Originally Posted By: MostlyHarmless

The bow saw / swede saw / buck saw or whatever you call it works on the principle that the blade is allways PULLED through the material.


Maybe that applies to very large swede/bow saws where there is more chance of breaking the blade. Especially if cutting with two people.

But the blades on swede/bow saws have teeth that cut on both the push and pull strokes.

With my shorter ones (24" or less) I usually get best results by putting more power into the push stroke. I've worn out many blades from use but I've never broken a blade. YMMV.