Thread: Cleaning up two Disstons... or not?

Hi everyone,

Recently I bought an old Disston saw via a Gumtree ad. I didn't really know much about the Disston brand, I just knew it was a brand I had heard of and the saw was five minutes from my house. I paid $40 for it.

Turns out... The saw was an 1888 model 28" D8 crosscut. I have had a couple of people look at it and it has been called "Exceedingly Rare".

Given that this find was so lucky, I decided I wanted to find the rip profile mate, and I would be willing to pay to find the exact match.

I ultimately found the mate in the US and it is in the mail. After the exchange rate I paid over $300 Australian for it. This saw still has most of the original finish on it and is in remarkably good condition. The crosscut saw, on the other hand, is in pretty typical shape for a 127 year old saw. The finish has worn off, the medallion has a patina, and the blade has some surface rust. The handle, however, has no major chips or damage. For a saw that was drastically undervalued by its owner, I would call it in stellar shape.

There is a big part of me that wants to clean up the blades, polish the medallions and nuts, and then sand and refinish the handles. Basically give them a complete overhaul and get them looking as good as these saws possibly can. Treat them like you would an old car from the 50s or something.

Then there is another part of me that is deterred from doing this given the age and scarcity of these saws.

I honestly think I will keep these saws forever, so I feel like I should get them up to a condition I like using, but I'm curious to hear from some people who know more about antique tools regarding whether or not this is just absolute blasphemy and I am totally discrediting the saw's prestige by doing it.

I dunno... basically just any input on the situation.

Thanks in advance!
Luke