I have little hope of the unidentified saw being recognised, but you never know. Again it this not an out of the ordinary saw and I bought it mainly for the pronounced top horn. (Which should give some clue if anyone has a named saw with this type of handle). I think that it is absolutely wonderful, but then again beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I fully accept that you may not have the same eye as I do. It is also probably the best looked after saw that I have, despite the fact that it has obviously done a lot of work. http://www.backsaw.net/cpg/displayimage.php?pos=-299 http://www.backsaw.net/cpg/displayimage.php?pos=-298 And that brings me onto the second part of this topic.I have probably droned on in previous topics about tools ( in this case saws) telling stories, but this is a case in point. Both saws that I have got here are probably around the same age and from the looks of the remnants of the blades, have done a similar amount of work. But that is where the similarities end. http://www.backsaw.net/cpg/displayimage.php?pos=-297 http://www.backsaw.net/cpg/displayimage.php?pos=-296 The unidentified saw has been looked after and respected until the end of its current working life, and has been retired in a reasonable condition, but the Groves saw has been neglected if not downright abused at the end of its life if not before. And whoever has put the iron rivet through the medallion - well printable words fail me. (I\'ve only shown the reverse as I\'ve used up my 5 photos) http://www.backsaw.net/cpg/displayimage.php?pos=-295 Having said that, I still find interest in both but for entirely different reasons. I also apologise to those of you who are distressed by the sight of abused and pitiful saws. Fred
Hi Fred, There are a few \"rules of thumb\" (almost always wrong of course..) that always come into play when trying to identify and date saws. Sometimes the number of screws can provide a clue, saws with two screws are generally earlier than saws with more. The exception being some later saws (usually the cheaper models) went back to less screws, possibly as a cost saving. So in this case I suspect the two screw unidentified saw might be a lower cost generic, also it looks like a steel back on the unmarked saw versus brass back on the Groves... The possibility that comes to mind, is that they are both made by Groves, perhaps even similar vintage, but the unmarked one with steel back and two screws is a generic, lower priced model. If that is in fact the case it\'s a bit ironic that the expensive one had a hard life, and the cheapie was well cared for... Regards Ray
Hey Fred et all... Hard to say if there is a way to truly identify the saws as Ray says, being from the same company. Around that age of saw there always seems to be that general characteristic or overall familiarity and the more saws I pick up, the closed toted tenon saws seem to have so many similarities it almost looks generic if it wasn't for the flat of a "London Pattern" or the double horns. You could describe the overall appearances of the two saws as "well loved" and the rounding of any sharp points blend it all together. It also isn't really that surprising the more expensive saw was well used and even abused because there must have been a real advantage to the expensive saw in its use. You would also understand why they would have to change nuts on the less expensive saw, not being able to handle every day use. We all understand the expression "ya gets what ya pays for" and I'm sure it wasn't too different then. Love seeing all the examples Fred....keep em coming. Joe S