It doesn’t take a professional woodworker to know what a handsaw is, let alone what a handsaw is for.

Consisting of a serrated blade, a saw is a tool for cutting wood. With the advent of motors during the turn of the 19th century, a saw nowadays is either powered or worked by hand.

A handsaw is one which is worked by hand. Powered saws are not, as they are powered by a motor which is commonly powered by water, steam or the most common, electricity.

The origin of the handsaw is somewhat similar to the hammer and chisel. What is known is that handsaws evolved from stone tools used in the Neolithic era. Greek mythology notes Perdix as the inventor of the saw, while Chinese tradition states that Lu Ban invented the saw. Bottom line, what matters isn’t exactly who invented the handsaw, but the benefits the tool has lent to the development of mankind.

Powered saws are basically no different from handsaws, in the sense that powered saws are simply handsaws which function with a motor, making sawing related woodworking excursions fast and easy.

Hand-powered saws come in different types, with each type yielding different results, for different intended cut types. Handsaws are defined by the way their blades are held, as well as the type of blades they use.

Some of the most common handsaws are:

Crosscut Saw

The most common of handsaws, crosscut saws are used for making cuts perpendicular to the grain of the woodpiece being cut.

Rip Saw

Rip saws use a serrated blade with “teeth” angled similarly to a chisel. They are used for making cuts along the grain of the woodpiece. The blades work in tearing the fibers of a piece of wood, making them ideal for cutting along the grain of a piece of wood.

Floorboard Saw

Floorboard saws are built with a curved blade, and are ideal for cutting floorboards.

Japanese Saw

Japanese saws are handsaws fitted with straight handles, and cut on the pull stroke of the saw. They can be used in cutting curved cuts, shaping woodpieces to a particular form.

Keyhole or Pad Saw

Also known as a compass saw, this particular handsaw is fitted with a narrow pointed blade, ideal in cutting a part of a woodpiece which would accommodate door or window locks.

Two-man Saw

This particular handsaw is huge, as they are geared for the cutting of logs and/or trees.

Plywood Saw

Handsaws of this type are fitted with a fine-toothed blade, minimizing the tearing of plywood, leaving a clean cut.

Veneer Saw

Veneer cuts are easy to make with this type of handsaw. Veneer saws are fitted with a two edged blade with fine teeth.

All in all, be it a handsaw or a motor powered saw, the primary function of a saw is to cut wood. They may appear to be different in shape, and different in operation, but their primary function remain the same: to cut wood.