Flea market finds.

[J_Graham]

Found a couple of gems today at a flea market.
1. No3 size hand plane - pretty rough but it was part of the package.
2. Vintage K&F triangle file
3. J. H. Nobles backsaw (crosscut? Not sure) according to my expert it was made by Richardson
4. Mystery saw that I need some help identifying. The medallion says warranted superior (probably the manufacturer not the seller) but the etch is a banner that says "spring steel" and some script tot the side I can't read (pics of the etching and medallion below)
5. This is a bench that someone made. Im not sure if this technically qualifies as marquetry, but my wife's grandfather hunted with German short-haired so this was really neat for her! When I mentioned to the lady selling it that I was interested she said I may not want it because the base was falling apart. What an opportunity for a project! Haha

 

[malacoda]

Nice finds.

I'm afraid it won't lead you any closer to finding the manufacturer, but I can tell you that 'Warranted Superior' is a generic sales term that was used on medallions by many manufactures for their 'non-branded' saws.

For example, if a saw went through Disston's QA and the inspector found, say, a slightly discolored spot in the spring steel, Disston wouldn't put their name on it because it wasn't 'perfect' to their standards. Still an absolutely fine saw though...

So, rather than throw it away and lose money, they'd apply a 'Warranted Superior' medallion instead of a Disston medallion. Then sell it to a retailer for sale. Again, perfectly fine saw, just not 100% to their brand standards.

Or...

Say a mid-west hardware/general store, 'Cincinatti Tool & Plow' (made up name) wanted to sell saws with their own store name, or product-line name, on them, and contracted with Atkins to make them...

Atkins would use a 'Warranted Superior' medallion ... since they were contracted to not use their own brand name on it, then etch Cincinatti Tool & Plow on the blade.

If you can read the etch when you clean up the saw, you may find that it has a retailer's name on it. Or you may find a retailer's product-line name on it. E.g. One of my saws with a Warranted Superior medallion simply has 'Great Western' etched on it. Most likely a product-line name. No clue who made it though. Great saw.

I've only cleaned up three myself, but after a lot of research, and a tiny bit of experimentation, I ended up just using Flitz metal polish rubbed on with a ball of tin foil .... then wiped clean with a cloth. That's for lightly rusted saws. Cheap. Works great. Preserves the etching.

Heavy rust may require a gentle scrubbing with some WD-40 Rust Release and a scotchbrite pad first though.

Post some pics if you clean the up!