wood saws

[hedgerow pete]

I have just been to see an old family friend and this gentleman is well into his three score and ten and his work shop is a great place to sit and chat, drink tea and to tell me how many ways i am doing some thing, wrong, badly, stupidly or just plain "blooming monkey hands" as he likes to say.

i forgoten what its like to be called a blooming useless apprentice with no brains, when you over 40 !!

any way as you do, we had a look around all the tools i cant afford or use properly and the one thing that realy struck me is there were no jack point saws,

not a single plastic handle any where.

do any of you still use distons or have i found the last person that can still spend the offical friday afternoon sharpening , and he does, 2pm to 5 pm every friday every single tool is rechecked and maintanedhand and power tools and workshop cleaned and i do mean cleaned

amazing guy to deal with,

even if he is a bit hard on apprentices!!

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

Yep, I still use them, as a retired boat builder, one uses the best tools and Diston are what we used alot, they are the best. Have to keep them sharp though...

Brian

 

[aTao]

not a single plastic handle any where.

I just had a look at some pictures of these saws. Didnt see a single one with a 90/45 square built into the handle. What use is that?

I'll get me coat?

 

[Teemore]

I have been looking at getting a few good hand tools, especially hand saws - tenon, gent etc. Although the purchase of a table saw has somewhat reduced my usage of hand saws...

The idea of being able to sharpen my own hand saws really does appeal but I'd need to go and find someone to show me how to go about doing it "properly". Unfortunately the only folk I knew locally who used proper hand tools passed away a good number of years ago.

 

[hedgerow pete]

a proper wood saw is the cheapest option by far, what i have spent on jack point saws in the last three years i would have brought a pair of disstons and a sharpening set to go with them.

may be its time i went to a car boot sale and buy an old saw to practice on and then may invest in a proper saw

 

[hedgerow pete]

there are two things here,

one,

most " site " chippies are to lazy to sharpen saws properly, i am

and second that this is where we get the early friday afternoon off from.

when a trades man was leaving he was allowed to spend the friday afternoon sharpening his tools ready for the next company he went to work for on pay, so most guys sharpend there tools and went to the pub for the afternoon instead.

i love tradition so i try to up hold our victorian ways, lol

 

[rowbow]

I still have my Distons and others, (the old distons are colectable and fetch a good price), hard point saws are best used on man made materials, keep your old sawa well oiled any rust pits and you will loose the edge.
John

 

[hedgerow pete]

for anyone that wants it here is the DISSTON BOOK free to down load in several differant styles, its a bit boring untill you get to page 136 when it deals with hand saws and sharpening them

http://www.archive.org/details/disstonlumberman00henrrich

 

[Teemore]

Excellent!!

Pete, I think i'll be taking your lead and calling at a few car boot sales!

 

[hedgerow pete]

i think i will try to butcher one old saw first to see if i can do it, and its some thing to practice on, i can see me going to a £50 victor saw from axminster but i can never see me going up to any counter and asking for the holly words lie-nielson, unless i have a large lottery cheque in the back pocket,

for now its scabby saw and scabby files, and play time

 

[Springer]

I love old tools, most of my machinery is lumps of cast iron, but come on lads, things have moved on.
I have a Diston over 35 years old, if its collectible and worth anything its going !! A site chippy is on about £20 a hour and its not profitable to ..gger about repeatedly sharpening a saw, when you can get a hard point for a fiver, use it and chuck it away. I know, tradition, recycling or whatever, but how long will a saw stay sharp, that you can sharpen with a file against an hardpoint, chuckaway.
I will be hearing next that you are still going round a circular with a file instead of getting a TCT blade !!
S
P.S. you will be telling me next that the saw-set, (used to off set the teeth ) lurking at the back at my cupboard is worth money...........that can go as well !!!

 

[hedgerow pete]

old disstons on ebay go for about a fiver to ten quid. but if you egnor those you can buy some decent saws for a fiver at times.

and you are sooooo right spring, the jack point is king and always will be.

but to a stupid hairy builder brummie who realy only ever butchers wood at the allotment it seams like a stupidly fun way of saving a few squid at times.

as for sharpening circular saw blades not a cats chance of that from me.

a friend sharpens them for 25 pence per tooth and £1.25 a new tooth rebrazed on with a minium order of £10.

so unless i have an exspensive saw blade its cheaper for me to chuck it and replace it