Rarity of shorter D8 Disston saws?

[C. in Indy]

Well, during lunch hour and hearing some Yuletide tunes at the nearby freezing Antique mall, I found a nice little Disston D8, I think it's an 18-inch blade; panel saw.

Wondering how rare these tiny D8's are? It has a blade bend that will need work, but I think it's save-able.



After sharpening a few used cross-cut panel-saws, I still haven't had one cut better than my little bruised-up Atkins No. 70 mini-saw. This one has real magic in it:



Maybe the little Disston will finally match it? Comments welcome.

[Joe Bailey]

True 18" D-8 panel saws are relatively rare.

I'm highly skeptical that there's any magic in your Atkins -- (I'm going to guess it's inconsistent sharpening that explains it)

Given your location, any bias you may have towards the Atkins is understandable (and perhaps even admirable)

[Arlin Eastman]

Chris

I like it. It looks very manageable and easy to use.

Arlin

[Daniel S]

I don't see nearly as many short saws around as 26". I don't go out rust hunting much any more, but would see them from time to time in flea markets. I never measured any to see if I saw any 18" saws though. I found this 20" in Lebanon a couple of years ago..

[C. in Indy]

Daniel, I stand corrected.... my 'find' was a 20-inch (not 18 inch) panel saw this week, quite like yours. I started cleaning it up as seen below. I've mostly worked out the bends by rolling and pressing against a variety of fat PVC tubes and maple rolling pins I keep around. Once I get it sharpened and set, I don't notice the remaining waves very much.

Joe, the Atkins-70's "magic" -- I believe -- has to do with a very thin plate (and they get bent up) which I don't usually see on many panel saws, including other Atkins small-tote models. This recent D8 may stand a chance to compete! For example both of these saws, at the top furthermost corner, have plate thicknesses about 0.018".

[C. in Indy]

I have now sharpened the Disston D8 20" to match the Atkins No. 70 18" as closely as possible. Both are 10ppi crosscuts.

I did a shootout of all my crosscuts; here are my impressions:

Stanley Sharptooth (at the rear): Very fast, but fat kerf.

Atkins No. 401 "The Four Hundred" Shippoint (2nd from rear): Solid performance, but nothing much more to add.

Disston D8 20" (2nd from front): Nice, thinner kerf, blade does rattle some perhaps since I didn't get it ultra-flat.

Atkins No. 70 18" (at front): Still the "magical" best saw I have. Thin kerf, blade doesn't rattle, cuts very fast, feels super. Might have something to do with the hang angle. A complete pleasure and such a handsome saw, I have yet to top it!

[TGW]

I have a very small Disston swayback panel saw in the attic. I think it is a D8 maybe 20 inches long. I spent 2 euros on the damned thing before I realized that there was no room for my rather big hand.

I also have a 20" or 22" Disston number 12. A nice little rip saw for long tennons and other jobs where the back saw cannot go deep enough.

[Bibliophile 13]

Yeah, you don't see many of those shorter panel saws in the wild. And some of the ones you DO see are short because the tips have broken off at some point. You can usually tell the ones that have been owner-shortened, but if the filing job is well done, it's not always easy to spot at a glance.

[Pariah]

Here is a 16" D8.



And even rarer, a 14" No 7.



The overall length of the saws is about the same. Both the saws are original and unmodified. The handles are big enough to be used.



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Sean

[Martin S.]

Nice first post.

Welcome to WN.