How to Cut Saw Teeth Into a Steel Blank

Cutting and shaping metal at home is easy with the right tools.

Working with metal can be as complicated or easy as you would like to make it. People have been shaping metal into various forms for tens of thousands of years. You can make objects out of metal with some practice. One of the first techniques you should learn first is filing. Files can cut, shape and sharpen metal. A primitive saw blade is a great first project for you to learn the process of filing metal.

Things You'll Need

• Steel blank (1/4 inch by 4 inches by 24 inches)
• 1/4 inch triangular file
• Bench vise
• Scrap board (2 inches by 4 inches by 24 inches)
• Safety glasses
• Work gloves

Instructions

1. Clamp the steel blank into your vise and clamp it down firmly. Place the center of the blank into the jaws and twist the jaws closed.

2. Start at the center and hold a corner of the triangular file against the steel. Push and pull the file while applying pressure against the steel to form a notch. Keep the file at a 45 degree angle to the side of the steel. Cut the notch to the desired depth.

3. Place a corner of the file against the steel 1/8 inch from one side of the notch you just made while maintaining the 45 degree angle. Cut this notch by sawing the steel with your file until it reaches the desired depth.

4. Continue cutting notches into the steel along the length until the saw blade covers 3/4 of the length of the blade. Leave 8 inches of one end and 1 inch of the opposite end of the steel smooth.

5. Remove the steel metal blank from the vise. Place a 2-inch-by-4-inch scrap board into the vise and tighten the vise on the wood. Test your saw on the wood. Remove the wood from the vise.

Tips & Warnings

• Safety glasses and work gloves are necessary safety equipment when working with metal.

References

• Popular Mechanics: Metalworking Basics