I suppose those of you who peruse eBay (isn't that all of us?) have already seen this saw. I watched the saw for two weeks and finally pushed the "buy it now" button. From what I've been able to dig up, Henry Disston was the first to make a saw handle like this in c1844. It is usually called a triple-cove handle for the three concave shapes on the handle's top. As was so often the case, other makers began to copy Disston's innovations. A few other makers made triple-cove handles in America, including William McNiece and William Jackson. BSSM p.93 shows a handle like this on a Groves saw, and obviously Moulson Brothers made them as well. The medallion on this saw is interesting in that it is a full 1-1/8" in diameter. The accompanying screws, in contrast, are tiny, measuring just under 3/8". I usually don't pay so much for a saw, but a saw like this doesn't come along every day. It will have a good home in my till. Bob
Hi Bob, I see that you have bought yourself a very nice Christmas present, even if it was a day late. This seems to have been on my watch list this for ever and I would have gone for it, but on top of the not inconsiderable price, I also had £40 shipping and about £20 import duties. But my loss is your gain. The medallion is, of course, extraordinarily large and lovely and BSSM has it at about 1830. The nearest that he has to the stamp on the back in terms of style and font is 1880 but the handle is so obviously original to the saw that I would go with the 1830 -ish date. You do realise, of course that if the 1830 date is anywhere near correct, then the Moulson handle is the original and the Disston handles are merely copies of this. And not the other way round. Fred
Hi Fred, I can't tell you the number of saws I've had on my watch list that ultimately found their way to your home, so I don't feel too bad about this saw now being in my home. I thought about the possibility that Disston copied a British saw, but I wouldn't allow myself to think this saw may be as early as 1830. The 1860's was my guess, and that is also the date Simon assigns to the Groves saw. It would be thrilling if your theory is correct, and of course it would rewrite a bit of saw history. Regardless of the date, handles of this type seem to be few and far between. I've scoured the Internet looking for them and have only come up with 15, 13 of which are American-made. Undoubtedly there are more, but they certainly aren't common. It would be interesting to know why more weren't made. Perhaps the style just didn't catch on in the mid-1800's when practicality was more important than style. Happy New Year to you, Fred, and to all on this forum. Bob