Very Old Disston Backsaw

[SW1864]

Hello Everyone. It's a pleasure to be a part of this forum.
A few years ago, I purchased a backsaw at a yard sale. Upon closer inspection, it was obvious it was a Disston saw. My research shows it dates back to approx. 1846. It has the "eagle in flight" on the medallion. It features the eagle on both sides where "Henry Disston" is stamped on the spine. Blade length is 14". And the only thing bad about this is there is a small 1/4" piece missing on the blade tip. Small, but enough to make me want to cry. Does anyone have any input that my research is correct. I am mostly a user with a little collecting here and there. Would some pictures help? This thing is so old, there is not that much information on the web. by the way, this saw has "Disston" misspelled on the spine and it is correctly spelled on the medallion.
Thank you for your time,

[Scribbly Gum]

Hello SW and welcome to the forum.
Your saw sounds like a real piece of woodworking history.
Ray G is our Backsaw guru so he might have better information for you, but in the meantime there is the excellent Disstonian Institute as a first reference.
See here:
Disstonian Institute.com -- Online Reference of Disston Saws (http://www.disstonianinstitute.com/)
Usually a picture or two is of enormous help in assisting inquiries like yours and they aren't difficult to add. Simply go to the Manage Attachments button of the Reply menu and take it from there.
Cheers
SG

[SW1864]

SG, thanks for the info. I read elsewhere (30 minutes after making my post) that a gentleman discussed this same question regarding only one "s" in Disston. I've emailed him and should get a reply. He himself stated it was very rare and seemed as confused as I am. Thanks also for the instructions on uploading pictures.

[RayG]

Hi SW,

The best guy for this job would be Phil Baker, have a look at saw #11 on this page.

Disston Backsaw - Back and Handle Dating by Philip Baker (http://www.wkfinetools.com/contrib/pBaker/datingDisston/datDisston-04.asp)


Regards
Ray

[SW1864]

Ray:

Thanks for the information. One thing for sure, it's mid 1840's and somewhat rare. The odd thing is why this has happened on more than one saw? I have to ask myself how many more are out there other than these two? Who knows. Thanks again and take care.