Wanna see some purdy wood?

[MarvW]

Thanks Phil. I was initially going to wheat carve the part that is forward of the grip hole, but having so much difficulty doing the hand grip, I decided to only do what I did. When I first started doing the carving, I wished I had not started, but once you cut the first wheat, there is no turning back.

[MarvW]

Hi Curt,

Yes, I used my carving tool. That's the only way I know to do it.

When filing the teeth, the metal felt just like the 1095 spring steel that present day saws are being made of. I think the metal that the blade was made from is the best part of the Buck Bros. saw. The teeth that were on the saw were so funky they only tore through the wood. I had to grind them off and start with a new edge.

[MarvW]

The flat top? Good question...

I call it a "cover-top" sorta like the Disston D8,s and D23,s. I've never been fond of the mortise that all backsaws have. I've had to repair numerous old backsaw handles that had cracks and breaks in the area of that top side mortise. It's a weak point with the basic handle design. Most backsaws will have the handle screwed only to the blade that allows flexing of the handle around the end of the back inside the mortise. It all works fine until the teeth get dull and the user continues to use the saw and the saw binds in the kerf. When that happens, the handle can flex sideways and puts excess stress on the wood on both sides of the mortise.

By making the handle with the "flat top" and the mortise on the bottom, the problem is eliminated, even when screws are used.

With this saw, the wood back is glued into the bottom side mortise and the blade is epoxied into the groove in the back and into the slot in the handle.

Here's a picture of what it looks like before it's epoxied together.

[MarvW]

Quote:

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That upper horn looks a little like the head of a duck.

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Hey, it does doesn't it?

That shape fits snugly between my thumb and forefinger on the top of my hand and is the most comfortable handle I've ever grabbed onto. The distance between the top of the radius on the underside of the upper horn and the top of the lower horn is 3-1/4", the dimension of my hand. Both horns are a little thicker than they need to be so they can be made wider for a bigger hand. If I ever make another one, I'll make it with smaller horns, like the one in my avatar.

[Timberwolf]

I like it...I'll bet it supports the blade better than those with two screws just through the plate.

[MarvW]

Thanks Jack,

Yes, it is very firm and solid. Nothing to loosen or flex. It's all one piece.

[eg54string]

Beautiful work, Marv.

I like how the fine wheat carving has been executed. It seems to be "natural" to the grain, which is also very nice.

And then it is part of an innovative, functional, design.

Super cool.

Eric.

[T.J. Jones]

Nice, very nice!

[MarvW]

Hey Eric, how ya do'n?

Thanks for the comps.... Have you made any of your handles 1" thick? This is the first one I've tried it on. I like the feel of it, but not any better than the more traditional thickness of 7/8".

[MarvW]

Thanks T.J.

How ya do'n? How is that remodeled Disston D4 working for you? How long ago was that? Three years? Just checked... Sept. 2011