New handles made for two of my older saws

 

After an awful lot of discussion we cut the cord to the TV. No more cable, just programs we can stream on the internet. For Ann this has meant binge-watching the BBC's Call of the Midwife. I have been watching every Utube video on saw sharpening and saw making that I can find. Some of this knowledge was put to use two weeks ago when we lost power for four days. I spent my time sharpening hand saws by candle light out in my shop. This got a great laugh when Bob stopped by. Very eighteenth century. It was a cloudy day so what else could I do.

 

Watching Andrew Milacci's U-tube video on making a dovetail saw from a cheaper gents saw inspired me to retrofit several of my older, but not antique, saws with new but old-pattern handles. The Blackburn Tools site, www.blackburntools.com, has a number of traditional saw handle profile templates, drawn to scale, which may be printed off and then used to make a new handle for one of your saws. In the photo you see one of the templates which has been first, glued to a handle blank, and then second, used as a pattern for drilling and curring out the handle. Shaping the handle blank after cutting it out with the band-saw was done using a small carving knife. Nothing fancy or difficult. Frankly, cleaning the new handle up with sand paper took more time than the time spent roughing out the handle with the carving knife.

 

The split saw-nuts used on the back saw were purchased from Blackburn Tools as was a saw-nut screw driver made by Blackburn.

Next on the list of to-do's is to install a new saw back on a Sorby Kangaroo medallion back-saw which I picked up at an estate sale. Readers wanting more information on British made back-saws can visit Back-saws.org. It is a great site and I highly recommend it if you are looking for more information about an older back-saw in your collection.

 

Thanks for dropping by.  STB