# Disston 16



## BZawat (Sep 21, 2012)

A little while back I picked up a pile of rusty old Disstons, and finally got the chance to work on one the other day. She's a number 16 lightweight pattern saw, filed crosscut. Here's the before 





















And after





















There's a tiny little wave in the toe that I couldn't quite straighten (but I'll try again) before I jointed, shaped, sharpened, set, and sharpened again. The saw cuts straight and smooth now. 

Any tips for removing the staining from the plate without removing the etch too? It's already very faint and won't show up well in these crappy phone pics.

Here's a better pic


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## Dave Paine (May 30, 2012)

Nice work on the restoration. The handle looks almost new. It looked to be in bad shape in the "before" picture. :thumbsup:

Lots of saws in my local flea markets, but I am not eager to get any since I do not know what is worth restoring.

Sorry cannot help with the stain on the plate.


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## tc65 (Jan 9, 2012)

Great job on the restore! That's a nice looking saw.

The best part is it cuts true and straight!

Here is an article from WK Fine Tools on restoring a saw. At some point in the article he gives directions for "raising" the etch. Read through it and see if that process might work for you - I've never tried it.


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## EastexToolJunky (Mar 25, 2013)

Nice job. Those old handles feel just right. If the stain is right on the etch and it won't add friction then leave it. I use a small hardwood block and 400 grit to get stains off without affecting the etch too much. Sometimes u just lose the etch.


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## nbo10 (Jan 26, 2011)

Looks nice. How did you restore the handle?


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## BZawat (Sep 21, 2012)

EastexToolJunky said:


> Nice job. Those old handles feel just right. If the stain is right on the etch and it won't add friction then leave it. I use a small hardwood block and 400 grit to get stains off without affecting the etch too much. Sometimes u just lose the etch.


That handle feels like it was made for my hand! I don't think I've ever had a tool that felt like it fit "just right" like that. The saw's performance is more important to me than the etch, but I figured I'd try to preserve it if I could. 



nbo10 said:


> Looks nice. How did you restore the handle?


I sanded lightly with 150 grit paper to remove all the paint splatters & old varnish. I didn't sand too deep though, so as to leave some of the oils & such that had been driven into the wood over decades of use. Didn't want it to look too new. Then I sanded lightly with 220 just to take out the scratches and make it smooth. I left all the old grime & patina in the carving and finished right over it, left a nice effect. Finish is 3 coats of gloss wiping poly, each coat rubbed in, w/000 steel wool between coats. It has a great feel to it, and really brought out the grain and color of the applewood. 

Cleaned the nuts & medallion with fast orange and a small brass wire brush with the goal of just removing the grime and orange paint. 

That was all easy stuff. Making it cut good again was the tricky part. It was my first attempt at jointing, shaping, & filing a cross cut saw. Went ok, but learned a bunch for next time.


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