Search the Community

Had a little fun, a nice break from my chair build and finally did something to benefit the shop, I just happened on a simple hand saw till by Lee Valley and on a whim I decided, what the heck, I have some scrap, and a little time, and a few saws that are currently hanging on nails on my wall. They need a home, and I liked the idea that it sits on french cleats and I can remove it and have it nearby where I am working, if needed, I seriously doubt it, my shop is small enough that a little 10 walk to the wall where the till is hanging, aint gonna kill me. Anyway, I had some scrap prefinished maple ply from a project I did last summer for my day job. You can see the ply I had to work with on that project, the scrap I have today came from that job. This is not an in depth how-to like my chair topic is, this was just a quick down and dirty fun thing I did, and I used my Shopsmith for 100 percent of the work. I used the Table Saw, the Band Saw, the Lathe and the Drill Press to build this handy little tote. I turned the 1" dowel from some walnut I had. On a side note, our dog Woody, last year he turned deaf, before he hardly ever hung out in the shop, he didn't like the noise, not just machinery noise, the hammer, a piece of wood dropping, anything. I am sorry he went deaf, but as a neat byproduct of him going deaf, he hangs with me all day in the shop now, he'll lay down right next to that Shopsmith when it's running, he can't hear anything! I have the sides and the dowel mounted, I just need to mount the kerfed blade holders, I have the longer holder for the longer saws, and the two slot holder for the two smaller saws, that holder needs to be mounted a bit lower to accommodate the small saws. My longer saws are neat ol saws, two cross cut and two rip, the first long one with the shiny handle was a gift from oldest daughter 3 Christmas's ago. I recently purchased the two smaller Lie Nielsen Carcass and Dovetail saws. The walnut is sanded to 400, once I get the kerfed supports mounted I'll just hit it with oil and call it good. Then I'll mount the french cleats on the back and on the wall to hang it. The first saw is a nice Disston D-9 12 tpi. I'll put some maple edging on the maple ply back board. Attached hereon are the plans from Lee Valley for this till. Very simple, down and dirty. I have 5 or 6 other saws hanging around, the ones in this till are my favorites, the other saws I'll sell or give away, I only want to keep what I need, I am not into collecting. Thank you Lee Valley! Lee Valley Saw Till.pdf

in a bucket with a bunch of other saws and miscellaneous junk, 'er stuff ...pulled them out...no price...something told me to "save" them from a terrible fate. At check-out $4.28 for both counting Indiana's 7% cut. I know very little about (cordless) hand-saws but have picked up a few the past 3/4 years if the price seems right. I hate to see someone ruin them with a flower box scene painted on the plate. I got the surprise of my life when I looked closer at the pictures I took a few days ago I think they'll clean up pretty decent when I get a round tuit. I'm going to try Evap-O-Rust on these I think? I may start with an old box cutter blade and WD-40 or kerosene first. I'm pretty sure I can make out some etching on the top one. Too hard to tell on the bottom one. Bottom, one is A Warranted Superior ca. IDK??? I'm not familiar enough with the different era tags so need to do more research. It is a 10pt and with the set maybe used as a rip vs crosscut although maybe as a combination... Top one is a 8pt rip saw. I really like the curve on the plate back. EC Atkins...Indianapolis, IN which makes it close to home. I was floored when I looked closer at my picture...Patent Date Dec 27, 1887. I'm hoping I can save the etch??? I need to really research this one. It may be something quite special although it already is to me being an EC Atkins.

Stumbled upon this tonight...worth the look...once in a lifetime goldmine find for NIB vintage tools. https://indianapolis.craigslist.org/tls/d/vintage-craftsman-and-other/6655669969.html

Back at the end of April of this year, went to an estate Auction. Won a bundle of saws.....one was a bit strange looking... Finally got around to rehabbing it a bit.....Filed the teeth as rip. Got a couple pieces of Cherry to make a blank for a handle.. Metal frame was wire wheeled until it was shiny. Red handle holds the file I used to sharpen the blade. let this mess sit over night Clamps were removed, sander set up. Shaped to fit my hands. . Drilled a couple holes, and installed a pair of saw bolts. Steel frame, merits steel bolts, right Operator needs trained on a proper grip.... It starts easy, cuts fast, and IF I hold it just right, straight cuts occur, like magic. Shellac and the brush was still upstairs (yes, I am now cleared for stairs) so I took this up and added a Amber Shellac finish. IF the sun should happen to reappear, I can let the Cherry soak up some rays, and get a "tan". Might be a decent enough, little Tool Box Saw....it is not a "perfection" saw.... That's ok, I already have one....by Atkins.

I picked up a saw a few weeks back and the blade was filthy (plus a slight bend which i believe i can fix). I managed to get four of the five bolts out without a hitch, but the fifth one? No such luck. As i turned the "screw" side, the other side turned right along with it. Since the "flat" side was below the surface - nothing to grab. I finally got aggravated and smacked it with a hammer and punch (more like an oversized drift). What i got out was a real surprise. No threads inside or out. Now i want to smack whomever put that in there. Thankfully no massive damage to the handle.

Boss wanted to check out a few yard sales, have Lunch out, visit Wall E World.....Ok.. On the way back home from such things...made one more stop at a yard sale....nose was itching.... Table had a metal B&D saw...sitting ON four hand saws.....Didn't need the circular saw...two of the handsaws weren't really worth picking up....#3 had a $20 price tag! OUCH! However...#4? First glance..looked like a Disston D-8....until I looked a bit closer at the handle.. 26" long, 10 ppi, skew back. Covertop handle. And CARVED.....a D-100. Price tag said $10...got it to $5 and bought it... Got it home....cleaned around where the etch should be...found one from about 1917 or so. Saw was made from 1900 or so up to 1922...The way the heel of the sawblade is made, and the DISSTON PHILA medallion looked...it is closer to 1914-1917 era. Still straight, still sharp. Non"show" side is a bit rusty, should clean right up. But......while there is the older Keystone ( 1840...and the French and Spanish trademarks) and the writing from Henry's signature......there is a VERY faint etch right in front of the handle.....about where the "Victory" etch would be.....Hmmmm...will see how it cleans up... Handle is very comfy...almost don't want to let go of it.... not too bad of a morning?

More of a step by step post, here. Took a little over an hour, to get from "Rust Bucket" to almost like new.... Had an Atkins handsaw, from the auction..wasn't the cleanest one of the bunch.. The big medallion said it was made by Atkins, over in Indy, IN.... Nickel plating was flaking off a bit, or was worn off...tool to remove these.. These then went to the wire wheel on my grinder, for a quick polishing. The next step was to remove the handle.. Fresh sand paper on the palm sander, to down down the rough, worn finish...set this aside.. 80 grit to hold the scratch pad...meh, came back with some 120 grit. Got this side fairly cleaned up..flipped the plate over, and tried something new Didn't work out, too well...scratch pad, then through the 120 grit, and 220 sandpaper.. Started seeing the faint remains of the etch...Atkins Perfection No. 59 tried to bring it out better. . Sometimes this works, sometimes not. Depends on how deep the etch still is. Coat the surface, let it dry, sand away the high spots, and maybe the etch will show up.. Handle was wiped down, and a coat of shellac brushed on...next, was trying to line up four holes to insert the bolts.. Have a long nail set. I work from the center holes out, I also "clocked" the slots to the same spot. Set this saw up on it's edge.. Looks a little better? Bolts were nickle plated Brass...did a test run.. And the results..(allowing for Operator Error, of course) 8 ppi, 26" long, straight backed, crosscut saw. Might be a keeper? For just over an hours work, did not need sharpened.

Son had chopped down a Norway (pest) Maple from out of the Lilac bush. Found a straight section and tried a couple handsaws to cut it out. Yeah, Cardio! Brought the "victim" in to the house Still shaking from the sawerying? On to the Dungeon we go ( add the Igor laugh, here) Clamped into the Monarch Vise After roughing down three sides.Time to bring out some old planes Yep, steel frog and all. Tried a couple other ones, too Sargent #414c made a few passes, then a little larger one took a turn Stanley #5-1/2 Jumbo Jack. It was a night too big for this work, though So I let Junior take over, and make just a few shavings of Soft Maple. Now to let this blank dry for a good while, then we'll see...

Nice article discussing the steps for sharpening a handsaw- http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodworking-blogs/editors-blog/how-to-sharpen-saw-blades

Awhile back, picked a Butcher's saw for a dollar bill.....finally got around to rehabbing it up... The bolts were, at one time, nickle plated.....shined up, they became Brass. Guess the plating wasn't all that good? The slots weren't all wallered out, was hard to find a screwdriver skinny enough. Handle has been sanded back to bare wood, then a coat of my Famous ( or, Infamous) Witch's Brew was applied. Frame was wire wheeled back to shiny. Wing nut was removed, cleaned up, and oiled the threads. Out in front,I am not sure if this is a pin, a broken off thumbscrew, or a broken bolt. No way too remove, or the sawblade. Saw cuts with a drift to the left.. Guess I won't use it as a rip saw....not really sure WHAT I'll do with it, at the moment. I doubt IF I can cut up some pork chops with it.

Got the dovetails all planed smooth, even added a bit of round over. Final sanding is done. One coat of that SMELLY BLO is on. Brush on, wipe off. Soooo, drum roll, if you please.... Full side view. Splay is @ 22-1/2 degrees. DTs were spaced by eyeball-Mk1 has a solid oak floor! Note that the handle does not go all the way to the floor. Allows some tools to slide under. Speaking of tools.. That be a full length handsaw, sitting very compfy in there, You can almost see the slight bit of round over on the corner. Plane and a sander did most of that. Over all length is 33-1/2", with a width of about a hair over 12". handle tops out about 7-1/2" tall. weighs about the same as my Stanley No.7c. more pictures in the Gallery.

Well, my back is giving me a bit of trouble.....decided to try a bit of sawdust making, until the back decides otherwise.... Had the lines already laid out. I just used a 1/2" dovetail bit to set the bevel gauge at the right angle.. On the way down to the Dungeon Shop, happen to see a little Panel saw, decided to see how it would cut. Saw is a 10 ppi "ClearCut" brand, from a company in Cleveland,OH. A little wax on the plate, and away we go.. this thing cuts fast! Even faster if I use the entire saw. I tried to at least split the lines, with maybe a bit to the waste side... A 10 ppi saw, doing rip cuts? Works for me. Seemed to cut a lot faster than my Disston Backsaw would. Ok, I clamped the plank to the benchtop, grabbed a few chisels and a mallet.. The trick here is to just go halfway through. popping out the waste as I went. Then flip it over, and come in from the other side. Wind up something like this.. It will need a bit of fine tuning, but, now I can mark the lines for the tails. And mark which side of what lines to cut on. handsaw again? Ehhhh,not this time.. The areas with the "X" is where I need to cut, LEAVING the lines. I am too used to split a line with a handsaw, but with a bandsaw, I can see the lines, and leave them. Then that chisel stuff again Halfway there. On the left side? wasn't quite sure about how little wood would be left. Adjust the line, and cut in the waste side. Then chopped CAREFULLY to get this tail board ready to flip over.. Not too bad? Time for a test fit, to see how much needs trimmed up.. Top and bottom edges will get planed flat, when things are glued up. Looks like I need a bit of trimming so the tails will settle down a bit lower onto the pins. Both sides splay out about 5 degrees or so. Back was acting up, and I still had to walk up the stairs out of the shop. Flipped the fitted parts over, so they'd sit better on the bench.. Back is saying it is done for the night, I might try again tomorrow....we'll see. Got three more corners to do.....

Right before a fire so rudely interrupted things around here, I had just finished up the handsaw refurbs. There are six handsaws, all bright and shiny, stacked up, awaiting a place to go. Biggest thing now is to find a way to take a few GOOD photos of the crowd. Two panel saws, and four full length ones. need to find a way to show them off, I guess. Two No.7 with nibs, one skew back D8 and one skew back unknown. The panel saws are 20" long. One has an Atkins "Sheffield" medallion on board, the other??? handles are even cleaned up. Still one to go, but it needs some hardware first. plates are almost too shiny, lots of glare off of them.... Just asking...

I worked over a few handtools tonight. Was a bit wierd down there, though. I would move a bit, then weight while me head caught up. First, I cleaned off a Disston saw. Rust was trying to take hold. Saw is "special", and says so right on the plate, no less. "National Hardware Special" from 1954. Finally, something YOUNGER than me in the shop. Not sure IF you can read the etch in the photo It has DISSTON in big block letters, no less. Checked out the larger planes tonight, and found them needing some sharpening, too. First to feel the stones was a Small Jointer plane Had to grind a new bevel with the grinder, polish the bevel with the 1" wide beltsander. then it could go to the stones, and the papers. A bit of stropping and a polishing of the chipbreaker followed. Almost a full width shving you can read through. Chipbreaker did have a gap where it met the iron. That narrow belt sander worked it flat, and started a polish to the edge, Then a bit on a stone, then the strop. No gaps seen, now. Next was the old Stanley #5-1/2 Jumbo Jack same routine, until it worked like a smoother....Of course, Junior had to tag along, as well... All this talk of acting like a smoother, brought out a Millers Falls #9 Smoother, as well used it to clean things up a bit, since it was already sharp. One last plane needed a bit of work A Stanley #31 Jointer plane. Been having chattering issues lately. Chipbreaker was only in contact at one corner on the iron. Bevel on the iron was rounded over, too. Back was a little bit out of flat. Got all that fixed, including the chipbreaker being bent. Ball pean hammer fixed that. Ran a the test drive on some pine scrap. It was cutting see-through stuff. Tried out a couple block planes.....meh, next time I float back down there, I might give them a little working over. Enough for one night.

Spent a whole $4 on a pair of handsaws. They seemed to have some good bones to them. Under all that rust, that is Just a bit of rust to clean up. The handles did look good, though They were Disston USA D-8s. Brass hardware, too. Got the two apart, shined the brass up. Cleaned and refinished the crack-free handles. Then a lot of sanding to clean the plates. Found both had an "8" stamped in the heel. 8ppi, and they were both crosscuts. In fact, they were the exact same model!. One might have been re-sharpened a few more times, though Notice a difference? Tooth lines are matched up, top of the plates do not match up. As for the rest of this clean up Late 40s-early 50s? Disston USA on the medallions. Might be worth the $2 a piece? For a set of twins...