Saw ID: Geo. Bishop? Harvey Peace? Richardson or Simmonds?

Took a chance on a saw from the online auction place we all know. It looked to be a Disston #12 panel saw, but I couldn't tell from the photo, so I bid five bux and came up with what's in the picture.

At 21 1/2 inches it's a curious thing. I detached the handle from the plate, which showed it to be original to the saw. But why would you need a two-handed handle for such a small saw? There's no wheat carving on it, so it's not a #12 or D-12. The number 9 had a handle like this, but with four nuts, not three. So it's not a 9. There's no medallion. The plate isn't significantly taper ground.

I tried to raise the etch, but to no avail. So whose saw is this? I haven't seen any Atkinses or Simmondses with a handle like this. Any suggestions?

What about a #16!?!

I am not seeing why this would be a two handed handle. There is no thumb hole as is common on many rip saws for two hand grips.

jim

Thanks for taking a stab Dave, but this is not a #16. That had a more conventional hand hole and wheat carving.

Jim, I know what you mean about that not being a two-handed handle, like the D-8 with a thumbhole. According to Disstonian, regarding a handle like this on a No. 9, "The handle is applewood and, sometime after the 1840's, featured a large hand hole for two-handed use."

It's the same hole as on a No. 12, and I have a couple like that on regular-sized 26-inch hand saws. On those, there's enough "hole" there to get both your mitts, one around the other, for some pretty gnarly cuts. I seem to remember wanting something like that when I was about 8 and cutting through some plywood to make a go-kart. But this one is much smaller, and I'm wondering if it isn't more stylistic and made for, ahem, "little fingers."

As I said earlier, it's not significantly tapered, perhaps to prevent someone inexperienced from kinking it? It's a practical size for the bench though, and appears to have been sharpened enough times to get a bit of a crescent through the middle. When I sharpen it, I'll have to joint it this time. Sorry, old girl.

Maybe it's just one of those curiosities. I've been getting a bunch of trash saws at local flea markets, the bay, and elsewhere, and plan to either write up something of a journeyman sawyer's odyssey discussing the relative merits of this saw versus that saw. So far my favorite is an off-brand.

Interesting! Keep us posted on your "odyssey".

Hi Johnathan,

First off, my impression is it's 1940's 50's or later, probably EC Atkins, they had models with that shape hand hole.. so that's where I would start looking..

I would guess it's 22", not 21 1/2" maybe it lost a bit somewhere along it's life.

You can't always go by the number of screws, it was fairly common to put less screws in a shorter saw. So the same saw in 26" might well have 4 screws, rather than 3.

Simmons and Richardson as well had handle patterns with that hand hole shape, but that would be a lot earlier than I would have thought.

Regards
Ray