hacksaw

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Standard hacksaws.

A panel hacksaw.

A hacksaw is a fine-tooth saw with a blade under tension in a frame, used for cutting materials such as metal or bone. Hand-held hacksaws consist of a metal arch with a handle, usually a pistol grip, with pins for attaching a narrow disposable blade. A screw or other mechanism is used to put the thin blade under tension. The blade can mounted with the teeth facing toward or away from the from the handle, resulting in cutting action on either the push or pull stroke. On the push stroke, the arch will flex slightly, decreasing the tension on the blade.

Blades are available in standardized lengths, and with anywhere from three to thirty-two teeth per inch (tpi). The blade used is based on the thickness of the material being cut, with a minimum of three teeth in the material. Hacksaw blades are normally quite brittle, so care needs to be taken to prevent brittle fracture of the blade. Bi-metal blades are meant to minimize this risk, by fusing a strip of harder metal along the tooth edge to a softer spine.

A panel hacksaw eliminates the frame, so that the saw can cut into panels of sheet metal without the length of cut being restricted by the frame. Junior hacksaws are the small variant, while larger mechanical hacksaws are used to cut working pieces from bulk metal.

Large, power hacksaws are sometimes used in place of a band saw for cutting metal stock to length.

See also

• Band saw, also used for cutting metal
• Coping saw, similar finer version used to cut wood intricately.
• Fretsaw, similar finer version with larger 'A frame' used to cut wood intricately further from the edge of a workpiece.

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