The Hand Saw

The hand-saw is a very basic tool that is approachable to many for operation.

Power to accomplish work with the hand saw is provided by the operator

To begin use gather measurements, material to be cut, hand saw and bench vice.

Choose the correct blade for the material to be cut paying attention to the number of teeth per inch.
Measure and mark the stock material to the length required being sure to take into account the material being cut away also known as Kerf.
Place the material into the vice with the line to be cut in close proximity to the edge of the Vice
Once secured in the vice place the blade to the marked cut. Make a few passes with the blade to start a cutting notch.
Continue making passes with the blade applying force in the forward cutting motion. Continue until the desired cut is made.
Deburr and measure to ensure cut is within desired tolerance.

Task

Cut two pieces of 1" 6061-T6 AL Square Bar to 1-1/4"

Although the hand saw is very approachable, both in cost and skill, it almost always falls short of it's semi-auto and automatic counterparts.

Setup, Cycle and Post Processing times are almost all attributable to the skill of the operator.

The times you see below are for a Single cut.

Repeatable accuracy is not a highlight of the hand saw nor is time efficiency.

Note the target measurement is 1-14"

The cuts produced by the hacksaw were not very clean and required a decent mount of cleanup in the de-burring.

Conclusion:

The hand saw is a material processing piece of equipment that is approachable to almost any operator in processing material both in cost and skill. It requires the input and interaction of a human to accomplish cutting at a large time investment but has the potential to produce accurate cuts when used by a seasoned operator.

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