Hi Don...

>J     H      NOxxx
> (cross thingie)
>xast steel  xxxxxxxx

I took a look at Roberts "19th c tools" without success.  But of course, he
doesn't index everything, so it may be buried in there somewhere.
Unfortunately, the oldtools community is just beginning to look into saws
and saw history.  The focus has been so heavily on planes for so long that
most of my shelves are filled with plane stuff.  Saw and brace info is
still in it's infancy. But I'll keep on searching.

Are you sure about the initials?  Have you tried dusting the surface with
talcum powder to bring out the depressions, then viewing under a glancing
light both with and without magnification? This has worked for me, on
occassion. Strangely enough, viewing the offending mark with one eye
instead of two sometimes helps in picking out details.  Beats me why, but
it does.

Only problem, the
>blade is very slightly bent (teeth to back, not heel to toe), so it
>tended to curve to the left, then bind after cutting ca 1".  I'm
>hoping to just bend it carefully (the  back is NOT bent at all).
>Any suggestions?

Are you brave enough to take an autobody hammer to it?  The type with a
domed face?  Mark the perimeter of the elliptic formed by the bend on the
side opposing the bend.  If you can't make it out, try looking at the blade
under a glancing light. Hammer in overlapping strokes on the side opposite
to the bend. Start out with light taps and see if there is a change in the
bend.  You can overlap first in a linear and then in a perpendicular
fashion as you progress. It is surprising how much change can be initiated
in a deformed blade with light hammer taps.

Gary Roberts <groberts@s...>
Boston, MA
My opinions are not my own.  Blame someone else.