When you’re out and about, treasure hunting, what makes you stop and take a second look?
Pretty glass? For Sure! An interesting piece of pottery? Every Single Time!
But an old hand saw with a worn wooden handle? Probably not, but....That deserves a look, too.
Vintage tools are easy to pass up. They’re usually sitting under a table at an estate sale, hanging in a garage, or tucked into a box with rusty hardware and a few things nobody can identify, and no one wants to dig through.
They don't sparkle, but there is something about an old tool that makes me wonder what it helped build. My grandpa was a carpenter, and I wonder if he a saw like this? Did he use one to build my grandma's furniture?
Before Everything Had a Battery
I Picture building a set of shelves, repairing a porch, or cutting boards for a project with a hand saw. Every cut took effort. My family has built so much, and back 'in the day' they used hand saws!
Those worn down handles didn’t get that way sitting on a shelf.
That’s part of what I love about vintage items. They had a job. Someone bought them, used them, and probably kept them for years. An old saw might have traveled from a grandfather’s workshop to a father’s garage before finally landing on an estate sale table.
Take a Look at That Handle
Some are fairly simple. Others have beautiful curves and little decorative details, some are carved, some are so beautiful! The wood might be dark from years of handling, with worn spots where someone’s hand rested over and over.
Then there’s the little round metal piece in the handle, called a medallion. On some saws, it carries the maker’s name or a design that can help with identification if you see it
Disston saws, for example, have documented medallion changes that can help narrow down their age. That little detail is worth photographing before you start researching, check Google.
This is a good reminder that sometimes the smallest part of an item gives us the biggest clue.
The Blade May Have Something to Say
Before deciding an old saw is just a rusty piece of metal, look closely at the flat sides of the blade.
You may find a faint etched name, logo, or model number. Disston used blade etches as well as markings on the handle hardware, so there may be more information there than you notice at first glance.
Is It Worth Anything?
The question we all ask when we’re standing at a sale holding something interesting!
I wouldn’t assume that every old hand saw is valuable. I also wouldn’t assume that rust means it belongs in the trash. Rusty Crusty is a thing, and people use it, collect it, and love it.
Useful, Decorative, or a Little of Both
I can appreciate an old saw as a tool, but I can also picture one hanging in a workshop or tucked into a display of vintage hardware, wooden rulers, and old toolboxes, think Vinette from the garage. A wooden toolbox, and the tools sticking out, all sitting on a shelf in your home, what a great conversation piece!
If you like decorating with vintage pieces, think about the things that reflect your own life. A workshop display might mean more to you than another piece of wall art from a big-box store. Maybe it reminds you of your dad’s garage, your grandfather’s basement, or the person in your family who could fix just about anything. Can you smell the sawdust? I love that smell!
Those are the details that make a home feel personal.
Another Treasure Worth a Second Look
One of my favorite things about buying and selling vintage is that there is always another category to learn about.
So the next time you’re at an estate sale, flea market, or garage sale, take a look beyond the pretty things on top of the table. There might be something worth saving underneath it.
Do you have an old hand saw or another tool that’s been passed down in your family? Is it still working, or has it earned a spot on display?
Want to take a look at the ones we’ve found along the Backroad? Shop our vintage hand saws and other vintage tools here. You might find one for your next project, your collection, or that empty spot on the workshop wall!
See you on the Backroad.