Independent comparisons. We may earn from shop links. More info

How to use a folding Japanese saw

Updated: 21 October 2026

You have just opened a thin folding saw and the first instinct is to push, the way a panel saw in a UK shed usually works. That push is how these plates kink, and an unchecked lock is how a folder closes on your hand. This is how to use a folding Japanese saw: prove the latch, start the kerf on the far corner, cut on the pull, and fold it before it goes back in the bag. The [folding Japanese saw comparison](/hub/power-saws/folding-japanese-saw) is where the five listings sit if you have not bought yet. Branch collars, and the point where a tree surgeon takes over, are on the [folding Japanese saw for pruning](/hub/power-saws/folding-japanese-saw/sub/folding-japanese-saw-pruning) page. Peter F. used maker notes and amazon.co.uk reviews dated up to 6 October 2026, not a bench trial.

You have just opened a thin folding saw and the first instinct is to push, the way a panel saw in a UK shed usually works. That push is how these plates kink, and an unchecked lock is how a folder closes on your hand.

Our top picks

SUIZAN SUIZAN folding saw 120 mm

Best overall

SUIZAN SUIZAN folding saw 120 mm
9.4/10about £22.80
View offer
KLRStec KLRStec Zen folding saw 240 mm

Rank 2

KLRStec KLRStec Zen folding saw 240 mm
9.0/10about £29.99
View offer
HAISHANG HAISHANG 13/14 TPI folding saw

Best value

HAISHANG HAISHANG 13/14 TPI folding saw
8.8/10about £9.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Open it and prove the lock
  2. 2.Start on the far corner and pull
  3. 3.When the plate sticks
  4. 4.Fold, clean, and oil

Open it and prove the lock

Open the saw over a clear bench, not over your thigh. Swing the plate out until you feel it seat, then try to fold it shut with a light push on the spine. If it moves, it is not locked. Silky's folding-saw warning for Europe, which matches the mechanism even though it is written for their own saws, says not to push on the back of the blade, because the lock can collapse onto the hand. On the KLRStec, reviewers say the button is easy to press by accident, so the angle shifts, and the knurled nut works loose. Click it, then tug the plate. If a pin is missing, stop. A lock that arrives that way is a fault, not a technique. On the SUIZAN F-003 the maker's manual tells you to check the screw and the stopper, and a UK review describes two positions: straight, and one with the handle raised so your fingers clear the teeth. HAISHANG, Adiwo, and Sukodon hide the teeth in wooden scales. Close one, shake it, and see whether the catch holds. Do not cut a plate that is already kinked. Bending it back by hand usually adds a second kink. Why a folder feels less stiff than a bench saw is on the folding Japanese saw vs fixed blade page. You do not add stiffness by leaning on the spine.

Start on the far corner and pull

Support the work so it cannot roll. On a bench, clamp it. On a branch, know where the offcut will fall before you start, and keep the cut below shoulder height. SUIZAN's start-a-cut guide says to begin at the far corner, use the thumbnail as a fence, and pull lightly. The thumb stays on the nail, not the pad. A fine tooth grabs if you drop the whole plate onto the wood at once. The cutting stroke is the pull, towards you. The return is little more than the weight of the saw. Reviewers of the SUIZAN say a push bends the thin plate. KLRStec notes say the same: the plate feels flimsy until the stroke changes, and a twist puts a bend in it. Let the kerf establish for a few light pulls before you lengthen the stroke. On 13 and 14 TPI edges, which the HAISHANG and Adiwo print, forcing speed packs the narrow gullets. A short folder runs out of stroke quickly, so you reset your feet rather than leaning the plate into a curve. A flexible 0.6 or 0.7 mm plate will follow a twist if you supply one.
SUIZAN SUIZAN folding saw 120 mm

Testsieger

SUIZAN SUIZAN folding saw 120 mm
9.4/10about £22.80
View offer

When the plate sticks

A bind is the wood closing on the plate, or the teeth loading with fibre. Take weight off the offcut so the kerf opens. Knivesandtools, writing for UK readers, says to ease the wood and not to twist the saw. Silky says not to wrench a stuck blade. Twisting is how a 0.7 mm plate becomes a banana, and a banana will not fold back into the handle. If the teeth are packed, draw the saw out and clear them. Do not add a push to get through the last bit. On green wood, fine 14 TPI gullets clog sooner than a coarse pruning tooth. Step back if the branch is above your head, near a power line, or heavier than you can hold. A kinked plate is finished as a cutting tool. Replace it where a spare exists. SUIZAN says a replacement is compatible and is not in the box. The other listings in this set mostly do not name one. Do not hammer the plate flat. You will leave a ripple the teeth cannot follow, and the lock may no longer line up with the handle slot.

Fold, clean, and oil

Brush the dust off, wipe the plate dry, and put a light oil on the steel before you store it. The SUIZAN manual says to oil the plate after use, and it says the saw is for wood, not metal. Keep solvent off the handle if you are cleaning sap. Then fold it until the teeth are covered, and check the closed lock the same way you checked the open one. A KLRStec goes in its nylon pouch. The others rely on the handle. A pouch that has worn through, which some KLRStec reviews mention, is no longer a guard. Keep the folded saw away from children. At work, PUWER 1998 treats a handsaw as work equipment: it has to be suitable, and people have to be shown how to use it. That is instruction, not a certificate. The next time the wood is a live branch rather than a clamped offcut, use the pruning page. If the plate is simply too short, use the buying guide.

Common questions

Do you push or pull a Japanese saw?
You pull to cut, and you return with almost no pressure. The teeth point so that the drawing stroke does the work. A push loads the thin plate in compression, which is why SUIZAN and KLRStec reviews describe a bend when someone pushes or twists. The saw can feel weak until that habit changes. If the listing is a pull saw, a kink from a push is the stroke, not proof that every thin plate is a defect.
Where do I start the cut?
Start at the far corner of the piece, with a light pull, and use your thumbnail as a fence so the first teeth do not skate. SUIZAN's start guide is the source of that sequence. Keep the thumb on the nail. On a branch, nick the underside first if the limb is heavy enough to tear, which the pruning page describes in full. Clamp bench work. Do not start in the middle of the plate with a hard shove.
What do I do if the blade jams?
Ease the wood so the kerf opens, and draw the saw out without twisting it. Clear packed teeth before you continue. Do not wrench the handle and do not push on the spine, because the lock can collapse. If the plate has already kinked, stop and replace it where you can. Forcing the last centimetre is how a short folder becomes scrap.
How do I know the lock is shut?
Try to move the plate after you think it has clicked. Open, it should not fold when you press lightly on the spine. Closed, it should not swing out in a pocket. On a KLRStec, confirm the button has not shifted the angle and that the nut is still tight. On a SUIZAN, check the screw and stopper as the manual says. If there is no pin, do not use the saw.
How do I stop rust?
Dry the plate after sap or rain, wipe on a light oil, and fold it only once it is clean. The SUIZAN manual includes that oil step. A damp saw left open in a bag will speckle, and a pouch does not replace the wipe. Do not soak the handle in solvent. Store it away from children, with the teeth covered by the fold or the pouch.
Why did the plate kink?
Almost always because it was pushed, twisted in a bind, or asked to lever a branch open. Reviewers describe that on the SUIZAN and the KLRStec, and one Adiwo note mentions flex on thicker card. A 0.6 or 0.7 mm plate is meant to be thin. Thin is not the same as bent. Replace a kinked blade. Do not bend it back and carry on.

Related pages

Best folding Japanese saw

Folding japanese saw

Folding Japanese saw buying guide: length and pitch

Folding Japanese saw for pruning: collar and limits

Folding Japanese saw vs fixed blade: bag or bench

Sources

Public sources used for this comparison, taken from the research digest. Listings were captured with reviews dated up to 6 October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures for this set.

  1. HSE PUWER overview (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  2. HSE L22, PUWER approved code of practice (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  3. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 22 (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  4. RHS tree pruning guide (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  5. Silky Fox Gomboy (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  6. Knivesandtools UK, how to use a pull saw (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  7. SUIZAN folding saw manual, F-003 (retrieved 6 October 2026)
  8. Z-Saw stroke notes (retrieved 6 October 2026)