46 
THE YOUNG SCIENTIST. 
during the forcing process that most 
of the "bucliles" in saws take place. 
Sometimes saws may be " buclcled " or 
"kinked" wiien not in use by liaving 
lieavy weights piled on them, or by re- 
ceiving a sudden blow, or by falling some 
considerable distance; all these adverse 
chances should be strictly guarded 
against. Another thing: before cutting 
any stuff, clean it well off, making sure 
tliat all sand, grit, and dust are removed. 
Avoid knots where\er you can, and be 
sure and examine the stuff where the saw 
has to travel, more particularly if the 
stuff to be worked is old or has been used 
before, as nails, tack or brad points njay 
have been left in, and if the saw teeth 
should come in contact with them it 
would prove almost fatal to the tool. 
Never permit the tool to rust. If it 
should get wet, or accidentally get acid of 
any kind spilled on it, wipe it off clean 
and dry, and rub it over with an oily rag. 
Saws always cut better for being bright 
and clean. Care for a saw as you would 
for your razor and the results will be 
equally satisfactory. 
The next thing to be considered is how 
to file the saw when it gets out of order. 
Of course, a saw right from tlje store, if 
in good condition when bought, ought to 
stand the slight wear and tear of amateur 
work for a year or more, if the foregoing 
Fig. B. 
directions are followed, but there will 
come a time when the tool must be filed. 
Let us suppose that time is at hand. The 
first thing necessary will be clamps or 
holders, between which the saw must be 
firmly held. Fig. B shows a side view of 
these clamps, with the saw in position, 
ready to be filed. It will be seen that the 
edge of the saw, or the " cutting edge," as 
it is called, stands above the bevelled 
edges of the clamps some little distance; 
this is to allow^ of the file being used with 
the handle hanging downward towards 
the operator, as shown at Fig. C. 
Fig. a 
These clamps may be made of pine, but 
had better be of hard wood. The end 
next the point of the saw may have a 
heavy wood screw in it, as shown in the 
drawing. The pieces forming the clamp 
should not be less than three inches wide 
and from seven-eighths to one and a quar- 
ter inches thick, and have the upper 
edges chamfei ed or rounded off, as shown 
in the section at Fig. C. 
The clamps and saw should be placed 
in the jaws of the bench screw and firmly 
held in place. If the saw is a cross-cut, 
and has sufficient " set," and none of the 
teeth have been broken short by running 
against nails or other hard substances, 
the work will be very easy, as all you 
will have to do will be to set the file at 
such an angle as will fit it to the teeth as 
they now are. This done, draw the file to 
and fro very carefully, minding that the 
file does not press too heavil^^ on any par- 
ticular part of the tooth, and, above all, 
be mindful that the point of the tooth is 
not shortened, as this is one of the main 
things to be guarded against. Kemember 
that in filing a cross-cut saw, the point of 
the file should always be towards the 
point of the saw, and this compels you to 
file every other tooth first, and when done 
on one side, the clamps and saw must be 
taken out of the grip of the bench screw 
and turned with the unfiled side toward 
the filer, who must treat this side of the 
saw just as he treated the first side. Now 
look along the edge of the saw, and, if 
your work has been done with anything 
like regularity, there will be a contin- 
uous angular groove along the edge of 
the saw, into which a needle may be laid. 
