Very old saw vise

Last weekend I went to some garage sales on a whim, hoping to find some old wood working tools.
One of the treasures I found was this oak saw vise. The gentleman who owned this antique explained that when he and his wife bought their house in Germany this tool along with others were inside.

The large wing nuts look rough cast which should help me date it.(I hope) The number 5 is stamped into the wing nut( I don't know how this is relevant). 5 could stand for a bolt diameter however, the bolt measures 10mm. One of the bolts has a "F" cast into the head.  I am guessing that this was made by a German woodworker.

The vise did see active service as evidenced by file marks going transverse on the top where the saw is clamped.  One of the clamping blocks has been hollowed along the length to allow a tight fit at the top where the saw blade sits.

Length : 12 11/16 "  (32 cm)     Width 2 7/16"  (  6 cm)    Height 4 3/16"  ( 10.5 cm)

Bow saw beauty

I have owned this Marples 18" bow saw for quite a while, but just recently decided to take the blade off and get it sharpened. 

The saw performs much better now with the razor sharp blade. Finding replacement blades for these old bow saws is almost impossible.  However, if your blade still has a decent set, it can be sharpened by a local sharpening service for a very reasonable cost.

 I am currently using this saw to cut out the rockers for the rocking horse that I am building.

Note the improved tension device. I created a toggle that can be turned by 1/2 turns which is safer for the saw and gives me more control over the blade tension.