My tenon saws are based loosely on the White saw. See the CWF publication "Eighteenth-Century Woodworking Tools: Papers Presented at a Tool Symposium May 19-22, 1994". This style was in use in the third quarter of the 18th c. This is the style of handle Thomas Affleck and Thomas Chippendale would have known. This is the style of handle in use in the craftshops of Colonial Williamsburg.



These handles are unique in that they are placed low, closer to the toothed edge. When you saw, you push the handle, and the wood pushes back at the toothed edge. Each push is a force vector, roughly parallel to each other. When the two vectors are close together (like a Japanese saw), a more efficient cut and a greater the sense of control is the result.

I find mortise and tenon joinery to be far more challenging and demanding than dovetail joinery. I understand why woodworkers are obsessed with dovetails; they are obvious. You really can't see the fit up between a mortise and tenon except at the shoulder. But M&T's are often used in higher strength applications like chairs, tables, and in my case, highboys. These are high stress, single point failure joints.

The good news is they are easier when you have good tools. In my shop, the process begins with careful marking out and a good mortise chisel, and ends with 2 really great saws. A 14" sash saw that I filed with cross cut teeth for the tenon's shoulder cuts. And an even longer back saw for the cheeks.

Choosing the right tenon saws for you can be tricky. First, you have to forget about the 6 tooth rule. Sawing tenons may well be the deepest (thickest stock) cuts you make. An average dining table may have 4" apron. That's 4" of stock I must saw through. Using the 6 tooth rule, I would need 6 teeth/4" = 1-1/2tpi. That saw would look more like a pitsaw than a hand saw. (and it wouldn't work). Only experience can guide your selection. I'll offer you mine. I've designed three saws to cover the stock sizes and cuts I encounter most often. These saws are by no means interchangeable. Each is designed for a very different cut.



14" Sash Saw $225
  • 14" long blade, .025 thick saw plate, 1095 steel, approx. 50 RcC, blade depth is 3-1/2 - 4"
  • 3/16"x 1" brass spine, beech handle, simulated brass rivet with split nut hardware
  • 13ppi/12tpi, cross cut, 20 degrees fleam, 15 degrees rake, moderate set
I use this saw for precision cross cuts. It's massive blade depth allows fairly significant cross cuts. I use it to size drawer stock. (Drawer sides need very square ends.) I don't like using rip saws for cross cuts. I use this saw to cut the cross grain shoulder cuts of tenons. With 20 degrees fleam, it won't rip well. If I filed less fleam it wouldn't cross cut as well. Every woodworker needs a saw like this.



16" Cabinetmaker's Tenon Saw $235
  • 16" long blade, .025 thick saw plate, 1095 steel, approx. 50 RcC, blade depth is 3-1/2"- 4-1/2"
  • 3/16"x 1" brass spine, beech handle, simulated brass rivet with split nut hardware
  • 11-12ppi/10-11tpi (progressive pitch), rip, 5 degrees rake, moderate set
I worked for years with 18 and 19" tenon saws I found these saws too long for the 2" wide tenons I encountered making frame and panel drawer dividers in period carcases. They were just unwieldy and too coarsely toothed for such a narrow cut. So I struggled with my carcase saw which didn't have the depth of cut, or I'd start with the carcass and end with the tenon saw. But the carcase saw was thinner than the tenon, so that was a problem. The solution is another tool. Call me Norm if you must. Sometimes it's just nice to have the right tool for the job. If you're happy with the tenon saw you've got, stick with it. If you aren't, try this one.



18" Joiner's Tenon Saw $245
  • 18" long blade, .025 thick saw plate, 1095 steel, approx. 50 RcC, blade depth is 4 - 4-3/4""
  • 3/16"x 1" brass spine, beech handle, simulated brass rivet with split nut hardware
  • 9-10ppi/8-9tpi (progressive pitch), rip, 0-5 degrees rake(progressive rake), moderate set
This saw is designed for tenons in excess of 3" wide. You'll find these certainly in architectural work like wainscots or entry doors, but also in table aprons, workbenches and other more common items. If you don't encounter these often, you may be better off with the cabinetmaker's tenon. But the problem with M&T joints is where there's one, there are 3, or 7, or 31 more just like it. So a saw like this one can pay for itself in a single job. The pitch is not dramatically different than the cabinetmaker's tenon. But it is different and when combined with the extra 2" of blade length, the result is just a faster cutting saw. The specs above are for softer woods. If you will see more oak and maple, let me know and I'll add a bit more rake. Oh, also, the progressive pitch and rake are really nice and very difficult to do on a machine which is why you don't see it more often on other saws. There's nothing exotic about it, however. Disston filed progressive pitch and rake on his saws. The result is a saw that eases into each cut, then grows increasingly aggressive as the saw's momentum builds.
Tenon Saws