Matthew Hutchinson477
05-21-2018, 8:08 PM
386236
Looks good to the untrained eye, right? Well, it is a nice plate/spine to be fair. It's the 4-bolt model rather than the 3-bolt, pretty straight, Stanley SW etch, etc. But like most things in this bid'ness there are subtle things to look out for. Turns out it's waaaay out of joint and filing it will be a Sisyphean task but that's another story. Here's what's causing the problem I am not sure about:
386235
Spine is hammered down more than halfway onto the plate. Of the few old backsaws I have in working condition none of them have the spine seated more than 1/4" onto the plate. A 16" Disston No. 4 only allows about 1/8" before the spine hits the bottom of the handle mortise. I am visualizing a literal can of worms opening as I make an offhand gesture about how a saw spine should fit. Back to bid'ness, though. I don't know that a deep-seated spine is an issue on its own but it does cause problems with the handle fit. In this case, I have both the broken original handle from this saw and a nicer applewood handle. Neither of them will fit unless the spine gets tapped upward a good ways--probably to the point that it is grasping about 1/4" of the plate.
I've removed spines before without issue but the tightness of this one combined with its length is causing me problems. Here's my patent-pending, proprietary spine removal method method:
386237 386242
The clamp keeps the blocks from sliding up and over the spine. I pinch the saw plate in a vise and alternate tapping the wooden blocks. It has worked quite well for me in the past. Due to the issues mentioned above, though, when I got one end to budge a little bit the rest of the spine stayed seated tightly. In other words, I bent the spine along its vertical axis.
386241
This picture doesn't show it too well-the spine is not bent badly-but hopefully you can see what I mean. On most backsaws this might not be a big deal but on my Wards miter box (basically a Stanley 2358) the bottom of the saw spine rides on roller bearings. So if the spine isn't straight on its vertical axis it will rise or dip as it slides through the posts.
Now, background out of the way, does anyone have a method for removing, or at least adjusting, a spine like this without bending it? Unfortunately at this point I imagine I should remove it completely so that I can blow away my precious free time getting frustrated by how difficult it is to make a stupid piece of metal straight.
And, just to shake that can of worms, for future reference is a deep-seated spine something to be concerned about? Or should I have just cut the mortise in the handle deeper to allow it to fit with the spine as-is? I see mention of the issue on various blogs or posts but no one seems to explain, if it is the case, why the spine should not be hammered too far down onto the plate.
Thanks!
Looks good to the untrained eye, right? Well, it is a nice plate/spine to be fair. It's the 4-bolt model rather than the 3-bolt, pretty straight, Stanley SW etch, etc. But like most things in this bid'ness there are subtle things to look out for. Turns out it's waaaay out of joint and filing it will be a Sisyphean task but that's another story. Here's what's causing the problem I am not sure about:
386235
Spine is hammered down more than halfway onto the plate. Of the few old backsaws I have in working condition none of them have the spine seated more than 1/4" onto the plate. A 16" Disston No. 4 only allows about 1/8" before the spine hits the bottom of the handle mortise. I am visualizing a literal can of worms opening as I make an offhand gesture about how a saw spine should fit. Back to bid'ness, though. I don't know that a deep-seated spine is an issue on its own but it does cause problems with the handle fit. In this case, I have both the broken original handle from this saw and a nicer applewood handle. Neither of them will fit unless the spine gets tapped upward a good ways--probably to the point that it is grasping about 1/4" of the plate.
I've removed spines before without issue but the tightness of this one combined with its length is causing me problems. Here's my patent-pending, proprietary spine removal method method:
386237 386242
The clamp keeps the blocks from sliding up and over the spine. I pinch the saw plate in a vise and alternate tapping the wooden blocks. It has worked quite well for me in the past. Due to the issues mentioned above, though, when I got one end to budge a little bit the rest of the spine stayed seated tightly. In other words, I bent the spine along its vertical axis.
386241
This picture doesn't show it too well-the spine is not bent badly-but hopefully you can see what I mean. On most backsaws this might not be a big deal but on my Wards miter box (basically a Stanley 2358) the bottom of the saw spine rides on roller bearings. So if the spine isn't straight on its vertical axis it will rise or dip as it slides through the posts.
Now, background out of the way, does anyone have a method for removing, or at least adjusting, a spine like this without bending it? Unfortunately at this point I imagine I should remove it completely so that I can blow away my precious free time getting frustrated by how difficult it is to make a stupid piece of metal straight.
And, just to shake that can of worms, for future reference is a deep-seated spine something to be concerned about? Or should I have just cut the mortise in the handle deeper to allow it to fit with the spine as-is? I see mention of the issue on various blogs or posts but no one seems to explain, if it is the case, why the spine should not be hammered too far down onto the plate.
Thanks!