Thread: New To Restoring Handsaws

Originally Posted by Morbius

It seems that Somax has discontinued the sets with the magnifying lenses.
Drats!!!!

This Stanley 15-640 (black one) is the basis I am guessing for the Somax magnifier model ...




The mag part is missing ... I don't know how useful it would be ... ?
I suppose I could cut up a plastic magnifier to fit in there.

Cheers,
Paul

Just buy one of those headband magnifiers from McJing's. Best $16 I ever spent - I use it a lot, not just for setting & filing small teeth, but for anything where I need to see fine detail.

Chuck the silly side lights that come with them, they just add unnecessary weight.....
Cheers,

I've been in touch with Stuart Tierney, an Aussie tool seller based in Japan (Tools From Japan), and he tells me that he can get these, with the magnifying lens if we want them. It would be nice to spend less than $3300 to get a pair of these I am going to place an order, and have suggested that he makes these available on his site. Looking at his prices for the sets with the lenses, it should be cheaper than buying the non-lens set from Canada or the UK! Once you factor in postage, that should make the savings even bigger!

He says he's seen pictures of the Somax saw vice, but never seen one. Now, he's in the business.... I am guessing that the pictures I have seen may be of a concept product than something that made it to production. Well, so much for an otherwise damned-fine-plan.

Craig

Originally Posted by Morbius

I've been in touch with Stuart Tierney, an Aussie tool seller based in Japan (Tools From Japan), and he tells me that he can get these, with the magnifying lens if we want them. It would be nice to spend less than $3300 to get a pair of these I am going to place an order, and have suggested that he makes these available on his site. Looking at his prices for the sets with the lenses, it should be cheaper than buying the non-lens set from Canada or the UK! Once you factor in postage, that should make the savings even bigger!

He says he's seen pictures of the Somax saw vice, but never seen one. Now, he's in the business.... I am guessing that the pictures I have seen may be of a concept product than something that made it to production. Well, so much for an otherwise damned-fine-plan.

Craig

Fence Furniture was contemplating a group buy from "Tools From Japan". Perhaps if these saw sets are available they could be purchased in the group buy?

I am still waiting for my files to arrive from Canada, and waiting to hear back from Tools From Japan about the saw sets.

While I've been waiting, I have been planning to build my saw vice, and found a couple more eBay treasures that I thought people here would enjoy:

The first is an odd saw vice, which is different from any that I have seen before in my limited experience, it is tapered, to match the shape of an mid-sized rip or crosscut saw:

$(KGrHqR,!jYE650+ky(LBO+P2GMpDQ~~60_57.jpg

The second is more conventional, but has a very clever tightening mechanism which can be made in the shop without buying anything

$T2eC16h,!w0E9szN,9wRBRcowSsyfw~~60_57.jpg Side view of saw vice.
$T2eC16N,!y0E9s2S5uC+BRcowOp7vw~~60_57.jpg Clever cam-based clamping mechanism.

Regards,

Craig

Gotta love those Ebay pics - the person who set the saw up in the first pic must know something about saw sharpening that I don't.

And the 6 foot crosscut saw in the backsaw vise is a hoot; it's what my old pot used to call 'a boy on a man's errand' ......

I do like seeing these old vises, though, there must be infinite ways of making saw clamps that do the job.

Cheers,

Originally Posted by IanW

Gotta love those Ebay pics - the person who set the saw up in the first pic must know something about saw sharpening that I don't.

I always start by jointing the back.
How do you think we ended up with all these swayback saws?

Paul

In the first vice the user was restoring the nib

Originally Posted by Pac man

In the first vice the user was restoring the nib

Of course, so obvious now you've pointed it out. What a dolt I am!

Jointing the back was a good suggestion Paul, but I think nib restoration is even better......

Well,

As most of the parts have arrived, and I finally have a set of saw files, I need to build my vice.

I have decided to use an old double-door frame that I have had lying around for a couple of years made of meranti or something similar. It's about an inch and a half thick where it counts, so I'll be able to plane it down to the correct size.

I have two pieces at present, both at 70 cm in length.

IMG_4426.jpg The piece to the right shows the profile of the wood from the old door frame. Trimmed down a little, that should provide a nice bit of relief for the edge of the saw blade, while leaving it thick enough to support the teeth while they are being filed. I am tempted to reinforce this with some steel bar stock as I am a chronic over-engineerer.

IMG_4427.jpg This just shows that I have to trim a bit away so the teeth will clear the vice.

Craig

Today I took some time out to start cutting the pieces to build the vice.

IMG_4427.jpg The wood needs to be trimmed so that the blade will be accessible when the blade is clamped.
IMG_4464.JPG Here the wood is ready for a bit of shaping on a sled for my thicknesser.
IMG_4465.jpg Correct thickness achieved with use of my thicknesser and then my trusty Stanley #6. Now for some trimming.
IMG_4466.jpg Trimming the bottom off nice and neat.
IMG_4467.jpg In desperate need of a bit more handplane work...
IMG_4468.jpg This gives you an idea of the length of the vice.
IMG_4469.jpg Vice jaws with 45 degree angle cut.

IMG_4472.jpg Tools ready for tomorrow's efforts

Craig

Looking good Craig,

I will really have to make myself a proper vice. I use a makeshift something every time and the amount of time I've spent cobbling something together I could have made the proper thing four or five times times.

Kind of a Monday Night Show n'Tell but here is the 28" S&J 4pt thumbhole (and a 7/8 mathieson skew shoulder plane ) that I picked up yesterday for $10.

I'm on record as saying I love my older S&Js and am less than enthusiastic about my younger examples. I like this one - nice taper, good spring and not overly heavy. It has the 'over 160 years experience' badge which puts it before the war in theory but who knows... in any case it is old enough to be worth a tenner.

Cheers
Matt
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1375078247.201093.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1375078260.435422.jpg

My saw sets arrived last night from Tools From Japan, and worked out to cost about $55.00 Australian in total. That is a silver and blue Somax saw set with magnifying lenses included, much as Berin suggested, they seem be be based in the old Stanley (not that I can vouch for this with my limited expertise). I'll post pictures after Father's Day - apparently they are my present

Work on my saw vice progresses - I cut the legs on the weekend then planned the wood (it's recycled hardwood from a 120 year old house in Yass) and discovered the lovely grain I'll grab some pictures soon. I also started cutting the mortises (after the kids go to sleep) to attach the legs using a LN Butt-Mortise plane and have been having a hoot - a lot quieter than using my palm router.

I have already ordered Isaac's Rakemaker II and am looking forward to seeing it arrive in the post.

Craig

Picture of the wood grain:

IMG_4479.jpg

Picture of the mortises being cut:

IMG_4480.jpg

I still have a way to go, and I am taking my time. However I am having a lot of fun along the way

Craig