Remove the "tooth set"?

[Maurice]

I have read a couple of references on inletting a barrel by hand that recommend removing the “tooth set” on the back saw you use to inlet the barrel. But the references do not explain why. While I have an idea on why this is recommended, do you who inlet barrels by hand remove the tooth set of your hand saw and why. Is it really necessary?

[Mark Elliott]

You want to remove the set on the guide side of your saw blade so that you don't tear up your guide.   You use a saw with a guide.   I run my saw blade with the left side against the guide.   My guides are 3/8" square mild steel and screw to the stock every 2-4".   I am sure there is a tutorial somewhere on how to use them.  If not,  I could write one as I am ready to start a barrel inlet. 

By the way you need a special saw that you have to make.   I cut down a dovetail saw to make mine.   I looks like a stair tread saw.

[Bill Raby]

I just use chisels.

[FALout]

When saws are made, they have a “set” to the teeth” which if you look down on them they are bent outward slightly.  This makes the cut slightly wider so back of the blade doesn’t bind in the cut as you go deeper.  So, as already mentioned, a saw with normal set teeth will tear up your guide for inletting barrel.  If you bend inward the teeth on the side of your saw that will ride against your guide, the main part of saw will glide against your guides.  Take a straight edge, place it on the side of your saw, you will see that the teeth alternate out on both sides of the saw blade as normally produced.

[Blacksmoke]

I am with Bill, I have tried the modified back saw method and found that a careful chisel inlaid barrel has a better outcome.  With the saw the side flats of the barrel channel are wider than you would want.   Hugh Toenjes

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I read about using steel rails and a back-saw years ago in Rifle magazine, in an article by John Bivens, and have used the system many times to cut excellent barrel channels.
I made my saw from a piece of an old carpenter's rip saw, about 4" section of the blade.  I sharpened it to a prickly edge, and carefully filed off the set from one side.  I silver-soldered a length of rod to the top corner and attached a handle.  The saw works on the pull rather than the push, and on the top front corner I set a piece of maple to act as an extra handle to keep the blade running straight with pressure along the inside of the rail.  Since the set is already on one side, I have to reverse the stock in the vise to cut from muzzle to breech on one side, and from breech to muzzle on the other.  In the dark patina of the steel, I have scratched reference lines to tell me when I am at depth at the breech and muzzle, and in the shallower swamp.
The saw does not cut straight down since the set has been removed from the inside edge, and actually curved slightly toward the middle of the channel.  You are only going in about 3/8" at most in the deepest part.  Once the cut is to depth, and the gouge has taken away the channel wood up to the saw cut, a 1" chisel cuts straight down along the vertical edges of the rails making a perfect outline of the sides of the barrel.  It's easier to do than to describe.  I think I did a bit of a tutorial on this subject a few years ago?

[jerrywh]

  I used the guide method for about 35 years, I filed the set of of both sides of the saw blade. I used a section of a miter saw.  I got tired of this about 1995 when I had a very hard piece of wood with some grain that changed about every 3 inches and I made a barrel in letting machine similar to Dave Race's. Solved that problem. I wish I would have done it 20 years before then.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Jerry, I now use a barrel inletting machine just like David's too.  In fact, it IS David's!!

[David R. Pennington]

I have done oct/rd with just chisels and gouges, and a really sharp scribing knife and scrapers. On octagon barrels I use table saw. (I experimented with a router- too scary.)  I leave the blank full height planed square and true top and right side. Lay the profile of the smallest dimension (if swamped) on the end. Set the saw up with rip fence and make four cuts. Two to cut to either side of the bottom flat and two to the depth of the side flats just a shade inside finish width. (Stopping just short of the breech of course. I lay it out with a stop mark on the side of the stock and a corresponding one on the saw table.) Then cut the waste off the top back to near the breech. Chisels and gouges to quickly hog out the wood to the depth of the saw cuts. Then careful chiselling and scraping to finish. Never tried guide rail thing but thought about it.

[Scota4570]

As long as we are throwing out modern methods, I use a milling machine with a homemade octagon cutter.  I do little sections and work to the layout lines.  I do have to clean it up by hand.