Different Types of Saws & Their Uses (You Should Know)

Last Updated on May 2, 2021 by woodcutter

Tree limbs are hanging all over your yard. You look closely and realize that the fence and hedges also need some trimming. You certainly know it’s time to give them a manicure, but which are the best types of saws and their uses?

For thousands of years, humans have used saws to make work easier. Though technology wasn’t advanced those days, humans still found ways of designing saws that could cut wood and metal for joinery work.

Today, you have every type of saw you can think of. The technology is so advanced that you’ll cut through anything! However, you still have the pleasure to choose between the manual and powered saw.

Saws make your work easier

Your collection of tools is just about to get complete! When you walk to a store, you have different tools to suit your needs. Saws are distinct, but you cannot use them outside of their trades. They have different names, most of them suggestive of the work they do and their shapes. The saw names, however, can differ depending on the regions. This simple tool for wood, metal, and plastic trades boasts of over thirty different saws.

How many types of saws are there?

In general, we group saws into two categories; hand saws and power saws.

Let’s look at these two categories in detail.

1. Hand saws

Hand saws are as old as humanity. The only thing that changes in them is that they are adjusted to fit new cutting styles. Like the traditional saws, some hand saws are all-purpose and perform general woodwork, while others are sophisticated to discharge specific duties.

Your choice of a hand saw will depend on the usage. Some of the outstanding characteristics of hand saws are;

• Thick or thin-bladed.

• Lightweight.

• Non-powered.

• Made of iron or brass.

Different Types of Hand Saws

There are over twenty different types of saws. Here are some of the best types of saws that we have in this category.

1. Veneer Saw (specialized Saw)

As the name depicts, this Saw is a special one for slicing veneer. A veneer is a thin sheet of wood made from peeling a wood trunk and is often used for decorating rough wooden surfaces. 

You can only slice veneer using this specific saw with a short double-edged blade with about 13 teeth per inch. While other saws can deform the veneer’s thin structure, the veneer saw minimizes the tearing of the edges and the out layer of the sheet.

Specialized/Veneer Uses

Veneer saw is used to cut thin and hardboards. These wood sheets are vulnerable to chipping. Slicing using other types of cutting saws could damage them. 

2. Keyhole Saw

The saw’s name is already described according to the tool. It is genuinely a keyhole with a round handle fitted with a single blade that protrudes from the top of its grip. The keyhole saw has a sharp pointed edge that can fit in a very tight space and make a cut. It also allows carpenters to drill rough circle cuts and patterns on small sections of wood. The Saw is handy for antiques that require holes and unique curves on the surface.

Uses of The Keyhole Saw.

With a keyhole saw, you can puncture drywall, wallboards, or panels. It makes holes to insert powered tools too. The edge of the blade remains pointed to fit tight spaces to cut. 

3. Pruning Saw

Pruning saws efficiently reduce branches on trees and shrubs. They have 13-28″ curved blades with coarse teeth to cut the branches in both directions. With a pistol grip handle, it is easy to hold and cut faster than a regular hand saw. 

A pruning saw blade is wide and has coarse teeth that can cut in both directions for faster material removal. With teeth on both edges, the pruning saw is a home toolkit for landscapers and tree surgeons.

Uses of A Pruning Saw.

A pruning saw allows you to cut unreachable branches fast and effortlessly. You can also use it to trim ornamental plants with thin stems. It is helpful for farmers in pruning coffee branches.

4. Rip-Cut Saw

In some regions, a rip-cut saw is also referred to as a tooth saw. It is a perfect choice for cutting door and window frames due to its capability to make rough cut cuts carefully along the grains. Thanks to its few sharp teeth on each inch. The teeth cut by alternating between the right and left bends just like a chisel does to wood. The rip-cut saws come in varying lengths, with seasoned carpenters choosing a variety.

Uses of Rip-Cut Saw

The Saw is ideal for cutting wood logs and frames.

5. Wire Saw

These kinds of saws use metal wires to cut through tree branches or wood material. The wire saw is similar to a band or reciprocating saw. It uses abrasion instead of teeth and is hand-powered. 

Wire saw scrapes have to be robust to cut through the materials. Braided continuous wire strands of wire form a cable that is razor-sharp. Some wire saws also comprise a single wire which is razor-sharp. When the wire cuts, it becomes hot due to the abrasion process. You can cool it down with oil or water.

Uses of Wire Saw

Mainly, wire saws are used in quarries to cut large stones, and foam manufacturing firms cut the foams into suitable shapes. Though they are slower than other hand saws, they are precise for performing specialized tasks.

6. Camping Saw

This lightweight and small saw is sharp-bladed to perform different functions during campouts. That means it is a regular saw but has distinct features to be favorable for outdoor activities. It is foldable to conserve space when packing. 

The camping saw blade fits nicely on its sheath to guarantee safety and safeguard other camping items. When buying this saw, campers focus on portability and all-purpose. That is what this camping saw offers you. It also has an excellent non-slip handgrip to allow you to cut through wood, metals, and any material in the wild when the need arises.

Uses 

All-purpose saw for cutting firewood, pruning, and trimming any material as need arises during camping.   

7. Back Saw

A backsaw is a handsaw with unique features like a thin and robust blade with broadly spaced teeth per inch. When you hold the saw in position, the thin blade remains the same angle and shape from the cutting edge to the holding edge.

 Also, the tenon saw remains stiff in a rib-like form to maintain firmness when cutting wood. The profile also helps to cut precisely. But back saws have different varieties. Other than the tenon saw, the miter saw, Japanese saw, dovetail saw, and sash saw.

Uses of Back Saws

• Jewel and sculpture making.

• Detailed wood and metalwork like cutting spaces for dovetail joints.

8. Coping saw

Coping saw is a smaller version of a bow saw. Unlike the bow saw, it has a ribbed handle and a very short thick blade. Its frame is a c shape with a convenient handle to allow the user to cut precisely. The blade’s teeth are coarse to efficiently cut hard surfaces such as thick chunks of wood and metals. 

Uses

A coping saw is a perfect choice for carpenters. They help create moldings and circular cuts. You can use the saw to cut through soft metals like aluminum and copper.

9. Bone Saw

The bone saw is also known as the butchery saw. As the name indicates, its uses are limited to cutting bones and, therefore, a surgeon’s tool. Tool manufacturers uniquely fashion this saw to cut through the flesh and chop off the bone. The meat and blood cannot make it blunt as the design covers that purpose. 

Try to cut a bone with another type of Saw, and it will be all messy. Each tool is compatible with its designated task. The bone saw’s durability makes it retain its quality regardless of the size of the bones it cuts. Its thin blade has sharp, wedged teeth that strike through all kinds of bones, whether soft or hard.

Uses of a bone saw

• Used by butchers and animal surgeons.

• The surgeon’s tool in human orthopedic departments during surgery.

2. Power Saws

These modern saws are a duplicate of hand saws. Just like hand saws, power saws garner their different designs from various crafts they perform. They do not require much effort since they are electricity, gasoline, or battery-powered. Just a simple switch, and you are off with your task. 

Power saws have advanced capabilities to perform complicated niches, which hand saws cannot accomplish.

Different Types of Power Saws

Power saws are either circular, continuous, or reciprocating. We are going to expound on the different power saws, their category, and their uses.

1. Band Saw

A band saw is also referred to as a stationary saw. It is free-standing and usually mounted on the ground. A band saw buys its name from its shape and design. It contains a band blade that is continuous and stretches one large wheel to the other end. 

When the Saw is powered, its blade rotates at high speed along its path through wood or designated material. Mostly the band saws are made with heavy metals such as cast iron which also build its wheels. The stationary Saw does not use one blade. 

You can fix different blades depending on your need. That includes whenever you want to cut through different thicknesses. A band saw’s blade works under high tension from a spring tension mechanism. It runs by an electric motor.

Uses

• The band saw is used for re-sawing and shaping wood. That means it can cut circles as well.

• Cutting bevels and miters. 

• Cutting PVC, metals, and other materials, but you must fix the appropriate blade for different materials. 

2. Portable Band Saw

This Saw is a duplicate of the stationary Saw, but it is small and portable. The function is the same, but the Saw is not fixed and is ideal when you are working away from your station, and you are required to fix a few parts. It cuts PVS, metal, wood, and plastic. As we mentioned earlier, you have to select the right blade for different materials.  

Although you are limited to the material size you can cut, the Saw will step in for you in sites away from your workshop. It is a perfect saw for welders, aluminum metal workers, and plumbers.

Uses

• Re-sawing and shaping wood and metal

• Cutting PVC and plastic materials.

3. Chain Saw

The chainsaw is one of the most commonly used saws, especially in lumbering. It lies in the category of continuous saws. The saw is hardy and is ideal for felling trees and chopping wood. Due to its portable nature, lumbers can carry it into deep forests. 

Landscapers and homeowners use the saw depending on the task at hand—chainsaws run by gasoline. The Saw is well-fitted with a chain with wedged large teeth similar to those of a band saw. Its chain is then firmly attached to rotate around a metallic steel bar.   

Uses

• Felling large trees.

• Lumbering.

• Chopping wood.

• Trimming trees

4. Chop Saw

A chop saw is large and portable. The saw lies on the circular saws category and helps to chop both metal and wood. To perform a task like cutting concrete and blocks of stones, connect the saw to a water line. That will reduce the dust.

A chop saw blade for both the metal and wood version is toothless but has abrasives that grid the designated material to cut through. You will find different names in the market, such as cut-off-saw, abrasive saw, and concrete saw. All these refer to chop saws. If you are in the construction industry, this Saw is a must-have.

Uses

• Used by masons to cut concrete.

• Chops wood perfectly.

• Ideal for cutting metal.

5. Circular Saw

Some people refer to a circular saw as a buzz saw or Skilsaw. The saw uses a circular toothed blade with a diameter ranging between 7 and a quarter inches and nine inches. Users group the circular power saw category because of its circular structure. 

You can work on a variety of materials for different purposes with this saw. Its blade has large wedged teeth, all arranged according to the goal. These saws are portable and powered by a gas, hydraulic or electric motor. When powered, the blade spins around its attachment, devouring its predator through in seconds. You can also fix this handy tool if it does not require work away from the workshop.

Uses of A Circular Saw

Being a multipurpose tool, you can use it in multiple areas, including chopping and cutting through metal, wood, stone, and plastic. The most common uses of this saw are carpentry, metalwork, masonry works, and many other places to rip, chop, split and do all kinds of work.

6. Miter Saw

Only a few power saws mimic hand saws. A majority performs wildly divergent tasks that hand saws can’t, but a miter saw is a powered hand saw. It trims almost every material and allows you to complete the functions precisely. With a miter saw, you can work on all cuts requiring exact angles and measurements.

The saw is a circular category usually mounted in a fixed place. With this saw, you can cut long mitered ends. The saw’s circular blade rotates and devours through different materials in circular motions. 

According to your choice, a miter saw’s cutting head is designed with a miter index to retain the pivotal point of 90 degrees angle and tilt less than 45 degrees. It achieves the accuracy you need, unlike other types of saws that can only be rotated at one degree to achieve accuracy.

Uses of a miter saw

The saw is used for cross-cutting to make miter cuts.

7. Compound Miter Saw

This is a more sophisticated hybrid of a standard miter saw. It can make compounds, just like the name suggests. With this Saw, you will not pivot the degrees you want because the blade has got the correct allowance for complex angles. It can even cut trims and elaborate scrollwork.

 Uses

• It works perfectly on complex cross-cutting tasks.

• Trimming windows.

• Molding crown.

8. Panel Saw

 A panel saw is large and stationary. It is usually available in vertical and horizontal arrangements to cut through large panels. Vertical models will require that you drive in the material you want to cut through the stationary panel. The flat model is easy to use as it involves sliding the sheet on the table and driving it towards the blade. 

The cutting method of both the horizontal and vertical models is the same. You will find these saws in woodwork industries where work involves cutting large wood sheets in different sizes and lengths. It works well on rigid boards, veneers, and plywood.   

Uses of A Panel Saw

The saw crops plywood and other sheets of wood perfectly. It is very efficient in edging wood pieces. You can make both longitudinal and transverse using this tool.

FAQs About the Different Types of Saws

 How Many Types of Saws Are There?

Saws come in two categories. They are grouped depending on how you operate them. The two types include;

1. Powered saws:

These are mechanically operated and use power to drive them to cut. To run such saws, you have to power them with fuel or electricity. With a powered saw, work is more manageable, and you have to apply a little force. An example of a powered saw is the chain saws used in commercial lumbering. The circular Saw is also a powered saw.

2. Hand saws: 

These types of saws operate manually. They have a hand holding option, where you grip and use your energy to cut through a plank of wood, metal, or plastic. These included these, including bow saw, cross-cut saw, hacksaw, Coping saw, and rip cut Saw.

Which saw is best for cutting wood?

Saws, whether powered or manual, do great work for you. If you are cutting wood, it would be old-school to bring in your ax and hatchet to do the job. You can rip quickly and effortlessly large trunks of wood with a mechanically-powered saw. Black+Decker electric power saw is handheld that incorporates the efficiency of a chain saw and hand saw. It is electric-powered, meaning you will not use a lot of energy to slice chunks of wood.  

This saw is user-friendliness and comes in a lightweight design to help you lift it when cutting through wood. The Saw’s super sharp replaceable blade is easy to operate and does not require you to push back and forth like manual saws.

What is the best all-purpose Saw?

A reciprocating saw is the best all-purpose Saw. It works in many situations like slicing wood, splitting timber, and even cutting pieces of metal and plastic. It is hand and battery-powered. The saw includes anti-vibration features that allow you to use it with minimal effort. 

With its straight and long blade, you can move the saw back and forth and quickly chew your wood, metal, or plastic materials with minimal effort. The saw’s ergonomic design lets you wield any type of material at any angle or position. It does not require professional knowledge to use it, yet it does a myriad of cutting tasks. 

Also called Sawzall, you can choose among the different brands in the market. You will have acquired yourself an all-purpose saw for home use.

What Is The Safest Saw?

Although all saws are risky if handled without care, the risk of using saws does differ. This is because of their different designs and sizes. You even risk more with the mechanically powered saws because they work at lightning speed. We are not trying to say that you will be safe with a hand saw, but your chances of injury will be minimal.

 A hand saw is safer to use because you are the one in control of all its movements. Any injuries are minor. An electric or gasoline-powered saw that loses control is the most dangerous tool. It can chop off your toe within seconds.

 When using any tool at home, whether powered mechanically or manually, follow the guidelines and user instructions to guard your safety.

What Hand Saws Do I Need?

You require a variety of hand saws in your homestead. These include;

Rip Saw

With a rip saw around, you can almost do anything that all hand saws do except cutting metal and plastics. The saw works like several chisels bound together. Wood parallel grains are nothing to this saw. It rips them with its sharp teeth. 

Crosscut Saw

This is a good saw for trimming your backyard trees and cutting wood perpendicularly. It has got large spaced teeth on its thick blade to go through the wood roughly. 

Turning Saw

A cross-cut saw or a rip saw will not help you to cut curves. This 12″ long-bladed Saw is lightweight enough to help you nimble through your work effectively.

Dovetail Saw

You will require the Saw for making dovetails for drawers. The dovetail saw, also called a backsaw, has fine teeth, and its blade is narrow. The tool’s fine and thin blades are suitable for making minor cuts with significant control. 

What Are The Three Types of Back Saws?

The three types of back saws include;

Razor Saw

The Saw has finely pitched teeth. Its teeth have no set, meaning that you cannot sharpen them. It also uses a disposable blade. You can use a razor saw to cut very softwood, plastics, and soft metal. 

Gent’s Saw

This tool resembles a dovetail saw and is small in size. It is ideal for making minor cuts in artwork, musical instruments, and antiques.

Tenon Saw

This cutting tool is a medium-sized backsaw. As its name suggests, you can use it to cut mortise and tenon woodwork. The Saw has rip-filed teeth that cut by ripping across the wood grains. It has 13 fine teeth per inch stretch, just like a regular size saw.

Winding Up on the Best Different Types of Saws & Their Uses

Our web visitors know us for the detailed guides we publish, and I believe you do, too! By now, you’ve seen the best type of saw you should have for your work.

Before you step to the hardware store to purchase a saw, make sure you know and understand its application. You can manicure your hedges and fences as well as down those tree limbs easily with the perfect saw.

If you have any question, don’t hesitate to reach us out through the comment section below.