Very old, Complete rubbish (I fear the latter) or both.

Hello all,

I have agonised for weeks about whether to put this saw on or not and it is with great trepidation that I do it now. The title says it all, and in my defence I only paid 99pence for this saw and another half decent one.

The blade is not much help as there are no makers stamps, but it feels old. It is reasonably rigid compared to some of the late 19th century handsaws that I have and the metal seems quite thick. (My electronic calipers are broken otherwise I would tell you the thickness). The blade is 21 inches long and 5 1/2 inches wide at the heel.

So it is all in the handle. Which is where the problems lie.

After my last debacle over identifying woods I will not comment on this one, but if it is what I think it is, then I would be inclined to believe that it is a home-made bodge job rather than an early professionally made saw.

If it is a home-made bodge, then is it a complete bodge with someone designing their own handle or did it follow the pattern of the original? Are there any handles anywhere looking like this one looks now, or used to look.

The fixings are not much help either as one is a 1/2 inch / 17/32nds (the larger brass one), one is a 7/16ths ( the smaller brass one), and the steel bodged one looks like it may have been a later addition to hold the handle together where it is cracked. (see photo's of the reverse). Both screws have now been converted into rivets

Having slagged the steel fixing off, the washer on the reverse looks like a hand-made litte gem and it looks ancient.

The hand hole is again tiny, 2 1/2 inches wide (just under) and on the reverse I hope you can see the smoothing/polishing of the wood by useage and the section on the reverse where the index finger has kept the wood clean.

Now I know that rust and dirt and grubbyness can make a saw look old. This one has all the signs of a lot of use , but I don't know about age.

I have also put a photo on of the wear at the front of the blade at toe. Would this be normal wear and tear, a break or cut, or just sloppy manufacturing.

Hoping for some replies and not too much laughter,

FRED

 

Hey Fred et al
I'm with Ray on the "Never apologize for posting pictures of saws, they are always interesting, regardless of condition." We are all interested in saws and some great stuff might come from things we don't think are important. Your saw may look like a "sow's ear" but to whoever made the handle had enough need for it to make a usefull saw that was probably well loved. I can't say I have ever seen another like it.
Joe S
ps. I appreciated the note sent and was already noticing the saw. I just saw the note late. Didn't know Ray had the notification feature. I Should pay more attention.

 

Ray/Joe,

Thank you for your comments in my moments of anguish. (I can't find out how to put the smilie here). But I was concerned about upsetting the purists out there.

Actually and unfortunately complete rubbish is my forte, particularly if it is old rubbish. It comes from a misspent childhood in our farm workshop where everything was old, rusty, broken or all three. As you say/imply the rehandling shows how much the saw was regarded, whether out of necessity or sentiment we will never know.

Anyway, on to the next adapted saw with its own story to tell, a D+S. See next topic.

Fred