Editing Circular saw (section)

==Cordwood saws==
[[File:Allis-Chalmers Model B with a buzz saw.JPG|thumb|right|[[Allis-Chalmers B]] with a cordwood saw setup]]
Cordwood saws, also called buzz saws in some locales, use blade of a similar size to sawmills. Where a sawmill rips (cuts with the grain) a cordwood saw crosscuts (cuts across the grain). Cordwood saws can have a blade from {{convert|20|in}} to more than {{convert|36|in}} diameter depending on the power source and intended purpose. Cordwood saws are used to cut logs and slabs (sawmill waste) into [[firewood]]. The [[cubic meter]] and [[cord (unit)]] are common measurements of standing timber (by estimation) or rough logs. "Cordwood" means unsplit logs {{convert|4|ft}} long. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, farmers would supply householders in town with cordwood, which would then be re-sawn and split to a length and circumference suitable for woodburning heaters and ranges. Almost all these devices were designed to accept {{convert|16|in|adj=on}} sticks, conveniently a piece of cordwood cut into three equal lengths. Once a piece of cordwood had been re-sawn to three 16-inch pieces, it could easily be split to stovewood size with an ax.

Most cordwood saws consist of a frame, blade, mandrel, cradle, and power source. The cradle is a tilting or sliding guide that holds logs during the cutting process. Certain cordwood saws are run from a belt from a farm tractor power takeoff pulley. Others, mounted on a tractor's three-point hitch, connect to the rear power takeoff shaft. Self-powered models are equipped with small gasoline engines or even large electric motors as power sources. The mandrel is a shaft and set of bearings that support and transfer power to the blade. The frame is a structure that supports the cradle and blade at a convenient working height.

Cordwood saws were once very popular in rural America. They were used to cut smaller wood into firewood in an era when hand powered saws were the only other option. Logs too large for a cordwood saw were still cut by hand. [[Chainsaw]]s <ref>Chainsaws – Chainsaw History</ref> have largely replaced cordwood saws for firewood preparation today. Still, some commercial firewood processors and others use cordwood saws to save wear and tear on their chainsaws. Most people consider cordwood saws unsafe and outdated technology.