A dovetail saw is the one you reach for when the cut has to be spot on: dovetails, small tenons, any fine joint where you’re following a line along the grain. This one is filed rip cut at 16 points per inch with an 8 degree rake, so it starts easily and leaves a clean, narrow kerf. The blade is 250mm of 0.5mm spring steel (SAE 1080, hardened to 44 to 47 HRC) and cuts to 50mm deep. It holds an edge well and touches up in a few minutes with a needle file when it eventually dulls. A solid brass spine keeps the blade dead straight and gives the saw its weight, 426 grams here, so the saw does most of the work and you guide it.
The handle is Spotted Gum, an Australian hardwood that has been used for axe and hammer handles for generations because it’s dense and shrugs off knocks. It’s cut to fit a large hand, which for my saws means a palm around 95mm across. Hold it with your index finger pointing along the spine and the other three fingers curled around the grip. If nothing feels cramped or loose, this is your size. A wipe of camellia oil now and then keeps the handle and blade happy, and the timber only looks better with age.
This saw is one of my first small batch. The brass spine was made at HNT Gordon in northern New South Wales, where I spent time learning tool making with Terry Gordon, and the split nuts are made by hand using what I learned there. These are the saws that mark the start of Kaz Saw, and there won’t be another batch like them.
It comes sharpened and ready to cut. Email me and I’ll post it anywhere in Australia by registered mail.
