An 18th Century Saw by Philip W. Baker

Backsaws are found with blades that are parallel or tapered to the back of the saw. This question arises: Was the taper intentionally incorporated in the manufacture and, if so, why?

The backsaw was in a craftsman’s toolbox long before the metallic miter boxes were produced. Prior to the metal box, the workman would make his own miter box and design it so it would suit the task. For at least the first sixty years of the nineteenth century, there were very few, of any, factory-made miter boxes.

I worked with backsaws starting in 1948.

Philip W. Baker

Even then, with metal box on the job, I would make my own box for inside or outside work. As I recall, it was much easier to cut crown moulding for a cornice while on the staging with my own box made to hold the moulding perfectly.

A backsaw with a parallel blade was the tool to use in a miter box. Saws from six inches to as long as sixteen feet or more were made with parallel blades.

All, as far as I know, eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth century backsaws with open handles had their handle grips’ center line 35 degrees off a plumb line from the saws back. The angle on a closed-handled saw was 25 degrees plus or minus.

I believe the difference in design was to make the open-handled tool friendlier for bench or shop work. Henry Disston, around 1846, begun to make closed handled saws twelve inches and under with the 35 degree handle. It took approximately six years for the other makers to follow his lead.

Tapering the blade will produce somewhat the same effect as the 35 degrees handle angle. Therefore, I would say that closed handled saws with tapered blade were made that way for shop work.

A review of the 299 backsaws in my collection produced the following data. One hundred fifty-eight had parallel and 141 tapered blades. If the thirteen straight-handled blades are removed from the count the number of parallel blades drops to 145, which make the number of each blade configuration pretty close to even.

The amount of taper varied from ¼ to ¾ inches with four having one-inch taper. The several saws having less then ¼-inch taper were considered parallel. Of the saws manufactured prior to 1860, fewer have ¼ inch tapers and the rest are about evenly divided between 3/8 inch, ½ inch, and ¾ inch tapers.

After that date, there were more ¼ inch and fewer ½ inch and ¾ inch tapers. The open handled saws were seldom tapered.

I will leave it to the reader to draw their own conclusions as to whether the saws having a taper of ¼ inch were made that way or if the owner filed the saw in a manner that would reduce the taper. On a 12-inch saw ¼ inch taper would not have affected performance much.

Saws in the collection vary in the amount of times they have been filed. The least amount of taper on a saw that has little if any filing is 3/8 inch.

I have drawn this conclusion. Backsaws were surely made with parallel and tapered blades. What hasn’t been decided is why there is a difference in the amount of taper. I find some connection between blade length and taper, but feel it is not conclusive.

Has anyone knowledge of documentation on this subject? How were the saws ordered by the dealer?

Saw Talk with Philip W. Baker