Accessorize it! Coping saw holder.
Ten pages, and you are still reading? Good job, and thank you for your patience! I promise, I’m almost done now.
I want to hang my coping / fret saws on the side of the till. A bit of gash from the offcut bin became a simple holder. I traced the outline of the saw’s bow and added a corner for the saw blade pins. I cut the shape on the band saw and refined it with planes, rasps and files. I then traced the outline on a thinner piece of wood, just a tad larger than the saw itself:
After planing and smoothing all surfaces, I applied Titebond III glue and clamped the piece in the vise – making sure that the pieces were flush to each other at the bottom.
I then pre-drilled holes for screws. I used 3.5mm screws, so I drilled 3mm holes in the side of the till and 2mm pilot holes in the fret saw hanger.
A piece of gash tightly clamped to the till made sure I did not blow out the exit side.
I elongated the outermost hole to accommodate a bit of movement. The wood is well acclimatized to the shop, but it will move on me.
I did a small marking error, but a third, diagonal line helped me remember where to drill. Small tip for you there.
I then screwed the fret saw holder in place – very happy with the result.
PS: The pencil marks come off easy with a bit of acetone on a rag!
I own two fret saws, and both can be hung on the side of the till like so:
Saw file holder
I want to keep my dedicated saw files away from all the other files I own. They are only to be used to keep my saws sharp, though the flat file is also used on my card scrapers and the blade for the No.80 cabinet scraper.
I jointed two pieces of wood and cut dadoes for the files. The triangular file is a lot thicker than the flat file, so I cut a dado in both pieces.
The router plane ensured smooth bottom and even depth across. Overkill, but why not?
I then glued the two pieces, and two screws secures the file holder to the saw till. Easy-peasy.
Ryoba saw holder
I own a Ryoba saw that comes in handy at times, and I want to hang it on the opposite side of the saw till. Eventually the saw gets past its “best before” date, and I will have to replace it – there’s signs of said date on the horizon. Unless I can get a new blade for it, I will buy another Ryoba since it is such a versatile tool to have when the need arises. I prefer western push style saws, but at times a pull saw saves the day. Having both options available is a Good ThingTM.
I decided to just add two dowels through a spacer block, plus a magnet to hold the saw in place. I drilled two holes for the dowels and glued them in place. To avoid splitting the wood, I applied a LOT of pressure with my Eclipse vise using a small piece of wood to focus the pressure right where I needed it. Worked like a charm!
After the glue had cured, I drilled a small recess for the magnet. The magnet is 10mm in diameter and 2mm thick.
I epoxied the magnet in place, then cut the block to length so that the handle of the saw won’t hit the holder. I clamped the holder to the side of the saw till and poked marks in the holder with the drill bit I used to drill holes in the sides of the till.
I then screwed the holder in place and tested the fit. The magnet holds the saw firmly enough so that it won’t fall off easily.
This concluded the build – believe it or not! Here’s a couple of images after I loaded the till up to check that I was satisfied:
Finish
And then it was FINALLY time for some finish! I made a 50/50 blend of boiled linseed oil and turpentine which I wiped on abundantly with a rag! Especially on any end grain, and on all the “diamonds”. I then wiped the excess off with paper towel and left the till to dry out.
The rag, gloves and paper towel was promptly burned! No fire hazard, thank you!
And the quarter sawn oak did not disappoint! I love the ray flecking you get from QS white oak (which is good, considering how much of that stuff I have!).
On the next – and FINAL (yes, that is actually true!) – page, we’ll get to see images of the saw till in all its glory, mounted on the wall.
Thank you for your patience!