Pendulum saw

A pendulum saw or swing saw is a mechanically powered circular saw with the blade mounted so it can swing into the material.

Pendulum saw or swing saw, side view, a circular saw hung from a swinging arm, for cross cutting wood. Shown in the cutting position

Operation

A swing saw is used for cross cutting wood in a sawmill, or for cutting ice off of a frozen body of waters. The saw is hung on a swinging arm, sometimes with a counterbalance weight.

A swing saw is also sometimes called a cut-off trim saw in a mill for cutting right angle to the direction of the wood grain. A swing saw is a very dangerous tool, even with a blade guard. Early models were driven by a belt, usually made of leather, that was powered by a water mill or later a steam engine. Today the power source is an electric motor or a gas engine

Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival

Swing saws are used to carve ice blocks from the frozen Songhua River for the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival each year.

See also

• Saw chain
• Saw pit
• Sharpening
• Two-man saw
• Watersaw
• Diamond tools
• Ice hotel
• Ice palace

External links

• osha.gov use of Swing Saw
• btsrr.com Model of a Swing Saw
• americanartifacts.com homemade Swing Saw
• flickr.com Swing Saw plans
• westernscalemodels.com Cut-Off Trim Saw model
• chestofbooks.com early Pendulum saw, not circular
• The Encyclopædia Britannica: a dictionary of arts, sciences, Volume 29, page 12 gbook, Pendulum saw