Are These Worth Restoring?

[Bob Winkler]

Please excuse my ignorance- I'm only now just starting to seek the "quieter" side of woodworking. Adria saws and LN/LV planes are starting to speak to me.

Now to my topic. Many years ago, I was given 2 old handsaws by my wife's wonderful grandfather. I'd love to be able to use these saws in my shop. Both are Keystone K5 Defenders (made by Disston). I'm pretty sure that they were an economy saw, and have no great monetary value. One has an 8 stamped below the handle, the other says *1/2 (I can't read the first letter). I think one is a rip and the other a crosscut saw.

My question is this: can these be restored to function well? If so, is it worth doing? If so, even though I could tackle the dirt and grime, how can I get them sharpened right?

I certainly appreciate any advice/insight that you guys can provide.

Thanks, Bob

[Richard Gillespie]

http://members.brandx.net/free/websites/bbrode/woodwork/sharp.html

Here is one of many saw sharpening instructional sites on the internet. Both saws look great and look like they will give you great service. The one that reads 1/2 probably is a 5-1/2 rip saw. The other is a general crosscut. If it had a higher tooth count it would be for finer work.

Sharp hand tools give a great deal of enjoyment in their use. Careful though, they are addictive.

[Tom LaRussa]

Bob,

Our resident hand-saw expert is Leif Hansen. He builds saws from scratch -- grinds the teeth, sharpens them, the whole nine yards.

Here's his website. http://www.norsewoodsmith.com/index-main.html Look for "Handsaw Basics" and the like.

As to whether they are worth restoring, of course they are, unless they are so rusted they will fall apart in use. :D

[Dave Anderson NH]

Hi Bob- While they certainly aren't top of the line saws from Disston, they are certainly serviceable and in relatively good shape. I'd do a bit of cleanup on the blades and start making arrangements to learn to sharpen them. They are of better quality than most saws made in the last 30 years or so and are well worth the time and effort.

[Bob Smalser]

Restore?

All they need is a wipe with 0000 steel wool and WD-40 and a tad of filing.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=8198&highlight=hand+sharpening

[Leif Hanson]

Restore?

All they need is a wipe with 0000 steel wool and WD-40 and a tad of filing.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=8198&highlight=hand+sharpening
Yup. Like mentioned above, they are not Disston's top line and won't ever be worth a large amount of cash (in our lifetime - who knows about the next generation?), but they are definitely useable - better than most of what you can get today, even. Are they worth doing? For me they would be. They are nice saws, well taken care of, and you can trace the lineage. Well worth the effort!

If you want to fix the handle of the crosscut saw up a bit after hitting the blade with steel wool and WD-40 as per Bob's suggestion:

Take some Formula 409 or whatever similar household cleaner you have handy (mineral spirits if that doesn't work) and a rag and/or a stiff bristle brush (not a metal one) after the handle if you want to clean the grime and grunge off. That's all you would need to do...

If you want to touch up the beat up parts of the crosscut saw handle, you can put a little BLO and/or shellac just on the damaged areas - certainly not necessary, though, and I wouldn't take the handle off to do it either. It's always best if you can get by without taking the handle off on any saw. I only do it when it's really needed.

When finished, sharpen them, give each a couple coats of wax (simple paste wax will do fine), and have at some lumber!

HTH
Leif