Hacksaw

A hacksaw is a fine-toothed saw, originally and principally made for cutting metal. They can also cut various other materials, such as plastic and wood; for example, plumbers and electricians often cut plastic pipe and plastic conduit with them. There are hand saw versions and powered versions (power hacksaws). Most hacksaws are hand saws with a C-shaped frame that holds a blade under tension. Such hacksaws have a handle, usually a pistol grip, with pins for attaching a narrow disposable blade. The frames may also be adjustable to accommodate blades of different sizes. A screw or other mechanism is used to put the thin blade under tension. Panel hacksaws forgo the frame and instead have a sheet metal body; they can cut into a sheet metal panel further than a frame would allow. These saws are no longer commonly available, but hacksaw blade holders enable standard hacksaw blades to be used similarly to a keyhole saw or pad saw. Power tools including nibblers, jigsaws, and angle grinders fitted with metal-cutting blades and discs are now used for longer cuts in sheet metals.

On hacksaws, as with most frame saws, the blade can be mounted with the teeth facing toward or away from the handle, resulting in cutting action on either the push or pull stroke. In normal use, cutting vertically downwards with work held in a bench vice, hacksaw blades should be set to be facing forwards. Some frame saws, including Fret Saws and Piercing Saws, have their blades set to be facing the handle because they are used to cut by being pulled down against a horizontal surface.

While saws for cutting metal had been in use for many years, significant improvements in longevity and efficiency were made in the 1880s by George N. Clemson, a founder of Clemson Bros., Inc of Middletown, New York, United States,. Clemson conducted tests which involved changing the dimensions, shapes of teeth, styles of set, and variable heat treatments of blades. Clemson claimed enormous improvements to the cutting ability of blades and built a major industrial operation manufacturing hacksaw blades sold under the trade name Star Hack Saw. In 1898, Clemson was granted US Patent 601947, which details various improvements in the hacksaw.

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