Thread: Coping saw recommendations?

I'm bad at it...I know I can't justify the one I have

Sandvik is advertised at Amazon and BAHCO might be available at Sears. Good luck or buy a scroll saw for good results.

My eclipse coping saw has served me well for 30+ years. For making scales maybe see if you can pick up a cheap chinese or second hand saw and get some decent blades.

Originally Posted by Leatherstockiings

Is Sandvik now BAHCO? I think I read that concerning cabinet scrapers at one point.

Originally Posted by RezDog

I believe you are correct and the quality has not changed.

Interesting footnote: in 1959, Bahco took over the Erik Anton Berg firm, renowned for their razors (duh), chisels and planes. Saw on.

Regards,

Pieter

Olson makes a good Coping saw sells for about $12, their blades are also good blades, and come in 10 - 32 tpi. 15-16 is a good mid-range and 16 skip tooth tpi is a good blade for most scales, wood, bone & horn, if you are doing plastics more teeth may be better 24-32. Can’t really see spending high dollars on a frame, unless you were doing a lot of coping, and then just go to a scroll saw or Jig saw. You can cut a pair of scales in less than a minute, I like the sound of fewer machines.

Just remember the saw get close to the line, shape to the line with a file and sand to final shape and size with sandpaper, don’t try to make perfect cuts. Sandpaper glued to a wooden paint stick is a nice shaping tool. Set up on a pull stroke give you/me more control.

Here is a good tip for modding the Olson or any of that type saw that makes blade adjustment easier and avoids overtightening. Makin a small bird’s mouth support to clamp to makes the job much quicker, easier and a more controlled cut.

I use a saw that 8th graders use for the obligatory arts and crafts class. HOWEVER I've stuck some Bosch heavy duty blades in it. The frame is total crap (aluminium most likely) so pressure is key. The blade is kinda loose, but it doesn't matter as long as you observe the pressure. I've been successfully cutting ebony, bocote, cocobolo, snakewood, etc with it... without a vise even! I think I've cut up 5, or 6 scale blanks using the same blade and it's still ok to do more. Well, I guess I'll keep using it until it breaks, that seems to be the rule on these, if I remember middle school correctly [emoji23]

So I'm with the cheap options. Couldn't even justify spending $30 on a cope saw, but I'll agree that a more solid frame (maybe not titanium lol) would be beneficial.

Might snap a few photos in a while, just for laughs.

Cant find the box with the rest of the blades.. those are actually really good and worth showing, not this cheap contraption

I've got an Olson as well and like it a lot. The important thing is to find blades that you like and that work for you - it's kind of like finding which DE blade you prefer.