ACW era saws

[johan_steele]

I was asked recently about how to identify ACW era saws. I have included some pics of period or earlier saws. What I first look for are the split nuts that secure the handle to the blade. This is the first biggest indicator. While split nuts stayed around far longer with some smaller makers they were largely gone by the mid 1870's in the US.

Another thing is to look for the brand names that were common. Disston would be the most common saw in the US by 1870 and were exploding into the market at the time of the ACW. The reason was that they were a quality tool for a fraction of the price of those imported from England. Their quality was as good if not superior to English steel.

The English saws are almost always well marked and of high quality.

Something rather nice about the English tools is that there are several very good sources on saws, planes and other tools. There were several well established companies that sold to the US market prior to the ACW but by the early 1870's that had been hugely undercut by US manufacturers like Disston, Stanley, Simmons and others. Precision tools of all kinds in the US had done the same thing because of the American factory system that dramatically impacted the price of tools.