Tuning up a veneer nce at a - Flatten the spine. O working show, 2 Any bumps or I witnessed Frank unevenness of the Pollaro making up spine against the veneered chess blade may result boards. He must in a curved blade have produced more that won’t easily cut than 30 pieces and to a straight line. each was perfect. To establish a flat spine, flatten the The seams were tight back of the spine and clean; there where it attaches was no tear-out or to the blade on a split veneer. What coarse sharpening impressed me most stone. was that he was getting these results straight from his Flatten the back , with no 3 of the blade. On fussing or cleaning up the same stone, flatten the back on a shooting board 1 later. After that, I of the saw blade. You may want to was determined to Straighten the tang. Most veneer have an advance to finer grit improve the perfor- uncomfortable hang (the angle of the handle to stones for a more mance of mine. the blade). I found that by lowering the handle and polished blade. I Here are the steps placing it more in line with the saw blade, I got bet- find a smoother I take to “soup up” a ter control and improved results with less pressure. blade is easier to veneer saw. It’s not After taking apart the saw, I placed the spine keep clean and rust- necessary to do this in a and with vise grips, gently straightened free. to learn veneering, the tang. Be careful. The metal typically used for but it helps. this part is soft and susceptible to breaking.

4 the cutting edge. I use a 6" mill file to bevel the cutting edge on one side. Holding the file at an angle and working across the teeth, gently file until a bevel extends from the points to the gullets of the teeth. This (step) produces slender teeth that glide through veneer. 5 File the teeth. Using a 4" double extra-slim tapered saw file, I gently bring each tooth up to a nice point. I keep the file at 90° to the teeth and file it just like a . The exact angle of the teeth isn’t as important as their sharp- ness, so if your first effort isn’t perfect, don’t worry. 6 Replace the handle. This step is optional but I like to replace the short stubby grip with a slender, longer turned handle that I find easier and more comfortable to hold. ­— MR

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