When stocking your tool shed or garage with new saws, you may notice that many blades have a rating in teeth per inch (TPI). The numbers go from two to thirty-two.

Lower TPI blades will make quick work of cutting, but the results will be rougher. Sharper blades with higher TPI ratings will make clean, precise cuts through hardwood and similar materials.

The seven saws detailed here can be used for everything from cutting wood to cutting metal. If you know their strengths, you can accomplish everything you set your mind to. A saw is a must-have power tool for any DIYer, let it be a handsaw or a power saw.

Traditional Handsaw

A conventional handsaw, with its broad blade and solid handle, is an essential tool for any woodworker’s workplace. Although the handsaw is muscle-powered only, it comes in handy when a power saw isn’t an option.

For example, if you need to see through a post that’s too thick for a circular saw blade, the handsaw comes in handy. Traditional handsaws come in a variety of topics, so picking the right one depends on the type of cut you want to make.

Hacksaw

The C-shaped hacksaw is commonly used for cutting metal pipes, and its thin, replaceable blades can have anywhere from 14 to 32 TPI. Changing the 10- to 12-inch blades, which are secured by screw nuts on either end.

It expands its utility to include cutting sheet metal, PVC, and conduit thanks to its variable TPI possibilities. A hacksaw’s tension nut lets you pull the blade taut for more efficient cutting.

You can also swap out the hacksaw’s tooth design to better suit the thickness of the metal or other material you’re cutting.

Jigsaw

The jigsaw’s primary selling point is its ability to cut curves, yet it also cuts straight lines like a circular saw (see below). With its big, flat “shoe” that sits on the surface of the material you’re cutting, the jigsaw is widely regarded as one of the safer power saws.

The shoe of several jigsaws is tiltable, allowing you to make angled cuts.

Coping Saw

Exclusive use for the U-shaped coping saw is making “back-beveled” or “coping” cuts for installing trim around interior corners. Coping saws are similar to hacksaws in both appearance and function, but they differ in that the coping saw’s frame is smaller and its blade is shorter (usually between 6-34″ and 32 TPI).

Tiny blades allow for back-cutting curves and making perfect joins when setting up crown molding and other trim.

Circular Saw

The circular saw is a common framing saw that may stand in for a table saw on the construction site because of its ability to make straight cuts through dimensional lumber, plywood, rigid foam board, and even concrete.

It has a circular blade enclosed in a housing and a wide base that rests flush against the material being cut; most models allow you to alter the depth of the cut.

Different sizes are available for circular saws. A mini circular saw is best for DIY woodworking projects.

Chainsaw

The chainsaw’s dozens of cutting teeth, which revolve around the guide bar, are made to lop off tree branches or bring down entire trees. Some kinds of chainsaws allow for interchangeable guide bars with lengths ranging from 14 inches (for minor cutting and pruning) to 36 inches (for usage by lumberjacks).

DIYers typically only need a chainsaw with a guide bar between 18 and 20 inches in length. Remember that a tree with a 32-inch diameter can be felled with a 16-inch chainsaw bar by cutting around the tree’s trunk in a spiral motion.

Miter Saw

Making accurate crosscuts is the miter saw’s primary function, whether you’re framing, installing molding, or even just cutting siding strips. Modern miter saws use the same basic principle as their manual “miter box” ancestors to make angled cuts, but they are capable of much more intricate cuts.

Here you can check how to use a miter saw box properly.

The hefty steel base of a miter saw may be secured to a workshop table, and a steel guide along the saw’s back edge, known as a “fence,” ensures that the material being cut is perfectly straight.

The saw blade itself is contained within a large disc mounted on a flexible arm that can be lifted, lowered, and swiveled to permit cutting at nearly any angle.