Hand saws: rip, crosscut and Japanese pull saws
Which hand saw for which cut: rip or crosscut teeth, how many teeth per inch, and how Japanese pull saws differ from Western saws. Each line names the makers behind it; the joinery saw figures are the makers’ own specifications.
Rip, crosscut and tooth count
Rip teeth are filed to cut along the grain and crosscut teeth to cut across it, so pick the saw, or the edge, by the direction of the cut.
Japanese saws cut on the pull stroke; Western saws cut on the push.
Dovetailing cuts along the grain, so dovetail saws are filed rip.
Two sources: Lie-Nielsen Toolworks and Lee Valley (Veritas) , sources [1, 5]
More points per inch cut more slowly and leave a finer surface; finer teeth suit thinner stock.
Two sources: Lie-Nielsen Toolworks and Lee Valley (Veritas) , sources [1, 5]
Points per inch counts one more than teeth per inch: ppi = tpi + 1.
Two sources: Highland Woodworking and The Disstonian Institute , sources [6, 7]
A ryoba has rip teeth on one edge and crosscut teeth on the other.
Two sources: Lee Valley (Veritas) and Woodcraft , sources [2, 3]
A dozuki has a stiff back along the top and fine teeth, for joinery such as tenons and dovetails.
Two sources: Lee Valley (Veritas) and Woodcraft , sources [2, 3]
A kataba has teeth on one edge only.
Two sources: Lee Valley (Veritas) and Woodcraft , sources [2, 3]
Sources
- Lie-Nielsen Toolworks, Catalog (2013): bench planes, low angle planes and saws (pp. 6–14, 35–37), read 2026-11-08
- Lee Valley (Veritas), Different types of Japanese saws, read 2026-11-08
- Woodcraft, Choosing & using Japanese saws, read 2026-11-08
- Suizan, How to properly use a Japanese saw (pull saw technique), read 2026-11-08
- Lee Valley (Veritas), Veritas dovetail saws (14 and 20 tpi rip) and dovetail & crosscut saw pair (16 tpi crosscut), read 2026-11-08
- Highland Woodworking, Lie-Nielsen tapered saws: tpi = ppi − 1, read 2026-11-08
- The Disstonian Institute, Glossary: points per inch, read 2026-11-08
Joinery saws, as two makers file them
Lie-Nielsen counts points per inch and Veritas teeth per inch; the table gives both, one being the other plus one. Each maker is the authority for its own saw.
| Maker | Saw | Filed | ppi | tpi | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lie-Nielsen | Dovetail saw | rip | 15 | 14 | |
| Veritas | Dovetail saw | rip | 15 | 14 | for stock over 1/2" |
| Veritas | Fine-cut dovetail saw | rip | 21 | 20 | for stock under 1/2" |
| Lie-Nielsen | Small crosscut saw | crosscut | 16 | 15 | |
| Veritas | Crosscut saw | crosscut | 17 | 16 | |
| Lie-Nielsen | Carcass saw | crosscut | 14 | 13 | tenon shoulders, dados |
| Lie-Nielsen | Rip carcass saw | rip | 10 | 9 | general work; also made at 15 ppi |
Read 2026-11-08: Lie-Nielsen Toolworks, Catalog (2013): bench planes, low angle planes and saws (pp. 6–14, 35–37); Lee Valley (Veritas), Veritas dovetail saws (14 and 20 tpi rip) and dovetail & crosscut saw pair (16 tpi crosscut).
Machines for the same cuts
Tooth counts for table saw blades are in the table saw blade guide, and band saw blades in the bandsaw blade guide. Dovetails cut by hand are laid out with the dovetail calculator.