Thanks for all this great feed back folks! If you're like me and you've been interested in adding a pit saw to your homestead tool box for a while, we're in luck! frogwoodtool.com has them for around $230.00. They are German made and come set and sharpened with both handles including the tiller. I am on the back order list already. As soon as they have twenty saws on back order they place the order with the manufacturer. Call them and get yours on order to. They are a top supplier of timber framing tools as well. I am not affiliated with Frog Wood Tool in any way. The only thing I get out of this is the chance to buy a pit saw at the same price as everybody else.
Hand tools like cross cut saws, axes, plains and yes, even the much maligned pit saw, enables us to convert muscle power, aka “elbow grease”, into lumber. Pit saws are still used extensively throughout South America, South East Asia and Africa. They are still manufactured by the tens of thousands in India, China and Germany. Why is it that we in the western world shrink in terror at the prospect of a task requiring a little elbow grease but are all too willing to use gallons of petrochemicals and coal based electricity to do things that our grandparents did without such crutches? Let’s get back to the spirit of “By the sweat of our brows and the strength of our backs and the courage of our hearts”! (Any pirate fans out there?) Check out Roy Underhill's Ted Talk “Have Broad Axe, Will Travel”. I grew up using un-powered hand tools and still do almost exclusively. Often I am working where electricity isn’t available. Most people who shy away from using un-powered hand tools do so because of a bad experience with a tool that wasn’t properly maintained. Many others just have never had the opportunity to give them a try. In some cases the old school un-powered tool is actually more effective than its modern counterpart. If you’ve ever drilled a hole through an old locust post with a modern drill and bit you know what I’m talking about. My grandfather’s old brace and bit performs this task with minimal effort. The key is that he taught me how to sharpen and maintain them.