Many unprofessional woodworkers love to do their cutting chores by themselves. To them, the rip saw is a very popular and must-have tool. This saw is commonly used in the workbenches or garages where one wants to make something out of wood or logs, and thus, considered as a basic tool to have. We will gradually explain the definition, types, and benefits of using Rip Saw.
What is a rip saw?
A rip saw is designed to make a clean rip cut on the wood. Rip cut is to cut the timber along with its grain line. A basic designed rip saw is constructed with a metal blade and a comfortable wooden or plastic handle. The blade has sharp teeth which are designed just like the knife blades to make fine cuts in parallel to the grainline of the log. The part of the blade installed under the handle is known as the hill and the open part in the front as the toe. The best rip saw can make fine cuts on the wooden parts with enough smoothness.
How Many Types of Rip Saw Are There?
Rip saws can be divided into two broad categories: manual labored and mechanical tools. There is no difference in the basic function of these two types. They vary only to the extent of size, work to be done, mechanism, the purpose of design, etc.
a) Manual labored rip saws: These saws are geared by manual labor and are used for cutting woodpiles by the force of hands. Some simply call these as hand rip saw. The manual rip saws usually come at very basic design since the prime consideration is to assist the individuals working at their personal workbench.
b) Mechanical rip saws: These sorts of saws are designed on mechanical laws, and sometimes run by power. Cutting jobs of a large magnitude can be done very easily with minimum hassle. To reach maximum productivity, rip saws with multiple blades have been invented. These are commonly known as gang rip saw or multi blade rip saw. Moreover, there are motorized portable rip saws to accompany and serve the individuals on mobility.
What Are Some Uses and Benefits of Rip Saw?
The uses of rip saw are different from person to person. Some use one type of saw for individual purposes, whereas, some use a totally different type at commercial complexes. As such, the benefits of rip saw are multidimensional from the users’ perspective. Unlike scroll saws which are used in mills for making intricate cuts or chop saws that are designed for making angle cuts, rip saws have a completely different purpose, and thus, are used for making rip cuts on the timbers.
In this part of The Definition, Types, and Benefits of Using Rip Saw, we discuss the major uses of rip saws are like something described below:
Making rough cuts on wood: One of the primary uses of rip saw is to make rip cuts on wood panels. Mostly, people hand rip saw for this basic purpose. These rough cuts follow the grainline in parallel. The saw blade functions like multiple chisels at a time on the wood surface and then complete the split.
Heavy-duty lumber job: Some motorized or power saws are used for doing heavy-duty lumber splits. These are found especially in sawmills and commercial factories. Thick logs are cut with electric rip saws very easily without employing much effort.
Multiple cuts in a time: Some rip saws contain multiple blades for splitting a timber or log into more than two pieces at a time. These are known as multi blade rip saws. Some call it as gang rip saw. These can be motorized or manually pulled/pushed. The user can set the gap between the blades to make the cuts after the desired interval.
Accuracy in severing planks: At present, many modern designs of rip saws have been launched in the market which ensures severing the lumber at the maximum precision. The level of accuracy being the maximum ensures that the erosion or waste of the wood materials are the least. In this way, the user can utilize the maximum portion of wood for his purpose.
Correcting uneven shapes: Just like the pruning saws are used to maintain the right shape of the tree branches, the hand rip saws can help the user in rectifying the uneven or messy edges of the logs and timbers. The proper shape of wood is necessary since the edges must match the designated design of the planned item.
DIY projects: Many of the rip saws are highly portable these days. And the portable rip saws are the best fit nowadays to assist in DIY projects. One can sever the plywood and timbers at their own accord and complete his projects by himself by creating proper material supply.
Commercial tasks: In the commercial complexes, many large-scale and high-end mechanical rip saws can be found for cutting woods and ply more efficiently within a shorter time with the highest accuracy. These are specially planned for serving the mills and factories which require a large magnitude of works to execute.
Why Should Someone Buy a Rip Saw?
This essential gear is used for making rough cuts through the wood. If one understands his requirement that his timbers need a rough cut, a rip saw will be the best deal for him.
While browsing through different alternatives available in the market, one should consider several key configurations of the tool. Before buying, the proper size of the blade and a comfortably gripped handle must be determined. Then again, the teeth-per-inch on the blade must the satisfactory to create fine cuts on the wood.
The best rip saw comes with a replaceable blade facility so that the user does not have to throw the saw after the old blade’s sharpness wires off. To get the cutting job perfectly done, one should own a rip saw which will be able to meet all his requirements.
Bottom line
By now we have already discussed the definition, types, and benefits of using Rip Saw. However, Rip saws are useful yet some safety measures should be taken when someone is going to use them for personal or commercial use. Without going hastily, the user should remain very careful to get the maximum outputs from this tool. Only then the proper benefits will be realized.