A BobL'n'Bunnies Saw

[IanW]

Well, here is my attempt at a saw cobbled up from available bits. I call it the BobLnBunnies saw 'cos Bob gave me the heads-up on the scraper blades from Bunnies. The blade is 300 x 90mm & sharpened as a 12 tpi, rip. On a test-run in soft & hard wood it cuts pretty well (rip, that is, it's hopeless on a crosscut!). Handle is Birdseye Maple. The steel seems a bit harder to file than the 1095 steel I used for the small 15 tpi saw I made a few weeks ago, but still files quite well. I hope the slight extra toughness translates to more time between sharpenings. We'll see.

I made it as a mate for the old (crosscut) saw below it in the first pic. That saw is marked on the brass rib as "J Beardshaw & Son", "Conqueror", & "Warranted Sheffield cast steel". I liked the handle (in fact that's what attracted me to it in the first place, & helped pursuade me to pay almost double what I thought was reasonable!) so made a template from it. Funnily enough, when I took the (Beech) handle off to trace it, I discovered it ain't original - I can be quite sure of that because two holes have been re-drilled in the blade to make it fit! Someone also got at it in a big way with a belt sander, by the looks, though I was able to clean off the worst of that with wet and dry and a good deal of elbow grease. The blade thickness now measures about .027", so it probably started out at 30 thou, which makes the new saw a good match.

The second pic shows the new saw with the small (250 x 55mm blade) saw I made from the .020" 1095 steel that was donated, to show the size & style difference. That saw has seen a fair bit of use already, and I am pretty pleased with it.

So thankyou, Bob - many happy years of ripping tenon cheeks coming up, I hope.

Hmmm, just a couple more saws in the pipeline, and when they are finished, I am going to kick this habit - I swear!!


Cheers,

[derekcohen]

Nice one Ian! Excellent work.

Rats, I wish I had more time. It's posts such as yours that get my juices going. I have a couple of Bunnings scraper blades just waiting to be turned into saws.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[BobL]

Well, here is my attempt at a saw cobbled up from available bits. I call it the BobLnBunnies saw 'cos Bob gave me the heads-up on the scraper blades from Bunnies.

Hummm . . . . . I'm not sure if I want my name associated with the big green and white store. . . . . . . although I have been called worse things in my time.

Saws look good by the way.
Cheers

[RayG]

Hi Ian,

Beautiful work, very crisp and clean, I like it. that birdseye maple looks a treat.

I have a BunnieBob D9 clone in the works.. maybe next week.

Regards
Ray

[IanW]

Hummm . . . . . I'm not sure if I want my name associated with the big green and white store. . . . . . . although I have been called worse things in my time.

Well - you gotta wear it, Bob - it's my backhanded way of saying thanks. There's more than saws coming from these scrapers - just watch this space!

Derek, whaddya mean? You already get through more projects in a month than I do in a year. How I wish I still had the energy I had 20 years ago! I just went at this hard 'cos I was really keen to see the end result. Saw-making is probably more tedious than difficult, but the end result is highly satisfying when it works well. This was only the second closed handle I've ever done, & it reminded me that they are a bit more difficult than open handles, so beginners should probably do a small open-handled saw for their first try.

I won't tell you about the various projects that remain on hold while I indulged myself with this. At least a few of you here can understand that, it's a lot harder to explain to the significant other why some other seemingly more important jobs are languishing while I am having fun making saws ...........
Cheers,

[IanW]

I have a BunnieBob D9 clone in the works.. maybe next week.

See Bob? You're forever associated with these saws, like it or not!

BunnieBob saw - it's got the right ring to it.

[kevjed]

Lovely to see the tools flowing in guys.
Great looking saw Ian.
Keep the inspiration coming.
Kevin

[Wongdai]

Inspirational! Love it.

[STAR]

I am also about to make a " Bob the Bunny " saw. I am nearly finished my handle which is practice for the real deal ( sorry Bob ) but I am pleasantly surprised how the handle is shaping up.

I think even Bob will be happy to have his name associated with it.

Peter

[BobL]

See Bob? You're forever associated with these saws, like it or not!

BunnieBob saw - it's got the right ring to it.

Reminds me of the time I bought a guitar back from the US for my son. Standing in the middle of a long security queue at Denver airport not quite knowing how to nonchalantly hold the guitar case, two buxom blondes approached me and said "Hiiiii . . . are you Billy Bob something or other , ya'll knowe, . . . the country singerr?" I though about saying "yeesss" but I knew my 'merican accent was crap and as soon as I opened my mouth my accent would give me away. So I sheepishly shook my head and shrugged my shoulders and pretended I didn't understand.

[BobL]

I also have a t-shirt with "Bob-the-boozer - yes we can" on it.

BTW I was called "Jim" from when I was 9 until I was about 17 and a group of my students called me "cookie monster" for 4 years.

[IanW]

......I am nearly finished my handle which is practice for the real deal ( sorry Bob ) but I am pleasantly surprised how the handle is shaping up.
Peter

Peter - making a good handle & fitting it accurately is probably the most difficult part of the whole operation, so you are well on your way. Filing the teeth, setting, & sharpening needs care & concentration, but is more tedious than difficult, if you are lucky enough to still have good eyesight.

I managed to take some pics as I was making the handle above - might be worth a run-through of how I do it to encourage anyone who is thinking of having a go but feels intimidated by the complexity.

Pic 1. The simple tool kit. Rasps & files are the go with shapes like these - cutting tools can be used sparingly, but all those changes of grain & tight corners limit their use to a few chamfers & outside curves. My kit consists of a couple of rasps (the Nicholson patternmakers' does most of the work & the smaller one does the really tight corners) a coarse file, and a small scraper or two. You'll notice I have used a couple of offcuts from the saw blade. The stuff is excellent for the purpose, & these scraps are just the right size. I also used a knife & paring chisel for some of the small decorative chamfers.

Pic 2. Cut out the shape, smooth & square to the lines - do this properly, or the rest isn't going to go well at all. Make the brass back & blade slot. If you don't happen to have a saw that suits, you can use the blade you're fitting with teeth filed, but before you put any set on it, though it's slow-going. I put most of the slot in this one with the slitting saw I used for the brass - made it very easy. Drill & counter-bore the bolt holes, either before you cut the shape out of the blank, or at least before you start shaping. It goes without saying that if these aren't accurate & neat it will spoil things considerably. I make the counterbore with a Forstner bit, then switch to a spur drill for the bolt hole, set so that the point just exits, which gives the centre for the counterbore on that side.
Now, this is the bit I had to learn the hard way! Use a set of reference lines - these will help you to keep things symmetrical as well as tell you how much to take off. You may have a brilliant sculptor's eye, but for most of us, once you start cutting away parts of this complex pattern, it gets really hard to see where you're at without some reference lines. They don't need to be complicated - this is what I find most helpful.
First, a centre line all the way around the edge, and another 'centre' line along the pistol grip. Then go back to the edge, & halve the distance between centre & edge. 'Finger-gauge' a line this distance around all the edges to be shaped.

Pic 3. Draw the curves on the backs of the horns & rough shape them, then chamfer to the first set of lines all around - you don't have to be super neat at this stage, just thorough & reasonably accurate. With a shape like this, you can only use the vise for some holds, so you have to hand hold it for much of the job. Jamming it against bench dogs or partly open vise jaws helps, but a decent, sharp rasp like the #49 is the best helper.

Pic 6. Then the fun part - blend the curves to get that nice flowing shape that differentiates a good handle from the half-baked things you see on most commercial saws nowadays (Mike W's are a notable exception!). This is where the centre lines are really helpful to keep it symmetrical. The trick seems to be to take enough off - I stopped too soon on my first try or two. Bring the shape back towards the centre so that the grip is oval, not looking like it was done with a roundover bit on a router.

Depending on the wood you chose (don't go for highly figured wood like birdseye for your first attempt! ), final cleanup is fairly easy with a combination of coarse file & scrapers & just a bit of sanding. Use a very sharp edge with a light burr and a light touch for clean scraper cuts on end grain. I hate snadpaper, & use as little as possible, but this job needs a bit. Depending on how good your scraper technique is, you shouldn't need much sanding, but a few areas might need serious attention. The best effects come from sharp edges & smooth curves, so be careful when sanding near edges that are meant to be distinct.

I'm sure there are plenty of other approaches, but that's what works best for me.
Cheers,

[STAR]

Ian. The reason I attempted this handle and a smaller one for a lady is to understand and follow all the info you, Ray and other experienced saw makers have put up.

I thought if i tried to cobble a few up with the cheap files, rasps and Derek's sand paper on a stick trick I might well be in a better situation when I see some body who has done them and hopefully who can point out a better and more efficient way.

Because I have never done any scroll sawing and rasping this is all new to me even though I do have a 16' scroll saw in my shed that has hardly been used.

I will bring the saw handles over for show and tell and when finished put a photo up here. I possibly will not get a chance to play with it till the week end.

I intend to use Bob's scraper and proclaim it as an ' Official Bob the Bunnie ' saw.

Peter

[BobL]

Other useful tools and gismos for saw handle making are a dremel tool with a range of small sanding drums and a range of rasps made from small pieces of wood with different X-sections [ half round , round, and also triangular (got that profile idea from Lightwood)] wrap various grit paper around the sticks.

[Malcolm Eaton]

Well, here is my attempt at a saw cobbled up from available bits. I call it the BobLnBunnies saw 'cos Bob gave me the heads-up on the scraper blades from Bunnies. The blade is 300 x 90mm & sharpened as a 12 tpi, rip. On a test-run in soft & hard wood it cuts pretty well (rip, that is, it's hopeless on a crosscut!). Handle is Birdseye Maple. The steel seems a bit harder to file than the 1095 steel I used for the small 15 tpi saw I made a few weeks ago, but still files quite well. I hope the slight extra toughness translates to more time between sharpenings. We'll see.

I made it as a mate for the old (crosscut) saw below it in the first pic. That saw is marked on the brass rib as "J Beardshaw & Son", "Conqueror", & "Warranted Sheffield cast steel". I liked the handle (in fact that's what attracted me to it in the first place, & helped pursuade me to pay almost double what I thought was reasonable!) so made a template from it. Funnily enough, when I took the (Beech) handle off to trace it, I discovered it ain't original - I can be quite sure of that because two holes have been re-drilled in the blade to make it fit! Someone also got at it in a big way with a belt sander, by the looks, though I was able to clean off the worst of that with wet and dry and a good deal of elbow grease. The blade thickness now measures about .027", so it probably started out at 30 thou, which makes the new saw a good match.

The second pic shows the new saw with the small (250 x 55mm blade) saw I made from the .020" 1095 steel that was donated, to show the size & style difference. That saw has seen a fair bit of use already, and I am pretty pleased with it.

So thankyou, Bob - many happy years of ripping tenon cheeks coming up, I hope.

Hmmm, just a couple more saws in the pipeline, and when they are finished, I am going to kick this habit - I swear!!


Cheers,

Bunnings are going to get the message soon as they see their sales of scrapper blades suddenly increase with this demand on saw steel, I can visualise in the near future the price on scrapper blades will rise, get in whilest the going is favourable.
Mac