How to use a junior hacksaw

Before you begin

Secure your material

Before you begin working, you may find it helpful to secure the material you want to cut  in a vice or clamp, and then secure this to your work bench or table.

This is often done when cutting through metal piping, which can easily slide around or roll away from you if it’s not held down.

Use masking tape as a guide

If you want to cut along a straight line but don’t have a scriber for marking metal, then you can always use a strip of masking tape instead.

Should you push or pull?

This means that you only need to apply pressure to the saw when pushing it through the material. If you use a lot of force when pulling the saw as well, it won’t cut any quicker and you will simply tire yourself out, and possibly damage the saw’s teeth as well.

Starting your cut

Remember to apply downward pressure on the push stroke, and ease off as you pull the saw back towards you.

Test out your sawing technique on some scrap material to get an idea of how much pressure to apply and the speed at which you feel comfortable. If you break or bend a blade, don’t throw a tantrum – Try, try, try again!