One Saw a Week (More or Less): 26" Disston No. 16 Crosscut 8 TPI

[Jonathan McCullough]

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss199/Jonathryn/IMG_4502.jpgAt this pace I'll never get through my famous pile-o-saws, but it's the season for illness, busy-ness, and coooold-ness out in the garage where I fix these old saws, so pardon the tardiness of this installment. Submitted mostly for reference is a classic Disston No. 16 from around the turn of the century. It came to me in mostly good shape, with more patina than rust and no pitting, a faint etch, and a broken upper horn, which I repaired, as well as a refinish on the handle. I don't believe this saw was ever used, and I mean ever: it's still sharp from what appears to be its original sharpening in Philadelphia one hundred or so years ago. EDIT: Embarassingly, I forgot to mention that the apple wood to repair this horn was kindly donated by a fellow SMC-er who wishes to remain anonymous. It's been forever since I've been able to get to these saws and I'd intended to give a shout-out for another handle that's under repair, but the wood on that horn came from that nice piece of apple, so it's only right and fair to say thanks! END EDIT.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss199/Jonathryn/IMG_4505.jpgI regard the Disston No. 7 as being a sort of Anglo-American Ur-Saw, drawing on Disston's British pedigree, and the No. 16 as a refinement of that basic Ur-Saw. In many respects, I think the No. 16 and saws like it are pretty close to being the ideal saw. The handle is comfortable and has a nice hang like the No. 7, the toe is sufficiently wide to give the saw heft and authority through the entire cutting stroke (something that I find lacking in "Lightweight"-pattern saws), and the steel is polished and better original quality than the No. 7--more like a No. 12. What I call the "rounded skirt" at the heel of the saw is pleasing to the eye--giving a rather refined feeling overall.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss199/Jonathryn/IMG_4507.jpgDespite being considered not--uncommon, I've had a hard time finding these, and the prices on well-known internet auction sites has been a bit puzzling. This one is pin-straight and has a pleasing ring that "warbles" like a Theremin, which indicates effective tensioning. I think it's likely to go into The Collection.

[Ron Williams]

Beautiful saw I would love to have one like it

[Dan Andrews]

That does have to be just about the ideal all-round carpenter's crosscut saw. Love that wheat.

[Paul Incognito]

I have a couple of 16's, they are beautiful saws. I like them a lot.
Yours is definitely a keeper. Nice job on the horn repair!
PI

[Tony Zaffuto]

Very nice job! The 16 is my favorite saw and I have more than a couple of them, as well as one of Mike W's interpretations of a 16 (one that Marv. W. applied wheat carving far nicer than Mr. Disston's guys ever did!). I love the "let-in" handle of the 16 as it just feels so natural.

[Jim Koepke]

That is a pretty saw.

I usually just clean mine up enough to use them. One of my rip saws does have a damaged handle. Maybe I will fix the horn on that one.

My biggest fear is that it could become addicting. I know fixing up old planes can be.

jtk

[Jonathan McCullough]

Thanks guys. I'd definitely encourage anyone to fix up an old saw if you find one. The price of materials for good results is probably less than for planes, and although I like to fix planes, I honestly get more satisfaction putting these old beater saws back to use than the planes. Not to anthropomorphize, but saws can be more finicky, have more character, and seem to be more different from one another than planes. But that may be just me. Part of the reason I have such a large inventory of rusty-saws-to-be-salvaged is that whenever I see one I've never used, or is unusual, it just can't be left to rust out there in the wild or the back of someone's pickup truck. This one cost $5. It seems that a lot of people just shake their heads though because they can't identify them, so that's part of the reason I'm cataloguing mostly oddballs.

[Bill Nenna]

Thanks for sharing the pics and details Jonathan. Now I'm excited looking at and reading about yours. I just bought a 28in #16 Rip Saw that I haven't received yet. I too, have been restoring planes and your right, it gets expensive, so I have to limit to what I can actually use. This stuff grows on a person. I would love to round out with a fine old 8pt crosscut and maybe a finer trim saw.

[Tony Zaffuto]

As I said in an earlier post, the #16 is my favorite saw, with the #7 following closely! The let-in handle just places your hand perfectly and the straight back aids in cutting straight & square (at least for me).

[Klaus Kretschmar]

Very beautiful saw, Jonathan. Do you have a before pic, too? I love to see the metamorphosis of an old tool by being restored. You did a good job on the horn repair.

Klaus

[Jonathan McCullough]

Hey Klaus, thanks for that. I should take "before" pictures. Most of my saws are a horrendous mess before I fix them up, but this one wasn't--it was in pretty good shape, minus the horn. The etch on this one is okay, but it's hard to capture in a photograph. Thing with a lot of old saws is that you can only guess what's under the grime. Sometimes saws that look great have pitting, and sometimes a saw that's black and grimy is in wonderful shape. I'll try to take some "before" pics next time.

Here's some odd, rare, or unusual saws I've been working on lately--a very early Simonds No. 4, a Richardson No. 13, a C.E. Jennings from Port Chester, NY, and another saw I suspect is either a C.E. Jennings or a Harvey Peace. They're in various states of rehabilitation.

http://i575.photobucket.com/albums/ss199/Jonathryn/Saws of Distinction/DSC03930.jpg