Best Bow Saws Buyers Guide & Reviews For 2023

On a surface level, bow saws aren’t very unique. They all follow a base design structure and do the same thing, no matter what model you get. However, that’s not true. Every good brand comes with subtle but innovative design choices to make your sawing experience enjoyable.

Though most people don’t know what these design choices are. There’s a big difference between camping and a construction saw. That’s where we come in. Once you’re done, you can tell what’re the best bow saws review with no trouble at all.

So, make sure you go through our reviews, extensive tips, and guides before you settle on which saw to get. Now, let’s dive straight into the guide!

Benefits of Bow Saw

There are a lot of features that separate a bow saw from any other type. Let’s go over what makes them so special before we proceed.

Versatile Use

Need something to cut a tree? Get an ax. However, what if you have to make furniture? On that note, you might need something to prune for you as well. Just one bow saw can do all of these things and a lot more.

This makes them incredibly versatile. These saws are also light and easy to use, as well. Hence, it’s a lot more flexible and useful than a random ax. As such, it’s a must-have for anyone working with wood.

Cheap and Accessible

Power tools offer much better performance than a bow saw. However, they are significantly more expensive and harder to maintain. They’re heavy and can’t be transported as easily as well. Bow saws don’t have this issue.

These tools are incredibly light yet durable. They are easy to carry and move around. Most importantly, it’s quite cheap! So, it’s a wonderful all-rounder tool at a low price.

Superior Control

The bow-shaped saw makes it so that it is easy to handle. You can cut and saw effectively with little to no issues, and your hand always feels at ease due to the unique handle shape. This also lets you exert a lot of pressure with minimal effort. No wonder it can cut down trees so easily.

Who Should Buy This?

This is difficult to answer. Not because it’s hard to find who’d use these saws, but because so many people can use them. Pretty much anyone who works with wood can get a lot of use out of bow saws. Let’s get into more detail.

Woodcutters

Usually, woodcutters use an ax. Whether it’s for felling trees or making firewood, an ax can get the job done. However, they can be messy. You need to exert a lot of strength and control to make sure you’re cutting the tree properly.

Bow Saws, on the other hand, have the benefit of its unique build. Its shape enhances your control to make more precise cuts. It also allows you to cut down trees with less physical force and effort. Finally, you can get make firewood easily with a bow saw.

Gardeners

If you’ve dabbled in the art of gardening, you know just how frequently you have to deal with fences and other wooden constructs. You might want to turn to power tools, but they can be inconvenient. As mentioned before, a bow saw does not have those limitations or restrictions.

You can carry them over to your gardens easily—no need to worry about power, portability, or anything else. Just get the saw and start your work. They’re also great for fence work, making them efficient for gardening work.

Woodworking

Looking to make furniture? You’ll need a lot of different tools. Among them, a bow saw is a must-have. While they do not offer the fine cuts that you might want for furniture work, it offers speed. Anyone who wants to make quick adjustments and cuts for their woodwork will love to use the bow saw.

Camping

When you’re out camping, you have to adapt to a harsh and unforgiving environment. And when you’re out in the wild, a power tool can’t have your back. But bow saws can.

Their immense versatility allows you to accomplish many tasks. Whether it’s to make space for your camp, make firewood, craft tools, and so on. They’re easy to carry, too, so they are convenient to camp with as well.

5 Best Bow Saws Reviews

Now that we understand why people love bow saws and who uses them, we can get to the reviews. There are a ton of models out there. However, not all of them are good. You’ll want to get something reliable and durable. With that in mind, we examined countless saws to make a shortlist of 5. So, let’s see what they are.

Truper Steel Handle Bow Saw

Truper Steel Handle Bow Saw

CHECK LATEST PRICE

For our 1st entry, we’re introducing a fantastic 30-inch symmetric model. Truper has constantly dished out countless fantastic Bow Saws. However, there’s something about the 30261 that’s unique. We’ll go over every little detail to tie up our reviews.

Starting off, this saw is strong — really strong. Being 30-inches, it’s a lot heavier than many other entries on our list. However, despite its size, it’s actually quite light. Truper utilizes superb lightweight but durable steel to keep it at around 2.3 pounds. With that, it can cut down pretty much everything with relative ease.

It’s incredibly sharp and serrated blade adds to that fact. The teeth follow a set pattern of four triangles followed by a double-headed shape to drastically increase its cutting potency. Once you work with this, things just chop down with little to no resistance.

While bow saws require much less maintenance than power tools, it doesn’t mean you don’t have to do anything. There’s always some maintenance involved. Truper makes this easy.

Cleaning and oiling this tool regularly are not just fast but highly effective. You’ll see your bow last ages despite very short maintenance times.

Truper introduces a revolutionary lever system. You won’t find any other bow that can securely attach a blade with incredible tightness. No matter how much pressure you exert, the blade with stay strong and firm. The 30261 will always pull through and cut down your wood with no trouble at all.

Through its mass, it’s able to take down large branches and bigger trees with ease. Combined with its superior strength, it’s the perfect tool to deal with pesky branches of all varieties. It’s a must-have for intensive gardening work.

Pros
  • Large size bolsters the strength
  • Tensions system is highly stable
  • Easy to maintain
  • Can cut through wood easily
  • Handle comes with protective surrounding
Cons
  • Heavy-duty use can cause the blade to be dull quickly
  • Not too effective on dry woo

Fiskars Bow Saw

Fiskars Bow Saw

CHECK LATEST PRICE

So far, we talked a lot about pointed frames. They are useful on a lot of occasions, after all. However, that’s not to say that the curved frames are undesirable. It’s actually quite the contrary.

Their weight distribution and control make them perfect for straight cuts. So, if you want to make clean cuts, then Fiskars has the perfect model for you.

Let’s start by discussing its special hardened steel blade. The bad boys can cut through pretty much anything. A lot of blades can. But those blades become dull quickly. Fiskars doesn’t have that flaw. The incredible precision-ground steel makes sure that the blade maintains itself never loses sharpness.

Its frame shares that same top-tier durability. Fiskars made sure to add heavy-duty steels to guarantee longevity above all. They also made the frame tube-like. This lets you grasp at any point with relative comfort.

It also maintains a proper grip and hardly slips. So, you can use it with both hands and maintain control during the whole process.

Whenever you get a bow saw, tension safety is a must-have. That’s why Fiskars always utilizes an innovative safety tension lever. Once folded, the lever also acts as a makeshift handle for the saw. Though it is not as effective as a dedicated one, it improves the overall experience.

Let’s go back to the blade again. Of course, it’s already amazing for how it maintains sharpness. It somehow adds rust resistance on top of them. That’s right, you’ll get more than your money’s worth when you get one of their blades. Just one will last you ages.

If you want to cut bushes, this is the ideal frame design. With minimal effort, you’ll be able to cut down your bushes and branches to beautify your garden with ease. Not to mention, it’s incredibly affordable. You just can’t go wrong with this wonderful saw.

Pros
  • Blade and frame do not rust
  • Maintains sharpness throughout the blade’s lifespan
  • Tension lever for adjustments and safety
  • Tubular design enables two-handed use
  • Cuts bushes and branches easily
Cons
  • Lacks a proper handle
  • Can’t cut something too hard

Agawa Boreal Folding Bow Saw

Agawa Boreal Folding Bow Saw

CHECK LATEST PRICE

Hooyman Bow Saw With Heavy Duty Construction

Bahco Bow Saw

CHECK LATEST PRICE

Bahco Bow Saw

Bahco Bow Saw

CHECK LATEST PRICE

To the untrained eye, Bahco models look like just any other bow saw. However, experts will agree that every one of their models is something special. This stems from their special tensioning techniques, but that’s not all. It’s littered with a plethora of fantastic features that we decided to make it our first entry.

The tip is pointed to make sure you can cut effectively in hard to reach places. So, whether you’re out roofing or gardening, you can expect great results with minimal effort. We talked about its nose, so let’s move on to the handle.

Bahco utilizes a comfortable and ergonomic handle with reliable protection to keep your hand safe at all times. The grip is strong and sturdy. This makes sure that you never injure your palms through pressure.

The frame itself is lightweight and durable. It has a strong steel build that strongly prevents corrosion. That’s because Bahco utilizes incredible enamel paint. So, it’ll look new despite how much it ages.

If you want your blade to perform effectively, it needs to have the right tension. Without it, you won’t get the straight cuts you want. That’s where Bahco’s signature tension mechanism comes in. It’s a fantastic system that generates exactly the right amount of tension to offer beautiful cuts.

The blade has an aggressive and dense set of sharp triangle teeth. This makes sure that the blade cuts everything down with little issue. It works best with dry wood material. So, if you’re dealing with a lot of dry wood in your garden, camping trips, or construction sites, then this saw will serve you well.

Pros
  • Strong yet light frame
  • Serrated blade is perfect for dry wood
  • Comfortable and ergonomic handle
  • Offers excellent tensioning
  • Can cut logs as thick as a 12-inch diameter
Cons
  • Packaging is unnecessarily large
  • Accidentally overtightening the tension could be dangerous

Features To Look For Before You Buy

Like we’ve mentioned many times before, bow saws are unique. There are a ton of varying models meant for different tasks. Some are very general and are perfect for all sorts of use. Others are specialized. However, you should never just guess which one to get.

So, before you choose anything, keep an eye out for these features.

Capabilities

Why do you want to get a bow saw? Is it to cut trees, make logs, cut shrubs, or roof? There are countless reasons to get these saws. If you’ve got a specific person in mind, you have to align the saw’s capabilities with what you want.

For example, you might want to cut a lot of dry wood. You can’t get that with a random saw.

This is why you have to always find out the capabilities of your preferred saw. Ask yourselves questions. Is this good for camping; can I reach tight spaces; are these good for straight cuts, and so on. Once you have that set, you’re ready to proceed.

Frame

The next thing you need to focus on is its frame. These can make or break a bow saw. A poor frame could shatter in your arms which could lead to serious injuries.

On the other hand, better frames enable stronger cuts and greater control. Anti-corrosion technology also ensures longevity and increased overall performance during its lifespan.

On top of that, you’ll want to check the shape. There are usually two types. A more standardize shaped and ones with pointed noses. While the standard curved shapes offer incredible control and strength for improved cuts, ones with pointed noses allow you to make cuts in tight spaces. They both have their strengths and weaknesses so make sure you evaluate them before you buy.

Blades

This is where the action happens. The quality of a saw’s blade is paramount to its effectiveness. A weak frame means nothing if the blade can’t withstand cuts. These blades are often serrated.

Moreover, the jagged teeth are what make cutting so smooth. However, there are two different types of blades that you’ll need to keep in mind.

The first one is the peg tooth blade. These have three evenly spaced triangular spikes followed by a slightly longer gap. They can cut forward and backward easily. You’ll want to use these types of hard and dry wood.

On the other hand, there’s the peg and raker tooth blade. Unlike the peg tooth blades, it has 4 evenly spaced triangle spikes. It is then followed up by a raker tooth. The rakers allow it to cut through wet wood without getting stuck.

Handles

It’s not uncommon to see some saws skip out on handles entirely. Sometimes a tube-shaped frame can function as one. However, there is no denying the added convenience when you have a handle.

Suddenly you get a better grip, and your wrists feel better as they grasp onto the saw. They can even come with a protective casing in case a rare malfunction might hurt you. That’s always nice to have. However, blades with handles cost more. So, consider these before you settle on what to get.

Parts of a Bow Saw

We’ve talked about parts of bow saws loosely. If you want to make a solid investment, you’ll need to be more familiar with each part. As such, let’s go over each one.

Frame

First off, let’s see what the frame is. The frame is the main body of a bow saw. These frames are curved. This is the signature characteristic of a bow saw, after all. Sometimes they encompass a standard curve, while others have a pointed nose.

Blade

This is the part that does the cutting. It is attached at the bow’s bottom by connecting it to the nose and the base. The saw should have a tension mechanism that helps it attach to the frame and adjust how tightly the blade attaches itself to the frame.

The performance of the blade depends on the tension you apply. Of course, too much tension could cause the frame or blade to break. So, make sure you’re careful when adjusting this.

Tension Control

These aren’t the same across models. They can actually be quite different. Some operate like a lever, while others work differently. So, there is no objective way to explain what tension is. Essentially, it is the tool on the saw that adjusts the blade’s tension and fastens it onto the saw and frame.

How to Use a Bow Saw?

Let’s go over a quick and simple walkthrough on how to use a bow saw in the first place.

Grip It at Its Base

This much is obvious, keep your dominant hand on the grip. If there is none, you can hold it at the base above the blade. Its backside is blunt, so don’t worry about cutting yourself. Nevertheless, protectors can be useful.

Place The Blade Onto The Wood

Gently make the base of the blade contact the material you want to cut and keep yourself stable. Make sure your grip is tight.

Begin Cutting

Start cutting with forwarding and backward strokes. Continue to do so until you get the cut you want.

Bow Saw Safety Tips

Here is a list of things you must always keep in mind while you use a bow saw.

Always Wear Eye Protection

You’ll be surrounded by sawdust whenever you work. These can be very harmful if they touch your eyes. So, always wear eye protection to keep yourself safe.

Get Proper Handles

Usually, saws with proper handles cost a bit more. However, they can be well worth the investment if you can afford it.

Always Keep Your Grip Strong

A weak grip can not only botch your craft; it can also cause unwanted accidents. So, make sure you’re always holding your saw tight and keep your focus on the job.

Stay Balanced

Tripping while sawing can be extremely dangerous. That’s why you need to keep your balance while you cut. Stay on a solid foundation to make sure everything you always stay straight and balanced.

Wear Gloves

This one isn’t all that mandatory, but gloves can provide some extra safety and grip. So, they’re always a welcome addition.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What’s the difference between a hack saw and a bow saw?

Hacksaws are primarily meant for cutting steel, while bow saws are for wood.

No. Power tools will always be stronger. However, it’s a lot lighter and cheaper.

  • Can they cut curves properly?

They can, but you’ll want a circular saw for better results.

  • Do I have to oil the blades?

Yes. That is an excellent way to maintain sharpness and enhance long-term performance.

  • Are there size variations for each model?

Most of the entries on our list have alternate size variations.

Final Words

We’ve finally reached the end. By now, you know how to get the best bow saws for you. Make sure you consider what you’ve learned in our guide to figure out what would be your ideal pick. So, get out there and revolutionize woodworking today with your trusty bow saw!

About The Author

Leave a Comment