Q. Wondering if you could please give me any information on a saw I found in Auckland New Zealand with Toronto Canada etched on the blade. A. Disston had a factory in Toronto from 1910 until at least the 1950's. The saws were the same as the Philadelphia models. This allowed Disston to sell in the British Commonwealth without paying tariffs. Disston also had a factory in Australia which opened in Sydney in 1926, probably closing in the 1950's. |
Q. Did Disston & Son's make a one-man crosscut saw for cutting logs? My saw's blade is 42 inches long, and it has a handle shaped like an oven mitt. Etched on the blade is: GREAT AMERICAN 1879 TAKING OUT THIS SAW DAY IN DAY OUT WE CHALLENGE THE WORLD TO PRODUCE ITS EQUAL CAST STEEL WARRANTED [and the Disston symbol] A. Your saw is a crosscut saw for felling small trees. They made probably a dozen models from 3' to 5' in length. They made them as well as two-man saws. They sold from the earliest days of the company until the 1950's. Tooth styles varied depending on what was going to be cut. Great American is the name of the tooth pattern. There were over a dozen different tooth patterns for crosscut saws before the advent of gasoline chainsaws. |
Q. I have a Disston and Sons D-27 saw. You don't feature it on your website. The handle is rather odd, having neither top nor bottom horns, and completely lacking any ornamentation whatsoever.
A.
The D-27 is a pruning saw, designed to cut tree branches.
The reason it's not on the website is simply because the "Institute" concentrates on handsaws and backsaws for carpentry and woodworking.
Tree saws are a subject of study that would be well-served with its own website, and it's not my area of specialty.
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Q. I have a saw that looks like a really large hacksaw, labeled Disston and Sons, USA. Overall length is 29 inches. Saw blade length is 24 inches and the blade is 1 inch wide.
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Q. I have not seen this item before. It is an unusual vise, clearly marked Henry Disston and Sons.
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Q. Do you know of a place that sells replacement handles for my saw? A. No one sells new Disston handles. Parts for saws come from other saws, like one that's badly rusted but with a good handle, for example. Watch flea markets, auctions, or ebay to see if something comes up. |
A. It's a graphic, not an accurate rendering of my saw. |
Q. I have a 26" D-8 saw that is 12 points per inch and is marked with a 12 on the blade. The medallion shows that the saw was made between 1917 and 1942. You don't list any 12 point saws in that length. What gives?
A. Most of the "catalogs" quoted on the saw pages are actually product guides for retail customers, entitled "The Disston Saw, Tool, and File Manual." These were updated annually from about 1919 until 1955. Prior to that, there was a publication called "The Saw: How to Use It; How to Keep It in Order," which served the same purpose, to guide retail buyers in the purchase and use of Disston products. That publication goes back to the 1880's.
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Q. My Disston saw is unusual in that it has a brass plate on the bottom, of the handle and is stamped "Uppert" in the wood. You don't feature it on your website. Is it a special model?
A. The brass is a repair to the handle after it was broken. As for the name, Mr. Uppert didn't want anyone to mistake his saw for their own so he carved his name in the handle. Disston didn't stamp handles except for a brief time in the late 1870's and early 1880's when they put patent dates on the handles of some saws. In the case of the handle on the left, HAAS was the owner, and from what I hear, you didn't want to get caught using his tools. |