What tool do you use to cut butt plates and stock profiles?

[Boompa]

  Just curious. I don't have room in my small shop for a good band saw and in my experience the little bench top 9"-10" band saws are not worth having. So, I cut butt plates & profiles using the old style frame saw. It's not that I want to stay with the 18th-19th century method, it's more of a practical matter.
     Other tools I've tried in the past are jig saws and even a sawzall but these are poor choices as I found out rater quickly, way to much wandering in the blade resulting in excessive clean up.

[Pete G.]

I have used a coping saw for butt plates, but it must be watched closely. It helps to mark the profile on both sides and when cutting flip the stock and saw from the other side every 1/2" or so.

[Acer Saccharum]

and when cutting flip the stock and saw from the other side every 1/2" or so.

Best advice ever. I'm going to start doing this.

[moleeyes36]

I don't have room for a band saw either, so I bought a Bosch JE407E top handle jig saw.  It's a 7.0 amp unit and really works well on maple stock blanks.

Mole Eyes

[Hungry Horse]

 I have two Delta Homecraft 10" bandsaws. I got them for next to nothing, because a lot of people say they just won't do the job. They won't, if you buy the wide skip toothed blade the dingbat at the lumberyard suggests.  But, if you buy a narrow ten tooth per inch blade, they'll cut any stock wood you an come up with. I have one set up with a narrow blade to cut curves, and one with a wide blade for ripping.
 These are not modern imported junk. They are mostly cast iron saws made in the fifties, and sixties.
 I rough out my brass patch boxes with the same saw, and blade.

  Hungry Horse

[P.W.Berkuta]

I don't have room for a band saw either, so I bought a Bosch JE407E top handle jig saw.  It's a 7.0 amp unit and really works well on maple stock blanks.

Mole Eyes

I bought one of these to cut stock profiles out of full slab planks 2-3/4" to 3" thick. I called Bosch and told them what I wanted to do with the saw and they told me it will handle the job with the right blade -- a VERY GOOD jig saw.

[Gaeckle]

I saved up some money and bought a bandsaw from Grizzly. Before that I used a sawsall. The sawsall had a trigger that controlled the speed and when I used an aggressive blade and didn't go super fast, I was able to manipulate and manuver that pretty good with accurate results.

[Dennis Glazener]

I don't have room for a band saw either, so I bought a Bosch JE407E top handle jig saw.  It's a 7.0 amp unit and really works well on maple stock blanks.

Mole Eyes

I use a Bosch variable speed saw, not sure what model number but I love it. I also have a 10 band saw which I have not used for a stock blank since I got the Bosch. I have cut maple, cherry and walnut blanks with no problem.
Dennis

[willyr]

I use a 1929 floor mounted Delta bandsaw that takes a 95" blade. With the correct blade, it will cut through any wood with ease. this saw was actually put together from two saws. The first was given to me by the second owner and the second was rescued from a stave mill which closed down. I use the second saw for parts when I need them.

Bill

[Mark Elliott]

You could also use a cross-cut and a rip handsaw and cut the wood out in sections.   What little roughness is left in the curve can be taken care of by a good rasp or Sureform tool.    I use a hacksaw the same way with thicker metal instead of a jewelers saw.   It may be crude, but it is fast and the end result is the same.    Depending on the width of the bandsaw blade you use,  you may have to take a similar tact and cut out several sections instead of taking one long fluid cut.   

[Boompa]

  I'm glad you fellas are having success with the Bosch saw, maybe I need to look at one.  My jig saw is a very old, well made Milwaukee but it wanders on the back side no matter what blade I try.

[Curtis]

I've been using a hand rip saw and an old frame saw.  Works for me and I have $38 total invested in both.

Curtis

[David R. Pennington]

  Just curious. I don't have room in my small shop for a good band saw and in my experience the little bench top 9"-10" band saws are not worth having. So, I cut butt plates & profiles using the old style frame saw. It's not that I want to stay with the 18th-19th century method, it's more of a practical matter.
     Other tools I've tried in the past are jig saws and even a sawzall but these are poor choices as I found out rater quickly, way to much wandering in the blade resulting in excessive clean up.

I got so frustrated with the little bench top band saw I threw it away. I use coping saw and rasps. I wish I had areal nice band saw (and room for it), would speed up sawing out blanks, but a good sharp hand rip saw works.

[P.W.Berkuta]

I also have a Grizzly 16" band saw that is a pleasure to use but as I get a "bit" older I have problems getting a 3" X 20" X 72" plank up on to it's table to profile out a stock that is why I purchased the Bosch jig saw. Once the stock profile is sawn out I use the band saw to do the "touch-up" if needed.
Here is a picture taken a "few" years back -- some of the maple was from a tree I had sawed up in NJ around 1974 (only a few boards left) the walnut was from a friends farm outside of Easton, PA back in 98. The closet since this picture has been added to by way of Dunlap wood and subtracted from by way of rifle builds - I'm not good at pistoles so I stick to rifles mainly.
  

[PPatch]

I use a 14" Rikon bandsaw with a 1/4," 10 TPI, blade for areas such as the buttplate and a 1/2" for the rest. I also have a homemade outfeed stand to aid in balancing the long stock as I cut. I use it to resaw also, can't cut anything too large but it does the jobs I bought it for.

dave

[gumboman]

I bought a Laguna 14-12 band saw a few months ago. It is awesome and makes sawing stock blanks easy. Sawed a blank to rough profile, sawed the butt plate profile and made precision cuts to bring the stock to close final dimensions. I love it. I find the money was well spent on this saw as it allows me to do so many things other than sawing stock blanks.

[QuanLoi]

I also use a coping saw... however, after penciling the line onto the stock for the buttplate, I drill a series of holes through the stock with an 1/8" bit along the length of the pencil line making sure I'm perpendicular to the stock.  Then I saw from hole to hole.  Hope that makes sense.