I finally got around to sorting through the rusty old saws hanging in the rafters to restore a couple. I found a Disston #7, 8 PPI, with a great plate , but only partial tote too far gone to repair. Here's some pictures of making a replacement. After soliciting opinions for my fellow Neanders here in the cave, I decided to build a replacement out of some African mahogany and hang onto my precious stash of air dried apple.
I've made a few totes over the years, most of which turned out really horrible. I'm not artistic in the least (more of a technician woodworker), and shaping wood in three dimensions is definitely using a side of my brain that doesn't get much exercise. I've gotten a bit better over time, and wanted to share a few things that work for me:
I used to cut my totes out on the bandsaw, but find I can get a more crisply defined profile with coping saw. This is especially helpful for the crisp, fine details like the lambs tongue on this #7.
Since I have no "artistic vision", having a model to copy is an absolute must.
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I like to saw out tote blanks that are thicker than the finished 7/8" thickness I'm shooting for. This lets me shape the profile from one side and then saw off the chip out on the far side, before final shaping/profiling. As a bonus, your cutoff leaves a nice template for making what everybody needs – more saw totes!
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Here's the profile roughly done with guidelines penciled in for shaping the curved surfaces. The tools that are most helpful for me in shaping are TFWW saw makers rasp and 1/2 round Aireau (I'm sure I spelled that wrong), and some old half round Nicholson files I inherited from my uncle. Truthfully, I could do 90% of the work with the fine grit half round rasp. Cuts fast and leaves a surface that cleans up quickly with files and sandpaper.
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I drilled holes for the saw nuts before sawing the kerf for the plate to get less chip out. I've done these before with a hand drill, but a drill press is almost essential for me to get these halfway decent.
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Here's the original tote, the model and the new tote with holes drilled before shaping.
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It's easier for me to shape the rounded surfaces with the tote clamped to the benchtop filing vertically, rather than in a vice.
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