A folding saw that looks and feels as premium and exclusive as a collector's edition folding knife? It's a category that didn't really exist until Sweden's Woxna hit the ground running this year. The brand's newest saw pairs mesmerizing Damascus steel and rich walnut wood into a one-of-a-kind forestry tool so gorgeous you might never want to expose a single tooth to raw wood.
Woxan formed around the mission of elevating the entire folding saw category.
"One day, I was scrolling through Instagram and came across a post from Zebulon Kane, a Norwegian bushcraft expert," explained Woxna cofounder Elma Delic. "He had laid out three tools on a stump: a Gränsfors Bruk axe, a Helle knife, and an old, rusty foldable handsaw. It got me thinking: Why wasn’t there a foldable hand saw that matched the beauty and craftsmanship of those classic tools, with the kind of steel you’d find in a well-made bushcraft knife?"
Indeed, that saw looks beyond rough, and entirely out of place:
But surely that's just what Kane had in his kit that day? There must be a far better option out on the greater market, a hand-built piece of high-quality steel and wood flashing the same level of meticulous Scandinavian craftsmanship as that axe and knife?
Nothing that Delic was able to find while searching high and low, and while we were convinced her words were at least partly marketing hyperbole, we didn't find much on our own quick search, either. There are certainly plenty of folding saws that look up to the task of slicing up kindling and firewood and carrying lightly through the wild, but beyond maybe a couple of nice Opinel folders, not much that wouldn't look severely outclassed by a Helle or Gränsfors.
"I wanted to create a saw with the same aesthetic and quality as traditional Scandinavian axes and knives - crafted from fine wood, designed with timeless elegance, and made from premium, rust-resistant steel," Delic decided.
Luckily, she had just the contact in her phone, a man who can rightfully say that Swedish saw-crafting runs through his blood, second-generation saw manufacturer Ulf Bäckström. The two had met previously, and Delic knew if anyone had the precise technical expertise to complement her background in launching Nordic products on the global market, it would be him.
After discussing the prospect, Bäckström and Delic cofounded Woxan in 2024, and the journey really got underway. The two eventually began researching and testing materials and came up with several combinations that had the right level of premium feel and performance. Crafting saw blades from non-traditional materials like stainless steel proved a huge challenge, but Woxan eventually found the precise blend it was looking for and launched its first products earlier this year, offering wood-handled saws with buyer's choice of carbon or stainless-steel blade.
Then it stepped up its saw game yet again, aiming to create what it calls the first-ever foldable saw featuring a Damascus steel blade, specifically a stainless Damascus steel produced by family-run Swedish steel specialist Damasteel. Woxan chose the iconically swirly grained steel not only for its multi-alloy layered aesthetic but also for its hardwearing toughness, stout corrosion resistance, stubborn edge retention and pure cutting power, complete with unique micro-serrations created by the steel's inherent layering.
This month, Woxna took to Kickstarter to launch the Damascus line, saws so high-end the company seems to be testing the potential ceiling of the market as much as soft-launching a new product. Dedicated knife buyers certainly aren't afraid to spend hundreds and thousands of dollars adding new models to their collections, but is there an analog among saw buyers?
Yes and no, it appears. While Woxna has handily surpassed its modest Kickstarter goal, the US$5,087 it's raised represents fewer than a dozen pledges for saws. That's not exactly a flood gate of takers.
But whether you ultimately buy one or not, it's hard to deny the Woxna Damascus lineup catches the eye with a rustic beauty and purpose far surpassing average. Woxna gives the eye-grabbing blade a ratio of seven teeth per inch, a pull-cut orientation meant to decrease buckling and improve cutting efficiency, and a concave grind for smoother movement. The blade partners with a warm American walnut wood handle with steel core. A small CNC-machined button lock provides fast, sure locking/unlocking.
Woxna has developed the Damascus series for everything from shelter building, to firewood processing, to garden pruning, to trail work. It's designed to cut both dry and green wood, though if we're honest, we'd be more inclined to open the saw up once, mount it securely on the wall of a home workshop or game room, and enjoy it without ever so much as brushing it against the bark of a branch or log.
Woxna's Kickstarter campaign is winding down in the next few days, and the 9.2-oz (260-g) 7-in (180-mm) Damascus saw is currently available at the €385 (approx. US$440) pledge level, while the larger 12-oz (333-g) 10-in (250-mm) version starts at €490 ($560). Woxna says each one will come furnished with a certificate of authenticity confirming the blade was forged from genuine Damasteel Damascus stainless steel in Söderfors and including the saw’s serial number, date of production and buyer's name. It will also come backed by a limited lifetime warranty. Deliveries will begin in September, if things proceed according to plan.
They're definitely beautiful examples of masterful toolmaking, but will the Damascus saws be able to survive in a market comprised of functional saws that cost a tenth the price or less? We're not sure.
Woxna's original stainless steel and carbon steel saws are nearly as aesthetic but cost well less, starting at US$170. That seems a more viable premium buy-in point for the average amateur sawyer – still quite expensive, but not so drastically.
On the other hand, if you're looking for a gift for that impossible-to-buy father or company CEO, a first-of-its-kind Damascus folding saw is certain to be something they do not have and with which they might just fall in love. It'll definitely hold their attention longer than a subscription to the jelly of the month club.
Source: Woxna