Hello all, I find this an interesting saw for a number of reasons. The first being that the mark is very clear, quite pretty with the 3 crowns and has the IM at right angles to the name Martin, a style which was used by John Kenyon in the 1890's. This maker, (John Martin and Co.) however operated for only a few years in the 1860's, - 1862 to 1864 according to BSSM and which, had I not had my attention drawn to the Kenyon mark, I would have thought was a little late to have an I as an archaic J. The second cause of interest is the label screw hidden under the painted handle and which is an American Warranted Superior Eagle. This is quite a reasonable addition to the saw as it was bought (by me) from a seller in Pennsylvania. But it does raise the question which I have never been able to satisfactorily answer on an individual basis as to whether the label screw was of Sheffield or American origin, although I am assuming that if this was an export saw, then it may well have originated from Sheffield. The third interesting bit about this saw is that it was made and probably exported during the American Civil War and which, for me, makes it a rarity and is a bit of a bonus. Fred
My one seems to be cast (dot) steel. see http://www.backsaw.net/forum/index.php?threads/martin-and-warranted-superior.186/
Hi Kiwi, Well, that puts the cat amongst the pigeons datewise, doesn't it? Either that or it is a very late usage of the dot. Curious!! Fred