As a professional furnitue upholster -- also do some wood Repairs?

[gene]

I refurbish furniture feet. This encourages more upholstery work in that it's less expensive than refinishing, and it allows folks the option of taking off the skirt.

The next time you go to the doctors tell him/her what your problem is and then start to tell them that you saw how to fix it on the internet.  :)

When my father-in-law was in hospice I was talking to a nurse about internet medical experts, i.e., folks who read something on the internet and believe it's true. She said her standard response is, "If that were true everyone would be doing it." I said, "Yes, but not if it's a government conspiracy keeping people from knowing the truth." She got a good laugh out of that one. Unfortunately, "a government conspiracy" is a standard 'go to' for a lot of folks.

Several weeks ago I asked my doctor for a pill that will make me set a goal for losing weight and actually achieve that goal. She said that if she had that kind of pill she would give it to her patients who are 350 and 400 pounds.

gene

[baileyuph]

Saber Saw - two questions:

1.  My Dewalt has three settings for the blade cutting angle, 90 degrees and two more setting less than 90.  The manual has been reviewed and information is "how to"make the settings, not the purpose.  My question is when to use the different settings, what is the primary purpose?  Could it be to start cutting in the middle of a piece of stock instead of on the edge (plywood)?  It might be easy to understand but this angle is in the direction of cutting not perpendicular to cutting (not the bevel angle).

2.  The other question is; what can a user of this saw do to reduce blade deflection.  Blade deflection is perpendicular to cutting direction.  Maybe some of the wood workers here have solved or reduced this issue to a minimum?  Would, perhaps a better blade quality improve the situation?  Faster speed?  Or? 

As a note, I like this saw because is is more portable than a circular saw and I get a lot of work 0n site.  More portable, means it is easier to plug in and go. compared to a circular saw. 

Paul, Steve, or Hammer probably can identify with these questions.

Thanks in advance,

Doyle

[byhammerandhand]

I have a sabre saw, but honestly, it's one of my least-used tools.  I think I only use it for interior cuts, preferring a band saw for other non-straight cuts.   But I do agree, it's portable and sort of Jack-of-all-trades.  In fact, Popular Woodworking, in their I Can Do That beginning guide recommends it as the first saw you should buy.

As with recommendations of the '70s -- cheap stereo and good set of speakers,  a good blade will make any saw perform better.  In fact, one of my first saws was a cheap sabre saw and it worked fine with some professional quality blades.

I  believe the adjustment you may be talking about is an "orbital" action that's designed to clear out the sawdust on thick material.

As for the blade wandering, I think slow and steady and not forcing the cut will help here.

https://books.google.com/books?id=_eMDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA82&lpg=PA82&dq=sabre+saw+cutting+angles&source=bl&ots=C9lZ-lACLb&sig=MvSiQKAdZ_jzGXm8eDvruyoYr5Q&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0CB0Q6AEwADgKahUKEwi85sas7I3GAhUGWJIKHWywAFw#v=onepage&q=sabre%20saw%20cutting%20angles&f=false

[SteveA]

I found that a saber saw with worm drive is my choice over those electronic jobs.  Jig saw cutting should be slow and the blade match the type of wood and fineness of cut desired.  I also have an air saw with a 14  teeth / inch course blade that I use for wood.  You'd like this for small work.
Just take your time with power tools - make sure the work is clamped down firmly - it will reduce blade deflection and sloppy cuts  from bouncing.
SA

[sofadoc]

I have a standing order with a nearby fixture manufacturing company. They outfit dressing rooms and kid's play areas in major dept. stores. They sub out the padded seating work to me.

One of the jobs I do for them requires cutting wood for 14" X 16" seats. I have a table saw, band saw, jig saw, and circular saw. But since I'm usually alone, I get the guys at Home Depot to cut a 4' X 8' sheet of 5/8" particle board into 16" strips so I won't have to try and maneuver the entire sheet by myself.

You've all probably all seen the big cutting jig that they have. They lay the sheet vertically on a set of rollers, and slide the saw on a track. So cutting at least 2 perfect 16" X 96" strips should be a breeze, right?..............WRONG!!! I understand that when allowing for the thickness of the saw blade, the 3rd strip is going to be a little less than 16". My plan is to turn the 3rd strip the other way and get a 14" strip out of that one.

But it's always some pimple faced kid running the machine. They never can come within 1/4" of getting any of the strips  right. And when I try to advise them that they are about to cut it wrong, all I get is a shrug of the shoulders and a rolling of the eyes.

[baileyuph]

Good information guys, I will check with (the big box lumber stoes?) for blade selection, I feel one is needed.  Clamping the work, especially the small stock, makes sense also.
Definitely moving the blade through the stock slower will make an improvement in expected cutting accuracy.

What is the logic with respect to speed of blade, seems that has some correlation between the rate of movement of the saw?  That is faster blade speed, if saw moves faster and cutting gets tougher.  Even so, I will make sure saw movement is kept slower.

Not sure I have the hang on the orbital action (the one that seems to correlate with the angle of the blade with respect to direction of cutting.  The angle of cutting, like stated, can be set at 90 degrees and then the other settings moves the tip of the blade in the direction of cutting (which are less than 90) which means the cutting lead is on the lower side of the stock.  

Like I said, that issue hasn't been all sorted out by me, maybe more thought is needed.

I mentioned I have a separate wood shop, but customers call me to do on site repairs and the sabre is one of the primary assets for that.  Of course it has it's advantages on internal cuts of larger pieces where the band saw can't reach.  My sabre is a $150 saw.

Thanks guys, sharp blade (selected for wood being cut) and move the saw through the cutting process slower with the stock clamped.  Good advice!

A point, this DeWalt seems to be a professional level, don't recall the amp but in the higher range.  It has plenty of power.

BTW, the link to the Popular Mechanics reading was very beneficial and interesting.  I agree with their assessment of the sabre saw.  Plus, it makes me money.

Doyle

[brmax]

Doyle, I had to be around and help a couple master finish carpenters growing up as a kid, though that's sounds harsh I enjoyed it,  yet I opted for the profession towards my other side of the family with wrenches and that sort.  But I may be able to help out as that's where I come in and you can Always count on it.
Ive had some well used hand me down saws So in short my first purchased new saw was like you mention as it sounds and I suspect very similar as black n decker went in together a bit with dewalt and also made some very good tools for again a short period for sears craftsman.
This model I picked up in the early 90s an industrial Model No. 900.272510  sears industrial sabre saw.
On the left side it has a lever and as the manual describes " though different sounding to me" it says orbital and in short advances the lower blade forward, on mine at 90degree its at 0 position then lifting up it has 1,2,3 other positions. 
I suspect they are hinting at orbital because a cam type movement of sorts, below I will type the paragraph as is in my manual below just to shed another light on one part of the question.

"Straight line or orbital cutting action
Conventional sabre saws cut with a straight line action, that is, the blade moves only up and down in a straight line.
Your saw also cuts in this manner but, for softer materials, an orbital cutting action can be selected.
Soft materials, like wood and plastic permit deep penetration of individual saw teeth. 
The orbital action thrust the blade forward on the cutting stroke and greatly increases cutting speed over conventional sabre saws.  Harder materials like metal should be cut using the straight line cutting action or very low orbital setting. 
To select straight line or orbital cutting adjust the dial on the saw as shown in figue 5-A."

yes they spelled figure wrong in that paragraph.
In my world that position or positions available to saw are called advanced, but what do I know.
Information Reference: Manual # 446001-02
Have a good day there

[baileyuph]

Well, Brmax the saw you describe by Craftsman does sound like mine.  Mine has three angular positions like your manual explained.  So, that makes a total of positions (angles) the blade may be set.

The 4 positions, their selection, a user is instructed to select a position based on density of materials being cut.  Metal at 90 degrees usually.  And that information sets the stage for the rational of the other three angles.  Now I understand that advancing the blade forward through the angles, logically causes the saw blade to contact more material being cut.  Which is acceptable as the material is of a softer nature.

Got it!  Thanks.

Doyle

[MinUph]

I've used probably three maybe four saber saws in my days. My first one was an old BD that was replace with a sears higher end model that had a scroll cutting feature where you could unlock the blade and turn the top handle to do scroll work. It was pretty handy but it seems to grab my finger more than I liked. My fault I know. Anyway that finally died and I bought a Bosch. Very good tool. This is the first sabre saw that cut both straight and true 90 degree cuts. It has very good guides. And it doesn't like my fingers. Knock on wood.
  As for the settings you mention doyle, I see them as feature that I probably wouldn't use much. I'm more prone to do a blade selection. Mine has a few settings I don't use but do turn the knobs once in awhile just because they are there. I think one is like what you're asking about and I never have found any good use for it. I do like the blower on mine. It keeps the line clear. I also like to have some down cutting blades for fine veneer and laminate cutting.

[Darren Henry]

The orbital action thrust the blade forward on the cutting stroke and greatly increases cutting speed over conventional sabre saws.

That's it in a nut shell. And quality blades are a must !!!! The "Dewalt" tee handled blades are the only way to go (IMHO) as they are twice as thick as your generic "hardware store house brand/B&D blades" and run true. I also find that increasing that cam action makes the blade dig into the wood more ----reducing chatter between the saw's table and the substrate. This makes it much easier to maintain a straight accurate cut down the centre of your line. When I closed my shop and worked for Bathfitter back in '08/09 , we had to cut up to 11 foot cuts in acrylic within 1/16 th of an inch. If it was a little faster than the speed I wanted to cut---I'd slow the motor RPM , but keep the full orbital action. That also helped the wall sheet from bouncing, as it was getting drawn tight to the saw table as I cut.

Dennis; You're right --- those panel saws are the bee's knees. One lumber yard back in Kenora actually had one that worked in either plane [ side-side/up-down]. Tres cool. Way out of my budget and You know I'm way too small to be running a 4X8 through a portable table saw alone----so I build the next best thing. Lee Valley have a clamp on skill saw guide that does the same job with the substrate laid flat.The one we had at the sign shop wasn't all that great because on screw was missing, so I took two 50-ish pieces of drapery I beam and drilled some holes through them. I lay the substrate on a couple of el-cheapo economy studs on saw horses---snap my chaulk line---mark off the 4 1/2" from the edge of my saw table to centre of blade and screw it to the substrate---and rip it off with the skill (circular) saw. Stack your 3- 15 15/16 th pieces and screw them to the 2X4 and cut the other way.  Budda Boom Budda Bing.

[baileyuph]

Spent much of the day removing upholstey to perform internal wood frame repairs yesterday.  Used my DeWalt machines with blades in a manner encouraged in this thread with better results.  Got the repairs done, reassembled the upholstery and went on to the next job (one of those mobile days).  I guess this type of work is on the increase because it isn't turned down.......the smart side of it is, reduces pickup/deliver time, which can take longer than the repair time.  That is a better return on my time. 

That is most of what business is all about. 

Thanks for the tips guys, it brought my attention to important details...........plus I wasn't being critical of a DeWalt, just seeking understanding of the tool.  It seems to be a strong tool.

Back to work,

Doyle

[byhammerandhand]

video on the subject of saber/sabre saws that might be of some interest?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=17&v=f1cuvdA99tM