Tool- Cunneen Hacksaw

[Papaw]

Digging into old trays of tools bought in the past, I turned up this fine old Cunneen Hacksaw. Patent 1,497,135  by Peter Cunneen of New Rochelle, NY. Seen in DATAMP-
http://www.datamp.org/patents/displayPatent.php?id=10334
This one seems to be the one mentioned in DATAMP as a likely early production made of what appears to be bronze and marked "CUNNEEN CO/NEW ROCHELLE/ NY" without any patent date evident. This one also does not have the lateral adjustment feature spoken of in the patent.

[HeelSpur]

Now that's different and looks to be pretty stout.

[Papaw]

Made for metal cutting, teeth forward. Takes 8" blade.

Lee Valey had a write-up on it-

Unlike the straight stab or keyhole saw, a metal-cutting hacksaw will work effortlessly when it has two important properties: there must be a high degree of tension in the blade and the blade must always be inserted with the teeth oriented toward the front. This is due to the fine teeth and type of set for this kind of blade.

   Close-up of the teeth
   Close-up of the teeth.
   
   Blade tension mechanism
   Blade tension mechanism and patent stamp.The cut is made on the push stroke. Ideally, the blade is lifted on the return stroke, the same way a file is used, to avoid premature dulling.

Tensioning of the blade is almost always accomplished by inserting it into a frame or holder. Early metal-cutting tools of this type often had a springy frame, so one inserted the blade much like stringing a bow for archery. In fact, the fret saws used by jewellers and the coping saws used for wood still utilize this method to achieve blade rigidity.

Tensioning of the blade allows for a clean cut and, in some cases, facilitates the use of thinner blades, creating less waste and finer control. The use of modern alloys in blade manufacture has now made this type of saw very practical for cutting metal by hand.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/newsletters/Woodworking/4/5/patents.htm

[turnnut]

Papaw,  when you go on DATAMP for that patent, click on P. Cunneen's name on the
upper left hand corner,  it will bring up another patent for that saw as an updated change
in 1931.    patent # 1835638

  the 1st patent was 1924

that tool should be hanging on the living room wall, that is pure "ART" 

[Lostmind]

Nice find , a lot of character to that tool. I agree , nice wall piece.

[Branson]

Nice find , a lot of character to that tool. I agree , nice wall piece.

Wall piece?  It's begging to get used, to me.  At least once or twice...

[leg17]

Noel
what is your ebay seller name?
Looking forward to taking a shot at this saw and a couple of other goodies you have shown recently.

[Papaw]

It is an artistic piece, and should be displayed by someone. I'd like to use it once or twice, but the blade is not usable.

My Ebay seller name is papawswrench   - http://my.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?MyEbayBeta&CurrentPage=MyeBayNextAllSelling&ssPageName=STRK%3AME%3ALNLK%3AMESX

[Nolatoolguy]

Very complex but at the same time it's still a simple mechanical design. It's a great piece :)