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Several readers have asked what the differences are among the Kenyon saw that showed up at Woodworking in America, the Gramercy dovetail saw and the Lie-Nielsen dovetail saw. In what I promise is my last post about saws this week, here are some observations.
1. Weight. The Kenyon saw (the bottom saw in the photo) weighs 7.8 ounces. The Gramercy (the top saw in the photo) weighs 6.2 oz. The Lie-Nielsen comes in at 11 oz. Can you feel the difference? You bet. Does it matter? That’s your call. I can cut good joints with a lightweight saw and a heavy one. And so can you.
2. Handle. This difference is important to me. All three saw handles are about the same thickness (Gramercy: .88″. Kenyon: .86″. Lie-Nielsen: .89″). But they definitely feel different. To my hand, the Gramercy feels the smallest and has the most open space. It is .9″ at its narrowest point on the handle. The Kenyon saw fits my hand extraordinarily well, like a driving glove. It is 1.13″ at its narrowest point. The Lie-Nielsen is between the two. It’s not as open as the Gramercy, but it is a tad more open than the Kenyon. It is 1.23″ at its narrowest point.
3. The brass back. The Gramercy’s is the smallest at Ã?½” wide. The Kenyon is a bit wider at 5/8″. The Lie-Nielsen is widest at Ã?¾”. The back adds weight, so these statistics should come as no surprise.
4. Blade thickness. The Gramercy is .018″. The Kenyon is .017″. The Lie-Nielsen is .02″. These are all workable thicknesses for a dovetail saw.
5. Point per inch. The Gramercy is 18 ppi. The Kenyon is 20 or 21 ppi (the teeth are fairly boogered up). The stock Lie-Nielsen is 15 ppi. In my book, that means the Gramercy and Kenyon saws are tuned for thinner stock, such as drawers. The Lie-Nielsen is tuned more for carcase work. But you can use either kind of saw for either operation.
What does all this mean? The Kenyon saw is a little different than these two other commercial saws. And so when Mike Wenzloff starts making them, it will be another good choice for your short list.
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