By woodenwookie on Skatehive
The hand tool brigade love to spout off about Japanese pull saws and every other hand saw on the planet. In my experience though there are three must-have saws. Plunge cut rail saw While it’s tempting to say you need a table saw, in my experience a table saw seems to be more of a liability than an asset. This is because a table saw is bulky and not as portable as people tell you. Both of these reasons are why I say ditch the table saw and get a plunge cut rail saw. The biggest advantage of a rail saw is that you can straighten up a board that's had wonky cuts. You can do this easily enough with a straight edge. Then it's a matter of lining the rails to the line and cutting. From this point on all your cuts will be off a square sheet. Score one for the rail saw. The other advantage is the size. It is true the rail allows for cutting long lengths. This requires a rail which needs storing somewhere. The fact is though that this rail is thin and thus it's storage is easy. A table saw is a