Disston challenger saw

[Duke]

Came across a totally nasty (had remains of mud dauber homes on it!) and well rusted 26" saw at an antique store recently. Got it for all of $5. Cleaned off the thick gunk and rust last night to find it is a Disston Keystone Challenger. It needs more cleaning and sharpening, but is this a decent saw (once sharpened) for WW'ing? Believe it or not this is my first handsaw. Well, okay, I bought a bowsaw because I thought I might someday look as cool as Tage does with his (not yet though).

-- Cheers! Duke. remove the DontSpamMePlease for replies

[Tom]

it'll all be over....

[Joe Gorman]

[Duke]

I've seen the site before but all I could find was an advertisement from the late 1930s for the saws. The ad implies the saws were not of the quality of their other saws:

Hundreds of thousands of consumers -- farmers, householders, apartment dwellers and others-use saws only occasionally. They do not require saws of the quality and prices of "The Saw Most Carpenters Use", but they do want low priced saws that cut well and hold a keen edge.

Does that mean it's not worth trying to clean up and resharpen?

[Larry Blanchard]

I got intrigued by old handsaws a while back and now have a dozen or so. In my opinion, even Disston's cheap saw was better than most you can buy today.

The main thing is that all the teeth are there and that there's no heavy rust on the teeth themselves. If rust pits the teeth, you have to file them all off and cut a whole new set. Not worth it.

Note that it may be filed either crosscut or rip.

[Charles Erskine]

It was a good saw when new. How good it is now depends on how badly pitted it is, especially around the teeth. I get a lot of enjoyment out of fixing up and using my "flea market special" saws. Be careful not to sand off the etching.

[Larry Blanchard]

Sand? Yecccchhhhh!! Use metal/chrome polish for light rust, soak in a vinegar/salt mix for heavy rust. No sanding, no naval jelly. A saw derusted by sandpaper or jelly looks awful, as well as reducing any value it might have had to a collector.

BTW, is there a complete set of all the pictures Disston used on these saws anywhere? I've seen 4 or 5 different ones on saws, but there must be more.