Dating Disston Saws by Medallion
Sanford Levy
>Hi. I have a question about dating Disston saws by their medallions. From what I have read here and elsewhere, it seems that a Disston saw could be dated fairly well by its Medallion, as shown on the Disstonian Institute web site. Recently I showed a saw I have to a blacksmith (I was asking about straightening a curved blade) and he asserted that the saw was not nearly as old as I told him the Medallion indicated (it was an 1896-1917 medallion, according to the Disstonian Institute). He felt sure the saw was no more than 50 years old. He did collect antiques, including some old saws. (The ones on the walls of his blacksmith shop were all beat up and no longer usable. He had no handsaws there and I am not sure how much he knows about them.) His point was not that an old medallion could have been put on a newer saw as a kind of fraud, but rather that the medallion had little to do with age. He said it had more to do with patents. I was wondering if there is anything to this. Could the assumptions that seems to be so common about dating these saws be wrong? Or was he just in error? As a newbie, and someone who wants to buy some old tools for use, I would like to know! Thanks for any help you can give me. Sanford