Disston Handsaws Made with Alternative Materials

5

D-95

Because Disston and other companies had advanced sawmaking to such a height in quality and efficiency, there was little else for them to improve dramatically on their handsaws. Marketing ideas turned toward changing the materials that went into the saws. A saw's wood and steel have limits in their performance, and compromises need to be made to get the best combination of characteristics from the material. Harder tempered steel holds an edge longer, but is difficult to sharpen with a file, and the sawteeth are likely to snap when set. Wood handles look nice and are comfortable to use, but they are prone to damage and need a finish to protect them.


D-95 handle

 


Busted horn

For a tool manufacturer, wooden handles have certain degree of unpredicatablity and labor intensive work associated with them. The stock of wood needed to be kept in Disston's warehouse for three years while it dried, finishes wear off in use, and there's the damage that inevitably occurs to most saw handles at some point, getting dropped and breaking the horns off.



D-95 etch

Saw manufacturers tried different materials to attract new buyers, improve durability, and cut costs associated with the use of wood. Plastics were being developed in the 1920's and 30's. Bakelite was used to make every consumer product possible. Saw handles were no exception. Disston used it for the handle of the D-18 handsaw, starting in 1925. Another attempt to use alternative materials was the D-55 handsaw, also sold that year. The D-55 featured a stainless steel blade, and while I've never seen one, it doesn't seem a good choice for a saw blade in terms of sharpening or holding an edge. That would be confirmed by the lack of stainless steel saws to be found today.


D-18 handsaw, with bakelite handle, sold in the mid-1920's.

D18 Handsaw
D18 handle

D-95 handle D-95 handle


Victory etch The D-95 saw features a plastic handle, but is not cheap-looking. The handle was made from a material called Tenite, a product owned by Eastman, a company related to Kodak. Disston called the product Disstonite. The D-95 was manufactured from 1935 until the 1950's and was offered in three color combinations. It was switched to a wooden handle in 1955. The Victory theme was dropped from the saw's etch at some point, probably by the end of WWII, note the Morse code symbol for the letter V). Disston called this model the Masterpiece.
Patent on D-95 Handle





Information taken from Disston 1939 and 1940 catalogs:

D-95 Masterpiece 1940 catalog illustration
Disston D-95 Masterpiece
The Disston D-95 Masterpiece Hand Saw is the finest saw ever made.
Streamlined for beauty, action, service! Blade of the finest Disston Steel, perfectly ground, set and filed; polished to a brilliant lustre.
Entirely new design in handle construction. Handle made of the toughest, strongest molded material ever developed for practical industrial purposes. Blade fits snugly into recess of handle and over 4 hollow-molded dowels.
Shield, over dowels, is attached with 4 screws, lock washers and nuts. Cannot work loose.

Color combinations:
Onyx Green and Red Shield;
Brown and Green Shield;
Brown and Orange Shield
Packed individually in an attractive box.

length ppi
Crosscut 24" 8, 10
  26" 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Rip 26" 5 1/2, 6





Information taken from Disston 1942 catalog:

D-95 Masterpiece 1942 catalog illustration
Disston D-95 Masterpiece

Note the change in the etch during WWII.
Other information is the same as the 1939 and 1940 catalogs above.





Information taken from Disston 1945 catalog:

D-95 Masterpiece 1945 catalog illustration
Disston D-95 Masterpiece

Note the change in the etch during WWII.
Other information is the same as the 1942 catalog above.





Information taken from Disston 1953 catalog:

D-95 catalog illustration
D-95 Lightweight Pattern Straight-back

The Disston D-95 Masterpiece Handsaw is stramlined for beauty, action, service. Blade of finest Disston Steel, perfectly ground, striped back, set, and filed; polished to a brilliant lustre. Molded plastic handle, patented, 4 chromium-plated screws, lock washers and nuts. Cannot work loose.
length ppi
Crosscut 26" 8, 10
Rip 26" 5 1/2




Information taken from Disston 1955 catalog:

D-95 1955 catalog illustration
D-95 Lightweight Pattern Straight-back
D-95 Lightweight Pattern The Masterpiece of hand saws. Full carved rosewood handle, secured with five chromium-plated screws, one a medallion. Blade of famous Disston steel, full taper ground, accurately set and full bevel filed.
length ppi
Crosscut 26" 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Rip 26" 5 1/2





D-111

Another plastic handled saw from the 1950's is the D-111, made from nylon. It was the last model made in Philadelphia, before HK Porter moved production to Danville, Virginia in the late 1950's. Its shape differs only slightly from that of the D-95 pictured above.



D-111 handle
D-111 handsaw



D-100

In the 1960's Disston came out with an aluminum and wood handled saw, the D-100. Its styling is sort of like that of the Studebaker Avanti car of the period, space-age sleek.
D-100 handsaw
D-100 handle

 




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