Let’s face it we have all been there on a Sunday afternoon when the wife announces that unless that door is hung in time for tea there will be trouble! So after much deliberation and no doubt complaining you slump off to the nearest DIY store to find that instead of making life easier a whole aisle dedicated to the trusty handsaw has instantly transported you from DIY heaven to DIY hell.
There is no doubt at all that these stores have everything there is to offer the mere mortal like you, and me but what the Joe public require is a nudge in the right direction and some in depth DIY advice. Yes, we may be partial to walking the walk and talking the talk but when it comes to the crunch, our lack of knowledge has a habit of shining through.
49-year-old Simon Clough from Nottingham, said, “I think we have all been there, I tend to have a huge problem hanging doors, so all of the doors in our house have too much off the bottom, or too little so they drag on the carpets! One of our neighbours is even worse than me, he’s been electrocuted a few times and even flooded his house as a result of some of his DIY projects!”
Phil Durston, Chief Executive at Lets-Do-DIY, the DIY advice specialists, whose website features informative guides, reviews and a specialist forum, said, “We are aware that there is an absence of easily accessible DIY advice online, and choosing a handsaw can be particularly difficult, that’s why we have developed a guide to help those DIY virgins get started.”
There is nothing better than the modern handsaw for getting a good cut on trim pieces, moldings, and quick cuts where a power saw just will not do, and if it’s good enough for the Egyptians (yes the handsaw was depicted in ancient hieroglyphics), it’s good enough for the rest of us. Ideal for woodworking, the latest range of handsaws have not only hard point teeth that require no sharpening or setting, they also perform three functions.
Traditionally different types of saw were required for different DIY projects: a cross saw cut across the grain, a ripsaw would cut with the grain and the panel saw would cut large sheet materials, but thankfully, most modern solutions take care of all three jobs.
To make life easier, the DIY advice experts at Lets-Do-DIY have put the five best saws on the market to the test!
The Silverline Tri-cut Toolbox Saw
This saw is the smallest saw tested, with a shorter blade, making it ideal for carrying in your toolbox- even if it is just to look the part! There are 7 TPI but the length of the blade is only 350mm compared to a standard handsaw blade length, which is usually 550mm. This makes the stroke shorter requiring a little more work to use it for DIY projects. The Silver Tri-cut has triple ground teeth allowing the saw to cut on both the forward and back stroke, making this saw rather nifty for its size. Priced at just £4.82 inc VAT, Let’s-Do-DIY give this saw a 6/10 for effort!
The Silverline Teflon Tri-cut Saw
The grip on this saw is not only soft and comfortable, allowing for excellent control, the Tri-cut Expert Saw gave both a clean cut in hard and soft wood. Again, the teeth are triple ground, but the blade is Teflon coated for low friction. This is a good all round hand saw perfect for DIY projects around the house, The Silverline Tri-cut Expert Saw is supplied in a pack of two saws, priced at just £11.89 including VAT. Let’s-Do-DIY gave this saw 7/10
The Carl Kammerling Sabretooth Saw
Ergonomically designed, this saw delivered sweetly on the first stroke and delivered a very smooth cutting action. The rigid 1mm blade has triple edge, diamond ground, hard point teeth that cut on the forward and reverse stroke for rapid cutting. This saw had the fastest cutting action of all of the saws tested making light work of each material it was presented with, excellent for DIY. The saw tested had 7 TPI but there is an 11 TPI model for finer cutting. Priced at just £11.85 inc VAT, Let’s-Do-DIY gave this saw a pleasing 9/10
The Draper 550mm Soft Grip Super Cut Handsaw
Another good all round saw, the Draper performed well in the test and came competitively priced. This saw is a straight back saw with a hardened and tempered polished high carbon steel blade. This saw has a triple edged, hardened tooth design with 7 TPI. It felt very comfortable when in use and even featured 45 and 90-degree cutting angles. Priced at just £6.89 inc VAT Let’s-Do-DIY gave this saw 8/10
The Bahco Baracuda 244+ Saw
Bahco’s Barracuda 244+ combines a good grip with a rigid steel blade. This universal saw has 7 TPI and is designed for cross cutting and rip cutting and can be used on both hard and soft wood, as well as hardboard and chipboard. Let’s Do DIY found that the hardened teeth cut through the test materials quickly and efficiently with the blade moving smoothly through the timber, producing a reasonably smooth finish. This saw is slightly more expensive than the other saws tested, but well worth the money. Priced at just £15.33 inc VAT Let’s Do DIY gave this saw 8/10