Crosscut saws were first introduced to North America in the early 17th century, likely by European settlers who brought their woodworking tools with them when they emigrated. These early saws were similar to “pit saws” used in Europe where crosscut saw technology had been steadily improving over centuries. Pit saws themselves are old enough to have been mentioned in the Old Testament!
By the mid-18th century, the use of crosscut saws in North America became more widespread, particularly as the demand for timber increased with westward expansion. However, it wasn't until the 1870s or 1880s, with the rapid growth of the logging industry, that crosscut saws became essential tools for felling trees and processing lumber. They were particularly useful in felling trees and bucking up logs, and allowed for a single pair of men to produce twice the amount of timber two axemen could.
Early crosscut saws used in Europe up until the 15th century, and in North America until the mid 19th century, used a “plain tooth” pattern, with teeth shaped like triangles spanning the length of the blade. Although simple, versatile, easy to sharpen with rudimentary tools, and useful for general purpose woodworking, it was a highly inefficient pattern when it came to sawing large timber at the scale that was occurring at that time. This was primarily a result of the buildup of sawdust and wood shavings in the kerf, which meant the saw was constantly getting stuck. Teeth that weren't optimized for the type of cutting that was going on also meant greater fatigue and less productivity for the sawyers.
The solution was simple - tooth patterns that worked to saw the wood and also evacuate the sawdust and wood shavings at the same time. The "M tooth" pattern, which was developed in the 1400s in Germany but didn't gain traction in North America until the mid 19th century, was designed with flat outer edges on the cutting teeth and deep rounded "gullets" between them. The flat outer edges transported debris into the gullet to be expelled with each stroke, while the sharp inner edges did the cutting. Essentially, a redesign of the tooth shape itself meant it could now both cut wood and work to expel debris.
Teeth with the singular function of removing sawdust and debris were called "rakers" and different tooth patterns emerged which incorporated them. Once a pair of sawyers had a crosscut saw with improved tooth pattern, all they needed was their coal oil to wash off resin and wedges to direct the tree downwards and they were set. Here is an image taken from the USDA Forest Service Crosscut Saw Manual, published in 1977 that depicts various crosscut saw tooth patterns:
In this image you can clearly see the manner in which the cutting teeth of this crosscut saw are filed. To be quite honest, I'm not sure what exactly the tooth pattern of this saw is called, but it seems to be some modification of the lance tooth pattern, as though all the teeth were molded into one:
Here in this image you can see the shape of the raker tooth itself, and the gullets, between each of the saw teeth:
The introduction of crosscut saws with designs like this into every logging camp necessitated each camp have a designated saw filer. You can imagine the importance of such a person. Depending on the location, saws ranged in length from 3 feet to 12 feet or more.
Under a skylight in the blacksmith’s hovel, the filer set up his wooden clamp to hold the saw blade; a tooth gauge, or “spider”, to set the rakers and joint the teeth to proper height; a swage; and a set hammer; flat files; and a hand anvil. Cutting teeth had to be all the same length and beveled, and the rakers had to be shorter than the cutters by the thickness of a nickel. The filer sharpened 12 to 15 saws each day, sharpening them for the type of wood to be cut and to suit each sawyer: men with short, quick strokes needed shorter rakers than those who rode the saw with hard, slow strokes. In cold weather the filer had to change the set of the teeth for frozen timber. You could “haul the guts out of a man” with a dull saw.
McKay, Donald. (2007). The Lumberjacks. Dundurn Press. pp. 82
The idea that the teeth of a crosscut saw need to filed differently when sawing cold lumber is interesting. The USDA Forest Service has a great writeup on each of the saw patterns shown above, with special mention of their utility against dry, frozen, and hard timber, in their 2004 publication Saws that Sing. You can access the entirety of that publication here. You can also download the PDF version here. Here's an excerpt:
Plain Tooth (Peg Tooth) Pattern
This pattern just includes cutter teeth. It is best used for cutting dry, very hard, or brittle small–diameter wood. Examples include many bow saws and pruning saws. These saws do not have special large gullets for sawdust. The sawdust is carried out in the small spaces between the teeth. Wet or resinous sawdust can bind up this tooth pattern.
M Tooth Pattern
The M tooth, still manufactured today in a modified form for competition saws, dates back to the 1400s in southern Germany. This tooth is designed to cut the fiber, break the severed fiber, and clean out the shavings. The tooth pattern consists of pairs of teeth set alternately and separated by a gullet. The outer edges of the teeth (the legs of the M) are vertical and act like rakers. The inside edges of the M are filed to a bevel, making a point. This tooth pattern is best suited for cutting dry, medium–to–hard woods.
Great American Tooth Pattern
This pattern consists of a group of three teeth, each set alternately, separated by a gullet. It is sometimes called a crown tooth because of its shape. The Great American tooth pattern is designed to cut dry, medium–to–hard woods. A special file is used for these saws. The file can be purchased today and is called a crosscut file or a Great American file. The file is shaped somewhat like a teardrop. The thicker rounded edge is for filing out the gullets. The sides of the file are used to file the rakers and cutters. This file also can be used to sharpen other tooth patterns.
Champion Tooth Pattern
This pattern is especially popular in the hardwood regions of North America. It consists of two cutter teeth set alternately and an unset raker with a gullet between them. The cutters are wider and more massive than the lance tooth pattern, allowing heavy sawing in extra hard, dry, or frozen wood. The larger teeth are sharpened in more of an almond shape rather than in the pointed shape of a lance tooth.
Lance Tooth Pattern
The lance tooth pattern also may be called the racer or four–tooth pattern. For many years the lance tooth pattern was the standard for felling and bucking timber in the American West. It consists of groups of four cutters set alternately, separated by an unset raker with gullets on each side. The lance tooth pattern is best suited for cutting soft green timber, especially fir, spruce, and redwood.
Perforated–Lance Tooth Pattern
This tooth pattern is considered a general utility pattern that can cut all but hard and frozen wood. It consists of groups of four cutters set alternately separated by an unset raker with gullets on each side. The "bridges" between the teeth form the perforations that give the pattern its name. These bridges strengthen the teeth and reduce chatter when the saw is used to cut harder wood. The perforated lance tooth pattern is sometimes called the racer pattern and old–timers called it the four–tooth pattern. It was popular historically in the pine country of the American West, and is still popular there.
Lastly, we'll leave you with an image. If you look closely you'll see the rakers of this saw doing their job:
That's it for now.
Adrian Pearson
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