A backsaw is any hand saw stiffened along the edge opposite its cutting teeth by a rib of folded brass or steel, which limits how deep the saw can cut but gives it far better control and precision than an unstiffened saw offers. Backsaws carry closely spaced teeth with little or no set, and are the woodworker's saws of choice for fine joinery, cutting the dovetails, miters and tenons of cabinetry and furniture making where accuracy matters more than speed.
Facts
OriginThe gent's saw, a small dovetail backsaw with a turned handle used for fine work such as musical instruments, dolls' furniture and other model-making, is said to take its name from the nineteenth century hobbyist who used it, though the source notes a genuine nineteenth century reference to the name itself is hard to find: a period tool guide, Every Man his own Mechanic (1881), lists tenon, dovetail and sash saws as a group with no mention of a gent's saw. 1 Open Questions
Introduced When (Circa)Not established by the sources consulted
Named backsaw variants are dated (the sash saw to the 18th and 19th century in the source, the gent's saw to the nineteenth century) but no source consulted fixes an origin date for the backsaw form itself. Connections
Used In
Backsaw is used in Dovetailed Keepsake Box Plan.
Backsaw is used in Woodworking.
Sources
1. Backsaw (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationTypes of backsaws sectionQuote, Types of backsaws section
The name seems to have arisen from its use by the nineteenth century dilettante who would now be called a hobbyist but it is hard to find a nineteenth century reference to it.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.