J. Beardshaw & Son compass saw

According to BSSM this dates to around ca. 1880 and is in reasonable nick for saws of this type which are invariably mangled. The teething is very specific.

The handle is original and the nuts have not been finagled with - the draw filing marks are still evident on the cheeks. it fits the hand like a glove with the prominent humped back. The blade has a 10" toothline and is a massive 80 thou thick at the heel and tapers (in thickness not width) to 65 thou at the toe. There is a small stamp (J. Beardshaw and Son, cast steel) at the mid point. It filed 'soft' like many older saws.

The push style teeth are a coarse 7 point with a very wide set. Interestingly the teeth (which needed a good joint) were filed 5 degrees rake and 10 degrees fleam, which is what people ascribe as a "hybrid" filing these days... the wide set and this type of filing lends itself to a saw that can be used to cut curves using sideways pressure.

I found the saw to cut slowlyy in moderately hard timber but it murders plasterboard.