Thread: Sandvik saw

I have the blade of the plastic handled version of that saw laying around awaiting a handle. Bought the saw way back in 1975. It was my only handsaw for many years but something got to the plastic and the handle became all gummy. Apart from a couple of hardpoints it is the only panel saw I ever bought new so perhaps its time it got a new lease of life.
Regards
John

I do like the Sandvik sea dragon, or whatever it's supposed to be.

Hi John and Bill. The guy who gave me the saw bought it when he started his apprenticeship which if I have guessed his age right, could have been around a similar time. Was there always so little blade under the handle? As to the dragons, I think they are a step up from wheat

I owned a Sandvik saw some years back, and, as I recall, yes, the handle covered most of the blade at the heel.

Look at the toe: if it's very, very narrow top to bottom, the saw may have had many sharpenings.

Originally Posted by Mountain Ash

.... Yet to sharpen...

I'll be interested to hear how that goes. I've read a few times that Sandvik saws were tempered on the hard side, so don't be surprised if you find it is tough on your file.

I'd also be interested to hear how it goes when you put it into harness if it is a tough one. It's logical to expect a harder saw to last longer, but I don't notice anything strikingly different about the couple of harder saws I have vs some that are softer (as judged by their resistance to a file). But I don't use them often & consistently enough to really compare. If you start using this saw a lot, you may be able to make a good assessment on how it wears....?
Cheers,
Ian

Salko had his Sandvik up for sale recently; one owner from new and properly cared for. He would be in a pretty good position to answer any questions.

Originally Posted by Mountain Ash

Hi John and Bill. The guy who gave me the saw bought it when he started his apprenticeship which if I have guessed his age right, could have been around a similar time. Was there always so little blade under the handle? As to the dragons, I think they are a step up from wheat

The Sandviks tended towards the more modern lines so the blades were not as full as older style saws. I dont think your's has had too much filed away. BTW I bought mine at the time as I thought the dragon looked cool. Should have got the wood handled one but it was about a pound more than the plastic. My dad being a joiner just muttered "should have got a Disston".
Regards
John

Originally Posted by orraloon

...... "should have got a Disston".....

Maybe! If we're talking about the mid-sixties to early seventies, I think you could probably make a case that the Sandviks were a better saw than the run-of-the-mill Disstons of the day. I reckon the race to the bottom for hand tools was well under way by then.

Did a plastic handle make that much difference to the price? I remember a Speare & Jackson saw costing me around 3 or 4 quid around 1965, but my memory is a bit hazy, but then again, the basic wage was less than 20 quid a week, so it couldn't have been much more. Of course, I would have bought the cheapest saw in the line (a more discriminating approach to buying hand tools was still a good dozen years away ) and it was certainly not a refined tool by any measure - tapered blade? Whassat??.

And this may give you a chuckle; in the 6 or more years I had it, I never once had it sharpened! I didn't use it as much as I would use a hand saw nowadays, but I was also much less concerned about what I took a saw to. I had just discovered veneered particle-board, & sawed up many sheets of the stuff for shelving, coffee table tops, etc, so it must have been in a rather sorry state by the time it went missing.

I think both my woodworking & my respect for tools has improved a little since then....

Cheers

I started my Carpentry Apprenticeship in late 1969. For the first few weeks of employment I borrowed some of my Dad's hand tools to use until I earned enough money to by my own. He had a 26" timber handled 8TPI hand saw which needed sharpening. The Foreman at the time offered to sharpen it for me and had quite a time. He eventually had to leave the saw in direct sunlight for some time before he could apply the saw file. There were no markings visible through the patina to give away its brand. The Foreman persevered with the sharpening process and when he finished it he announced that it had to be a Sandvic because it was soooo hard and brittle because a few teeth succumbed to the filing and fell off. Dad had built 2 houses with the saw and I never bothered to ask him of its origins. I am guessing but Dad would have bought that saw after the war so who knows what material went into the saw plate

As time went on I bought a 10 TPI Panel Saw, a 7 TPI Hand Saw and a 4½ TPI Rip Saw all of which are Disston D8. Over the years I have picked up a few Hand saws (as you do) one of them is a Philadelphia Disston with really thin saw plate. I have yet to finish making a Tennon Saw and 2 Dovetail Saws from the purchase made from that saw maker guy in America (another Forum group buy)

On the subject of buying tools at the time, it was recommended to buy "Shark" branded Chisels (Berg) for fine work and Titans for general work. I still have the first few Bergs I bought back then but the Titans got lost along the way so I don't have any but I have picked up a few Wards and Marples plus the HSS 6 or so set from the group buy from the Forum

Originally Posted by Chief Tiff

Salko had his Sandvik up for sale recently; one owner from new and properly cared for. He would be in a pretty good position to answer any questions.

Hi Ian. Looks like the same amount of meat on both his and my saw. Chambezio, now I'm a little worried about the sharpening.

Originally Posted by Mountain Ash

..... now I'm a little worried about the sharpening.

No point worrying until you actually try it, MA. The sharpening won't be the big worry (though you might like to put your ear-protectors on to soften the file screeches!), setting will be the real test. I'd try a couple of teeth under the handle & apply a light set - if they crack or snap off, it's time to try the lying-in-the-sun trick, so we'll have to wait 'til summer to hear the final chapter of the saga in that case.

It must've worked for some people 'cos it's a very common story that I've known since I was a kid - you'd get your ears boxed quick-smart if you left a saw lying in the sun, even for 5 minutes! But I had a saw given to me years ago that I tried setting & broke every tooth I applied the setting pliers to. I left it in the Brisbane sun all day, turned it over, & cooked the other side the next day. Teeth still snapped on every attempt. I didn't ascertain what breed of saw it was, unfortunately, but it was a post-war saw from my memory of the handle, so the brand may not have been etched on.

Cheers,
Ian

Seems to me, if you could modify a saw's temper by leaving it in the sun, there would be stories in the news fairly regularly of people, wallabies, etc., spontaneously combusting on a hot day. Of course, y'all down there in Oz are a tough lot, so maybe you're fire-proof, too.

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Sharpening done. Kept the 15° rake and increased fleam to 20°. Used a well used Bahco file but cleaned it first with a file brush. Sharpened really quickly, one stroke mostly enough, maybe a little but extra to remove the tiniest bit of flat left on the tooth - almost as quick as my old S+J saws, they seem to be the "softest". IanW you were right, no point in worrying

Originally Posted by IanW

The sharpening won't be the big worry (though you might like to put your ear-protectors on to soften the file screeches!), setting will be the real test. I'

Cheers,
Ian

Set was still okay so didn't alter it. As to screeching, I am still yet to have this happen. Maybe it is the plywood saw holder I made (or maybe I am starting to lose some of the upper register of hearing) but so far no dramas.