; I've tried breaking that into 2 parts like you showed, but I have more success starting on the far side.
I'm wont mention my first thought when I seen the dribble marks on your stool........ Il always have the mind of a 12 year old boy 🤣
You can tell how humid it is in my shop by the drops along that wall from the condensation on the HVAC ducting that runs along the ceiling there. Great exercises. I'm a fan of sawing two lines then halving that then halving again and again and again until you have nothing left. Good warm up but also good for the eyeballing skills.
Thanks 👍 as a beginner like those tips .😊
Excellent video and recommendations!
Great instruction!
2:10 🎵🎵 Just keep sawing, just keep sawing, just keep sawing, sawing, sawing🎵🎵
Excellent! Very usefull, clear and precise explanations, thank you. How about something similar about japanise handsaws? As they work under tension, they require a different training.
My experience with eastern style saws is pretty limited so I'm not sure I'm the guy to instruct on that topic. But for what it's worth all the body alignment and relaxed approach aspect still apply whether pushing or pulling the saw.
Thank you so much Shannon. All of your videos related to sawing or saws themselves go straight into favourites. Along with a prayer mat. This is an invaluable video.
Can I ask about dominant eyes please? I'm mostly right handed with a right dominant eye. Yet counterintuitively I prefer to saw to the left of the line and do a better job of sawing plumb.
Thanks again. Cheers Alan
I think the eye dominance thing is overstated. Set the saw on your line then focus on aligning your body with a comfortable and balanced stance. Once that is established you can shut your eyes and saw accurately honestly.
@@RenaissanceWW Thanks Shannon. I agree because to look at the line as I'm suggesting, then my body can't be straight. I'll do the practice 👍. Cheers Alan
A well tuned, well set saw is the secret to improving your sawing skills. If you are fighting the saw before you even begin life is going to suck.
this is the one instance where it is ok to blame the tool. So right, if its poorly tuned you can saw straight but it takes a LOT more skill...and a sore wrist.
Outstanding
When cutting your dovetails, place the board in your vice so all your cuts are vertical. This way your muscle memory is always the same. Do one side of the all the tails, then move the board in the vice so the other half are now vertical. You will always be naturally better when dealing with nice square movements.
I agree with this to an extent but this does you a disservice when it comes to compound angles or any situation where you can't saw vertically. Ultimately all woodworking can be simplified to working to a line. Being able to saw to a line regardless of where it is will serve you better. Then you look at 90 degrees just like 23, 65, or 78.55678 degrees. After 90 degrees is also an angle.
It is kind of funny. So much of this video is what I already know but this reinforcement is very good. If you get the technique right everything else falls into place. My take away is "muscle memory", if you build it with this video's good start you can saw anything.
Get a pile of firewood and cut it by hand with a bow saw and try to cut it as square as possible. :D
Vectors? Are you taking math classes on the side?
I've taken enough of those already in my academic career. I'm all good now.
Finally, some in his right mind.🪚
Thank you very mutch Shannon. Thease exercises are going to help me improve a lot. You are appreciated.🤏