Posts: 6,128
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2005
Location: Madison, WI
Saw this thumbhole (?) rip Disston and couldn't resist it for $3. But what is it?
Sorry the pictures are upside down but photobucket won't let me rotate them for some reason.
But, the blade is pretty straight, swaybacked, filed rip. The handle seems a little crude except for the thumbhole.
So, what do I have?
Pedro
I miss nested quotes..........
Posts: 6,562
Threads: 2
Joined: Sep 2006
Location: North Florida
Good price on a Disston rip saw. The handle is apple wood and needs a horn repair. The extra hole is for engaging your other hand when ripping long boards. My guess is that it is 5 1/2 PPI. There should be a stamping just off the teeth near the handle.
These are nice saws. Clean it up, sharpen it, and cut away.
===---===---===---===---===---===---===---===---
Please visit my website
splintermaking.com
Posts: 4,342
Threads: 0
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: On my own Ignore List
That looks like a Disston D-8 "Thumbhole" rip saw. The hole in the handle allows the inserting of the left hand thumb to use the saw two-handed.
Posts: 14,985
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2004
Location: Butler, PA
I picked one of those up at a flea market last Fall for $5. Now I'm thinking I got taken.
I don't collect saws, but that one was just unusual enough to catch my eye and the price was right. Based on the medallion, mine was a 1950's vintage saw. Can you tell if there is any etching left on the plate?
If you are going down a river at 2 mph and your canoe loses a wheel, how much pancake mix would you need to shingle your roof?
Posts: 1,045
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2012
Location: In da U.P. of Michigan
These are great saws. I have refurbished and sharpened quite a few of them.
You hold it sort of like this...
Posts: 4,342
Threads: 0
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: On my own Ignore List
They looked like this with an apple handle:
Posts: 10,118
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2006
Location: South Alabama
Yep, D8 Thumbhole rip saw. My first real rip saw was a D8, and though I never really used the thumb hole, it worked well enough. The thin toe is apparently useful for cutting gentle curves, though I've not experimented with that much. Not intentionally, at least.
Steve S.
------------------------------------------------------
Tradition cannot be inherited, and if you want it you must obtain it by great labour.
- T. S. Eliot
Tutorials and Build-Alongs at
The Literary Workshop
Posts: 1,045
Threads: 0
Joined: Aug 2012
Location: In da U.P. of Michigan
I'm working on a Geo H. Bishop version of the thumbhole rip saw right now.
It was pretty rusty, but the plate is nearly full depth and perfectly straight. The handle has no damage, so I was encouraged to give it a try. The rust was so thick, in fact, that somebody's attempt with a wire cup wheel did not reach base metal.
The results so far are a testament to the high quality steel that Bishop used in their saws. Take a look...
Before:
After the first phase of scraping and sanding:
The etch is still visible:
Posts: 4,342
Threads: 0
Joined: Dec 2006
Location: On my own Ignore List
Looking good so far. I was lucky in finding my No. 8 in almost new condition at an estate sale. This was ten years ago when saws were $5.00.
