I'm starting a woodworking class and I want to practice making half lap joints at home. Can anyone recommend the best hand saw for this? I'm curious about specifics like the teeth per inch (TPI) and length.
1 Answer
If you had the luxury of picking any saw, a crosscut carcass saw would be great for the shoulders, paired with a rip tenon saw for the cheeks. However, in reality, any backsaw you have should suffice. Personally, I often use a 20 TPI dovetail saw for most of my joinery. For starters, I’d recommend getting a 12-14 TPI tenon saw that's around 10-12 inches long; it’s a solid all-round choice. If you're focusing on smaller joints, consider grabbing an 8-inch dovetail saw. But if you're working with pieces smaller than 1"x3", the dovetail might be the way to go first!
Thanks for the tip! I'm keen on making those smaller joints. Any idea where I can get a dovetail or tenon saw? Home Depot only has generic ones with low TPI.