Fret Saw Blades

About Fret Saw Blades

Fret saw blades are precision cutting tools designed for intricate, detailed work in wood, plastic, and soft metals. These fine-toothed blades fit into manual fret saws and coping saws, enabling craftspeople to execute tight curves, complex patterns, and delicate scrollwork that would be impossible with standard saw blades. MyToolShed.co.uk stocks high-quality fret saw blades from trusted manufacturers including Bahco, Draper, and Faithfull, ensuring you have the right blade for every detailed project.

Available in various tooth configurations—from standard wood cutting blades to versatile spiral blades that cut in any direction—these blades typically range from 0.5mm to 2mm wide, allowing for exceptionally tight radius cuts. Most fret saw blades are supplied in multipacks, providing replacements when blades break or dull during intricate work, making them essential for marquetry, model making, inlay work, and ornamental woodworking.

Applications

• Cabinet Makers and Joiners: Creating decorative inlays, intricate joinery details, and ornamental features in bespoke furniture
• Model Makers: Precision cutting for architectural models, scale replicas, and display pieces
• Luthiers: Detailed work on guitars, violins, and stringed instruments
• Picture Framers: Cutting custom mounts, decorative corners, and intricate frame profiles
• Marquetry and Intarsia Specialists: Precise cutting of veneer and solid wood for pictorial designs
• Woodturners and Carvers: Creating detailed fretwork and decorative elements
• Jewellery Makers: Cutting precious metals and plastics with fret saws
• DIY Enthusiasts: Home craft projects, puzzle making, and decorative woodworking
• Restoration Specialists: Repairing or recreating intricate components in antique furniture

Choosing The Right Fret Saw Blades

Tooth Configuration (TPI): For materials under 6mm thick, select 20-32 TPI for smooth, controlled cuts. For stock between 6-12mm, 15-20 TPI provides balanced cutting speed and finish. Thicker materials benefit from 10-15 TPI blades with better waste clearance.

Blade Type: Standard blades suit moderate curves and straight sections, whilst spiral fret saw blades offer exceptional manoeuvrability for complex internal cuts, cutting in all directions without repositioning. Skip-tooth patterns excel at faster cutting with improved sawdust clearance in resinous woods.

Material Compatibility: Wood fret saw blades are optimised for timber species, whilst plastics and soft metals require specifically designed blades with appropriate tooth geometry and hardness levels.

Blade Quality: Professional brands like Bahco produce blades from high-carbon steel or hardened alloys that maintain sharpness longer and resist breakage better than budget alternatives, offering better value for regular users.

Pack Size: Fret saw blades are consumables that break during intricate work. Purchasing multipacks from MyToolShed.co.uk ensures you have spares readily available, avoiding mid-project delays.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do fret saw blades typically last?

Blade life depends on material hardness, cutting technique, and blade quality. High-quality blades from manufacturers like Bahco might last several hours in softwoods, whilst harder materials or aggressive cutting will dull or break blades more quickly. It's normal for blades to break during extremely tight curves, which is why multipacks are recommended.

What's the difference between spiral and standard fret saw blades?

Standard blades have teeth along one edge and cut in a single direction, requiring workpiece rotation to change cutting direction. Spiral blades feature teeth around the entire circumference, allowing omnidirectional cutting without repositioning. Whilst spiral blades offer exceptional versatility for complex internal cuts, they typically produce a slightly rougher finish than standard blades.

Why do fret saw blades keep breaking?

Blade breakage usually results from excessive tension, forcing the blade through material, attempting curves too tight for the blade width, or twisting during cuts. Use smooth, controlled strokes without forcing, ensure proper tension (taut but not over-tight), and select appropriately narrow blades for tight radius work. Quality blades resist breakage better than cheaper alternatives.