Disston rehab question re: etching

[Danny Thompson]

My father was sorting through his tools the other day and pulled out an old rusty saw. He thought it might be ready for the landfill, but I stopped him short. I thought I recognized a silver button on the handle and, sure enough, it was a Disston.

I asked if I could check it out. My best guess is its a D8. The button reads Disston Canada and, to my surpirse, through the rust I can see a hint of the ornate etching on the face of the blade.

I've seen many recommended techniques for removing the rust--sanding, citric acid bath, electrolysis--but I can't tell what effect they may have on the etching.

Is there any way to remove the rust and still preserve the etching?

[Rick Whitehead]

Yes, there is. Remove the handle, lay the blade on a flat surface, and sand the blade with 320 grit wet-or-dry sandpaper with a sanding block. You can use mineral spirits or WD-40 as a lubricant.If the rust is heavy, carefully scrape it with a razor blade scraper first.Go slow and wipe off the blade frequently. When you get the rust off, stop.
The sanding block is key to keeping the etch.If you use just the sandpaper by hand, you'll sand down into the etch, instead of across it.
Reassemble the saw , sharpen it, and make some sawdust!
Rick

[Bill Brehme]

Just by coincidence, this afternoon, I happened by a rusty ole D-8!
It was quite by accident... I was going to the flea market to look for tools (rust). Well, I accidently passed my turnoff and had to turn around in a parking lot, it turned out to be a crumbly little used tool store (pawn shop type affair, but only tools). I couldnt hardly find a servicable tool in the place. They had a small stack of handsaws that I missed my first time around. And like you said - I saw the Disston medallion on one of them and if you look real hard you could see D-8 through the rust. They charged me $4.99 for it! @#$%camoflagegloat@#$% It has a slight bend towards the toe... Sigh... guess I have to pull out the Smalser article and try to straighten it out (hope I dont mess it up!)

On a previous saw, to remove the rust, I used a razor to remove the rough stuff then sandpaper and MS to clean it up, but then I followed up with the fine Rust Eraser... I'm pretty impressed w/ those. Not sure if that would affect the etching

On that particular saw I believe the etching had either been previously removed, or was never there at all. I was deliberately trying to 'sneak up' on the etching but never found any sign of any, it was a disston carcass crosscut... so who knows???

Just my .02 and change. Hope this helps cuz thats what I'm gonna try on mine!

[mike holden]

Search for a Bob Smalser post "new life for an Old Saw - Advanced Filing and Restoration" - in it he discusses using gun bluing and sand paper to restore an etching. Quite a spectacular change in appearance!
Mike

[Danny Thompson]

Thanks guys. I'll give it a shot.

[Gary Herrmann]

Just by coincidence, this afternoon, I happened by a rusty ole D-8!

Good luck on straightening it, Bill. But for $4.99, its definitely worth the risk.