Disston Joiner Saw

[rob streeper]

Nice pickup. Must be a few more out there in the hand tool wilderness.
The Disston catalog lists the plate as 18 Gauge. That is 50 thou' or 1.27 mm thick.
That is one hefty blade for a 15 ppi crosscut saw. Definitely a weird beast.

Back when Jim Bode posted his joiners saw I asked him for it's vital statistics. He measured 0.031" (1/32") thick at the toothline and half that at the back.

[bridger]

It looks to me like it could be pretty handy at the bench. Small, light... basically a dovetail saw with no back. It's on my list of tools to make just to try out.

[hiroller]

Back when Jim Bode posted his joiners saw I asked him for it's vital statistics. He measured 0.031" (1/32") thick at the toothline and half that at the back.

Thanks! Can you share the other dimensions?
I wonder how much set they had?

[Heavansabove]

Back when Jim Bode posted his joiners saw I asked him for it's vital statistics. He measured 0.031" (1/32") thick at the toothline and half that at the back.

Rob, that is a lot thinner than the catalog, and comments online suggest that the saw is really thick. The view of the saw on the Utube video looks like more than .015" at the back. One eBay seller indicated that the toothline is thicker than a 28" D8, which is 0.042" on my parially used ones

Gavin, catalog says 16" x 2 3/4" (3/4 is unclear)

[rob streeper]

This is the text of the message from Jim. The blade length is 16".

toe=1 7/16"

heel =2 1/16"

nib is 2 5/8 back

thkness edge 1/32

" back 1/64

I am planning a copy just to test it out and maybe find out what it's good for.

[rob streeper]

No idea on the set. Given the heavy taper it may have had only minimal set, or perhaps none at all.

[hiroller]

Here are some photos of the E.C. Atkins version of the Joiners Saw.
Apparently it was marketed as a “Handy Saw” and file 12 PPI rip.
Pics:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/bshomb...7628045387061/
Blog:
https://lashomb.wordpress.com/tag/atkins/

[Luke Maddux]

Hah, that guy's accent cracks me up. It's what people from my neck of the woods (Tennessee) sound like when they have a more mild accent.

I, of course, don't sound ANYTHING like that...

As if that saw couldn't possibly be any more odd, I genuinely feel like it appears MORE awkward when I see someone holding it. When viewed in proportion to a grown man's hands it is actually larger than I imagined.

So weird...

Cheers,
Luke

[Luke Maddux]

My interest was piqued, so I emailed Peter Taran from vintagesaws.com. He and I have a bit of friendly back and forth occasionally about Disston saws. From what I can tell, he may be the foremost authority on Disston saws alive - almost certainly among people available on the internet.

Here are his comments on the eBay seller's asking price:

I need to move to Australia and sell my hitherto unknown jointer saw collection!

Seriously, they are not that rare. They are not as common as compass saws, but they do turn up. I just attended the largest tool meet in the US last week, and I saw several examples floating around. They are relatively common, and no one really is interested in them. All the major makers made them, and the claim that only 5 are known is ridiculous. I might have 5 in my personal collection alone, and could have had several more if I wanted to just this past week.

And his comments on its utility:

The idea was having a saw that could sneak into tight places when doing larger timber frame type construction. For instance if you had a tenon that had a high shoulder you could use the joiners saw to saw along the post while the joint was assembled and get it perfect. A wider saw might have too much friction in the plate. Not many found its many charms that worthwhile, however.

I do my best not to take any one man's word as gospel, but he definitely knows his stuff and has helped me with a few saw purchases and appraisals in the past.

Hope that helps,
Luke

[hiroller]

Nice work Luke. So are you going to pass the info on to the Ebay seller here?

[Luke Maddux]

Nice work Luke. So are you going to pass the info on to the Ebay seller here?

Honestly, I have dealt with that seller a lot in the past. It took me a while to figure out where he was getting his information regarding the scarcity and value of things, because his prices seemed to go from reasonable to very high quite suddenly. I think most of his information comes from Jim Bode directly, and, given the high profile nature of Jim's site, I doubt he can be reasoned with by a mere woodworker like myself.

Hopefully the length of time that the listing drags out will indicate to him that something is afoot.

[Bushmiller]

Well said Luke.

Regards
Paul

[rob streeper]

Hmm.

http://www.jimbodetools.com/Rare-DIS...es-p46322.html

One of a few, only $US225. The handle looks to be in better condition than others referenced here.

I've gotta make one of these and see what, if anything, it's good for.

[IanW]

.....I've gotta make one of these and see what, if anything, it's good for.....

Seems like it's good for eliciting a bit of chit-chat on woodwork forums......

I've wondered about a few tools & decided I just had to make one & see what they were about, too, Rob, but I can't say this saw piques my interest much, so I think I'll pass & leave it to you......

Cheers,

[Heavansabove]

Seems like it's good for eliciting a bit of chit-chat on woodwork forums......

I've wondered about a few tools & decided I just had to make one & see what they were about, too, Rob, but I can't say this saw piques my interest much, so I think I'll pass & leave it to you......

Cheers,

Ian, here is one for you...
upside down saw handle.jpg
From next Donnelly auction. Description"
A most interesting and unusual PULL-CUT HAND SAW. The distinctively shaped handle is secured to the blade by three rivets. The saw has a distinctive rounded "nib"
and
The saw, which appears not to be of Western origin and cuts on the pull stroke, has a prominent rounded "nib". A review of William Goodman's "History of Woodworking Tools" has no illustrations or photographs of pre-Eighteenth Century saws having the "nib" feature. Two saws, one of Swedish and the other of Dutch origin, both dating from the Eighteenth Century, having what might be called "proto-nibs", are featured on page 146 of that seminal work. Our question is: Is the nib a phenomenon of Western culture that influenced the modification of saws of other cultures or is there a common origin to the "nib", whatever you believe it to be.
Cheers
Peter