Vintage saw sharpening machine working - GIF

**Jon** · Aug 16, 2019, 11:25 AM

Vintage saw sharpening machine working.

Previously:

Sharpening a pencil on a lathe - GIF and comic
Pencil sharpening machine - GIF
Circular saw blade sharpening machine - GIF
Sharpening a huge drill bit - GIF
Vintage razor sharpener - GIF
sharpening table saw blades at Quinn Saw
Chisel sharpening trolley - photo
Vintage treadle wheel powered knife sharpener - photo

**Ralphxyz** · Aug 16, 2019, 08:01 PM

Strange they are filing the back side of the teeth.

**Philip Davies** · Aug 17, 2019, 06:20 AM

Anybody know how long it takes to set up?
In my 20s I sent off my crosscut saw to be sharpened, I was told by machine, but it came back lop-sided, so I sent it back again.

**C Tucker** · Aug 17, 2019, 09:48 PM

I have 3 of these filers. I gave up playing with them when I needed to wear glasses to read, and the price of a new hand saw was less than an hours labor.
Evidently,he didn't read the book on how to file. The feed pawl, is supposed to push on the tooth you just filed. He is also just gumming out the saw because the file isn't at an angle and he's hitting every tooth.
This is the first step in 3 steps to sharpen a hand saw.

**Philip Davies** · Aug 18, 2019, 04:56 AM

Originally Posted by C Tucker

I have 3 of these filers. I gave up playing with them when I needed to wear glasses to read, and the price of a new hand saw was less than an hours labor.
Evidently,he didn't read the book on how to file. The feed pawl, is supposed to push on the tooth you just filed. He is also just gumming out the saw because the file isn't at an angle and he's hitting every tooth.
This is the first step in 3 steps to sharpen a hand saw.

I wonder whether you would like to donate your saw-filing machines, Mr Tucker, to a charity which sends tools to Africa? If you do not use them, the charity receives a lot of saws and, since there is apparently no-one there to do it by hand, they have to pay for them to be refurbished. I did wonder whether, with setting up, it might be quicker to sharpen a saw by hand. That was a good Disston in the video, better than mine!

**piper184** · Nov 12, 2025, 09:44 AM

When I was very little (2 or 3) my grandfather was retired but maintained a small shop. He had a Foley-Belsaw saw filer and was charging $2 in the mid-60's. Hand help powered circular saws were "for the rich" and contractors. Treating a hand saw properly, using it properly and often was the rule of the day.

I have one of those machines that needs some restoration but it doesn't have any of the saw holders. I have the specs and will make some when I get a chance. Problem is I don't know anyone that uses a hand saw anymore. These days it is rare to find anyone that even uses a plug in circular saw anymore.

Maybe someday when the lights go out hand saws will be used again. At least my filer has a provision to put a crank handle on it and the electric motor is a luxury.

If I remember right, after the filing passes, he took it out and used a hand held setting tool to set every other tooth, first one way, then the other. His eyesight was poor and he used a magnifying glass and grandma's nail polish to mark the teeth so he could keep track. When he got done, those things were sharp!

**Philip Davies** · Nov 12, 2025, 09:54 AM

Lately, I’ve had mixed results with sharpening, even with magnifying lens and good light. My dovetail saw was so unsatisfactory, I filed the teeth off entirely and recut it.
I used a 12tpi carbon steel hacksaw blade as a template. Then set the teeth with the smaller sawset. This is better, although it’s a rip cut, there’s no fleam. I think I am going to have to do the same with Men’s Shed tenon saw, it’s embarrassingly bad.