Trying a Ryoba for the first time

Sorry about the glitch at 3:41 - I don't know how I managed that, my bad!
I've never used a Ryoba - until now! I think I'm in love with Japanese pull saws.
#ryoba #japanesesaw #pullsaw #carpenter #tools #unboxing

[@koendeboeve]

Posture is of importance, just like with western saws. The reason your cuts are wandering a bit is because the further down you get, you change the angle of the blade ever so slightly. A good method of beating that, besides changing position as your arm is going down, is by scoring all your cutlines with a knife and just have a gentle, shallow pass with the saw on all 4 sides. This tend to keep the saw in its tracks much better. It takes quite a bit longer, but it will help , especially when you are starting out with these saws.

[@jsmxwll]

when the cut is off on the backside it is usually because you are pulling the saw toward the opposite side on the front. so your cuts were wandering right, so the saw was probably a little to the left of your line on the front. if the saw always cuts to one side like that it might be the saw itself. could be set poorly, more common with the rip teeth. if you cut down the front angling the blade so your kerf is wider it will make it a bit easier to cut straight with less than perfect technique. having more of the blade in the wood really helps with tracking the cut. ryobas also tend to follow the grain on rips and that can really make them feel squirly until you get used to it. a quick guide block with a magnet in it is also great for making perfectly square crosscut and miters. because the blade is flexible, it wants to follow the guide much better than a western saw and it leaves a hell of a nice finish on a crosscut. i am not a fan of ruitools saws. they are okay for Chinese manufactured knockoffs but far from what i've experience with even brands made in Japan like Zetsaw, Gyokucho or Suizan. those saws are fairly inexpensive hardpoints. most ryobas have a set to them, though it is pretty minimal and on the crosscut it is achieved with the tooth geometry rather than setting the teeth out the way western saws are usually set. the rip teeth should have a mild set, if they do not then the wider crosscut teeth will mar up the cut as it passes through the rip. lay the plate flat on a piece of wood and pull it. if it scratches, it has set. it is pretty common for cheap stamped pull saw blades to accidentally gain a bit of set and cause pulling on rips or marring on flushcut opperations.

[@jsmxwll]

i forgot one of the most useful ryoba accessories i've come up with. get some strong magnets and stick them in a piece of wood or something that is very straight. you can stick that to the side of your saw and make a makeshift spine and depth stop. i have a set of two that go on both sides of my ryobas. i can comfortably cut most joinery with the extra stiffness.

[@McMonkeyful]

I'm not an expert on Japanese saws but have been using them for a few years now. I'd recommend starting the cut with push strokes, to get your initial cut line nice & accurate, without the teeth catching. Say 1mm depth, then swap to the pull stroke. I often use a square, setup block or some form of basic square wooden block to help guide the saw until you're on a good line, then the pull motion should do the rest.

[@PeoplesCarpenter]

The wooden block does sound a little safer, thanks!

[@McMonkeyful]

You can make fancy ones with magnets & all that jazz but two bits of wood joined at 90 degrees should be perfectly adequate for most cuts. @@PeoplesCarpenter

[@McMonkeyful]

I have an inexpensive Okada Hardware Life Saw Craft 145 (Flush S-145) which I purchased for £12 on Amazon. It's designed for flush cutting, which it's great at but I find myself reaching for it all the time for small cuts. It's razor sharp & so handy for all sorts of little jobs due to the lack of a spine & its short length. An absolute steal for the price. If you've not seen or tried them yet, the Shinto rasps are also a brilliant bit of kit as a very affordable price. They appear to be a load of hacksaw bladed rivetted together in a lattice pattern, with a corse & a smooth side. They look a bit janky but the results are outstanding. The design means it doesn't clog up with sawdust like traditional files & rasps. A real 2-for-1.

[@PeoplesCarpenter]

The Shinto rasp is possibly my favourite hand tool. :) I'm probably due to get a new one.

[@josecanyousee56]

I have noticed the slower I go with the saw the more precise the cut.

[@Rodrat]

So it's 1000 times easier to track the line if you keep the saw in line with the wood. Hard to explain for me in text but example: the saw and the wood shouldn't make a T but should be more like this I\. The I being the board and the \ being the saw. With it in the orientation, you can easily move left or right to keep the saw on track with the line. It actually becomes self guiding as the whole blade sets in the kerf. I hope that makes sense

[@tonycr0130]

Flush cut saws have the teeth set to one side of the blade.

[@PeoplesCarpenter]

According to my sources, "The saw teeth are either not set or they are set on one side only." There's no set on this Ryoba. I also heard Jonathan Katz-Moses say that his flush cut Japanese saws have no set.

[@KASKASM]

I think technique is key here. I don’t think I’ve ever made a perfectly straight cut with any kind of pull saw. Looks like a nice saw though.

[@PeoplesCarpenter]

That's always the disappointing thing for me to find out. I think a saw will produce amazing cuts all by itself, then I realise I still need to actually do it myself! ;)