Summary: Learn how to cut wood, how to use a handsaw and how to use a power saw.
Handsawing
- Clamp the wood on your workbench.
- Use a carpenter’s square to mark straight cutting lines on both sides of the wood.
- Score through these lines with a craft knife to guide the saw.
- Clamp a batten of scrap wood along the cutting line to guide the saw.
- Grip the saw so that your index finger is in line with the blade.
- Make shallow strokes first and then progress to deeper cuts at an angle to the surface.
- Support the section you are cutting off to prevent it from snapping off.
- To cut down the length of a piece of wood, start sawing the end of the wood and insert a wedge to give access to the saw blade.
Power sawing
Always wear goggles to protect your eyes from splinters of wood. If your saw has a guard, this should also be down. To cut wood using a jigsaw, follow the instructions below. See the tools section for advice on using specialist power saws.
- Release the clamp on the saw to remove the old blade.
- Release the clamp on the saw to remove the old blade.
- Load the new blade according to your instructions.
- Rest the front edge of the wood with the blade at right angles to the cutting line.
- Cut slightly to one side of the line – on the waste side.
- Adjust the speed accordingly.
To cut out a hole in the middle of a section of wood:
- Mark out the circle.
- Drill a hole just inside the circle.
- Fit the blade into the hole and cut around the circle.
Related projects
- Building a metal framed stud wall
- Building a stud partition wall
- Creating an arch
- Closing a fireplace
- Fitting a door frame
- Fitting a door stop