Because saws are delicate rust-magnets, storing them is a balancing act of protecting their bendable, rust-prone sawplates and still making them easy to get in and out of storage.
There are many good solutions. This is a simple one that gobbles up the least amount of precious real estate in a small chest. It’s made using one piece of tough 3/4” x 2-1/2” x 5” wood and two screws.
Kerfs in the block of wood hold the toes of your saws. The heel of the saw rests on the floor of the chest. The weight of the saw keeps it from slapping around when the chest is moved. The saws would be more secure if you added a second kerfed block near the heels. Also good additions: magnetic chewing gum, making the thing from transparent aluminum and airbrushing a buxom librarian/barbarian somewhere on the saw or chest.
I have seen this form of simple till in many surviving chests, and the block of wood usually has some rudimentary decoration. I decided to shape this one like the blades of some 16th-century try squares I’ve been building this year.
First I made a sample block to see how much wood I could remove and keep the saws stable. I decided to end the kerfs about 3/4” from the end of the block.
After cutting the block to shape and sawing the kerfs in it, I secured it to the chest with one No. 8 x 1-1/4” wood screw into the front wall of the chest and a second one through the floor of the chest and into the block.
That’s all there is to know except one important detail: If you are right-handed, put the block on the left side of the chest. That will make it easier for you to fish the saw out of the bottom of the chest.
— Christopher Schwarz