Hints on using Handsaws.

1. Use a Try Square or Sliding Bevel to mark the material for cutting. Remember that you will lose about 1/8-inch of wood with the cut due to the width of the blade, so cut on the outside of the line.
2. Support both sides of the work on a bench or sawhorse.
3. Take time to get comfortable before you start sawing.
4. Make sure that the teeth of your saw are sharp. Dull teeth make more work and a less precise cut.
5. Line up your wrist, elbow and shoulder with the saw blade.
6. Start sawing with light, short strokes, supporting/guiding the blade with your thumb.
7. Apply slight pressure on the push strokes and relax on the pulls.
8. Saw with a steady, easy rhythm.
9. Keep in mind that the more acute the cutting angle, the faster and rougher the cut. Hold the saw at a 90-degree angle for a quick, raw cut; 45 degrees for smooth cuts; and 15 to 20 degrees for very fine cuts. The saw will not jump if you keep the blade at a slight/low angle to the wood.
10. For sawing strips of ply or board use a fine toothed saw. The operation could be made easier by slightly lifting the free end.
11. To get a fine kerf (cut) with smooth edges on both sides of the material, place the object material on another board (help board) and let the saw cut down into the help board until you have cut off the waste.
12. If the saw tends to stick put a thin wooden wedge into the cut to stop the timber closing on the saw blade.
13. If the wood is wet or resinous rub candle or Bee's wax on the saw blade.
14. When cutting shoulders/joints, as in a tenon, cut first along the grain, then across it. This stops the waste pieces breaking away before the cuts are complete.