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251437 | JAMES THOMPSON <oldmillrat@m...> | 2014‑10‑28 | Tool finds |
When I sent the pictures this morning I meant to ask what anyone knew about yjhe #4 size smoother. It is marked No. 4, and made in USA, but no maker's mark. The cap iron has 4 square indentations which are painted red. Who made that? I managed to clean up some of the tools yesterday. The plumb bobs had turned black, but are now bright. In another picture there is a mess of long auger bits measuring 18" in lemngth. The strange part, to me at least, is that all of them are either 11 or 13. There must be a reason why we find so many of these, and so few of other sizes. There was also one 3/4" auger bit which is a full 24" long. I don't see many of those. There were 3 different sizes of adjustable wrenches, all good american brands. There were two brass plumb bobs, one 12 ounces, the other 24 ounces. Both are excellent, and the smaller one is marked K&E. The larger is unmarked, but is obviously an excellent tool. There is a pile of blades for different planes, one a heavy laminated blade. There is a 130A, there are 3 nice block planes, there is a Starrett marking gauge, and a Starrett 12" cast iron level, which is VERY nice. AND there are 2 bronze shaves, one of which appears to be for planing the sides of sliding dovetails, and the other bronze shave appears to want to slide in a groove with a flat bottom. Then there is the orange painted vise grip. I have no clue why it is orange. Oh, and the long auger bits came in a PLUMB tool box which will clean up to be useable. Not a bad haul for FREE!!!------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
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251438 | Dragon List <dragon01list@g...> | 2014‑10‑28 | Re: Tool finds |
isn't that the stanley "4-square" line? their "student" line, from the middle of the last century, iirc. best, bill felton, ca On Tue, Oct 28, 2014 at 4:04 PM, JAMES THOMPSON |
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251440 | David Nighswander <wishingstarfarm663@m...> | 2014‑10‑28 | Re: Tool finds |
Snip From: James Thompson In another picture there is a mess of long auger bits measuring 18" in lemngth. The strange part, to me at least, is that all of them are either 11 or 13. There must be a reason why we find so many of these, and so few of other sizes. There was also one 3/4" auger bit which is a full 24" long. I don't see many of those. Unsnip Dad was an Electrical Contractor. Dad always had a lot of 5/8 spade bits. We used that size because it was small enough to bore through native oak beams with a 3/8 drill and would pass two pieces of #12 romex. When I emptied his shop I found four or five 1 1/4” spade bits in various states of decay. He had been making bird houses but that seems a little big for entrance holes. I had already cleaned him out of auger bits. When he found spade bits made from good steel he stopped using augers. |
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251441 | Don Schwartz <dks@t...> | 2014‑10‑28 | Re: Tool finds |
On 10/28/2014 5:04 PM, JAMES THOMPSON wrote: > When I sent the pictures this morning I meant to ask what anyone knew about yjhe #4 size smoother. It is marked No. 4, and made in USA, but no maker's mark. The cap iron has 4 square indentations which are painted red. Who made that? I managed to clean up some of the tools yesterday. The plumb bobs had turned black, but are now bright. > > In another picture there is a mess of long auger bits measuring 18" in lemngth. The strange part, to me at least, is that all of them are either 11 or 13. There must be a reason why we find so many of these, and so few of other sizes. There was also one 3/4" auger bit which is a full 24" long. I don't see many of those. I believe Foursquare was Stanley's early "homeowner tools" line. Can't recall where I read that first but here's one source... Scroll down to Rick Whitehead's reply. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?109663-Having-trouble- dating-stanley-plane">http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?109663-Having- trouble-dating-stanley-plane As for the bits, I have no idea why... But it will give you something to contemplate next time you're sitting in the dentist's waiting room.... Don |
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251442 | Ed Minch <ruby@m...> | 2014‑10‑29 | Re: Tool finds |
Jim As has been said, yours is a Stanley “four square” smooth plane. They made a whole homeowner line from 1923 - 1930, everything from planes, to crowbars, to file handles, to hatchets, to wooden folding rules. These appear to be the same tools as their regular line with no scrimping on the quality of the steel or castings, but the planes had a cheaper lever cap and some had “hardwood” handles instead of rosewood. Some of those early ones are worth some denari. Later in the 50’s they re-introduced the line along with their Victor and Defiance lines. These were quite a bit cheaper and this appears to be what you have. I don’t know the value of these. Here are 2 items from the 20’s: https://www.flickr .com/photos/ruby1638/15468143699/ Ed Minch On Oct 28, 2014, at 7:04 PM, JAMES THOMPSON |
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251443 | John Ruth <johnrruth@h...> | 2014‑10‑29 | RE: Tool finds |
Jim, The long 11 and 13 bits are used to bore for 3/4 and 7/8 "drifts" in a shipyard. They are the metallic equivalent of wooden treenails (pronounced "trunnels") Drifts are metal rods used to edge-join major timbers of a wooden ship, such as when a keel must be built up of many smaller timbers. A pilot hole is bored and then the steel drift is sledgehammered in. The drift can be either bronze (old ships), wrought iron, or steel. I'd be willing to bet that Ed Minch knows all about this. When you see a decaying wooden shipwreck either underwater or on land, the drifts are often sticking up like spikes, a danger to the unwary. John Ruth ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
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251444 | Bill Ghio <bghio@m...> | 2014‑10‑29 | Re: Tool finds |
Sent from my iPad > On Oct 28, 2014, at 9:08 PM, John Ruth |
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251445 | scott grandstaff <scottg@s...> | 2014‑10‑29 | Re: Tool finds |
That's a pretty rockin' Plomb 1/2" socket toolbox. Unless its in worse shape where I can't see it. If you look close I believe you will see it says Plomb and not Plumb. I believe this is a post lawsuit box. Wherein Mr Plumb of Los Angeles, was enjoined from using his own name on his tools, by a certain Mr Plumb of legendary back east ax fame, for several generations already. Everything was hunky dory until Mr Plumb of Los Angeles started offering axes and hammers, in addition to his fine line of ratchets and sockets. Mr Plumb of famous ax antiquity didn't care for that. Mr Plumb of Los Angeles had no chance in court. Thereby creating the Plomb brand. And later the Proto brand. yours Scott -- ******************************* Scott Grandstaff Box 409 Happy Camp, Ca 96039 scottg@s... http://www.snowcrest.n et/kitty/sgrandstaff/ http://www.snowcr est.net/kitty/hpages/index.html ----- No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2015.0.5315 / Virus Database: 4189/8472 - Release Date: 10/28/14 |
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251447 | John Ruth <johnrruth@h...> | 2014‑10‑29 | RE: Tool finds |
GG's I've been re-thinking what I wrote about these long #11 and #13 auger bits possibly being used in a shipyard. I have a large collection of long auger bits whose provenance is unquestionably from the tools of a early 20th century shipwright. Almost all of these are "blind-footed" helical augers. They have no pilot screw. They have only one cutting edge. Another significant difference is that Jim's long bits are Irwin pattern, quite a contrast to the plain helix of the shipyard bits in my collection. I'm not so sure that I'd want a pilot screw on a really deep drilling effort. It might tend to make the hole go astray. On a different note, I want to second Scott's comment on the gloatability of the embossed Plomb socket wrench box. De-rusting and repainting that box would be quite an effort, but it would look so cool in a fresh coat of olive paint. John Ruth ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
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251448 | Ed Minch <ruby@m...> | 2014‑10‑29 | Re: Tool finds |
John I just saw your first post and I agree. For deep holes that have to end up where you want them, you need a “barefoot” auger. You would start the holes with a traditional auger with a lead screw to get the hole started where you want it, then when you are in a few inches, switch to the barefoot auger, then it will follow the original hole. The longest I have done is 14” and it came out within about 1/8”, but a friend of mine did this: He had to drill 4 anchor hawse holes - angled holes that the anchor line passes through on its way from near the waterline at the bow to up on deck. This was 2 each on the 2 identical ships Irving Johnson and Exy Johnson http://www.lamitopsail.o rg/mylink.php?id=5760 Here are the two boats (identical except for the blue/red trim) and you can see the anchor hawse holes: https://www.fli ckr.com/photos/ronkacmarcik/6579532805/ These holes were almost 4 feet long through solid wood. My friend rigged up a jig that drilled a 3/4” hole down from the deck as a pilot and these were all within 3/8” of where they were supposed to be (so he claimed). He then used a larger bit with a pilot rod that fit the 3/4” hole to make it bigger, then did that again and after 4 drillings he had a 6” hole - 4 holes! And when I was on the Johnson search I found this picture of my friend Jim Knowles who is a carver who has done much of the carving on recent American ships and even one from Poland: http://jamesaknowles.net /JohnsonCarvings.html He is working on a project on the Kalmar Nyckel right now and I am one of his assistants. Look at his page on “sculpture” - he really has the 18th-19th century feel about his work. I sat with him in a bar one night and he was going to carve the face of the captain. He had a lump of clay about the size of a baseball. He held a fine conversation while he poked and twisted the lump, and in about 15 minutes he had the captain! On his site you can see a good shot of the Johnson hawse holes. I so appreciate what he does. Ed Minch On Oct 29, 2014, at 2:40 PM, John Ruth |
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251450 | JAMES THOMPSON <oldmillrat@m...> | 2014‑10‑29 | Re: Tool finds |
Great minds think alike. That was the first thing I thought of when I got the box. > On Oct 29, 2014, at 11:40 AM, John Ruth |
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251531 | Kirk Eppler <eppler.kirk@g...> | 2014‑11‑02 | Re: Hays Improved Practical Mechanics Rule |
On Sunday, November 2, 2014, Bill Webber |
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251538 | Bill Webber <ol2lrus@v...> | 2014‑11‑03 | Re: Hays Improved Practical Mechanics Rule |
Many thanks, Bill, that is certainly a part of the answer. Sector rule it is! Bill W. Nottingham, PA On 11/2/2014 11:16 AM, William Ghio wrote: > On Nov 2, 2014, at 11:03 AM, Bill Webber |
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251539 | Bill Webber <ol2lrus@v...> | 2014‑11‑03 | Re: Hays Improved Practical Mechanics Rule |
Geez, who thinks like that! Wow, many thanks... Bill W. Nottingham, PA On 11/2/2014 12:38 PM, Kirk Eppler wrote: > > On Sunday, November 2, 2014, Bill Webber |
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252259 | Gary Roberts <toolemera@m...> | 2014‑12‑13 | Re: Hays Improved Practical Mechanics Rule |
That’s what’s great about Oldtools. There is usually someone who can decipher whatever it is that needs deciphering. Gary ............................... Gary Roberts http://toolemera.com http://toolemerabooks.com "I'ld rather read a good book, than write a poor one." Christopher Morley > On Nov 2, 2014, at 8:29 PM, Bill Webber |
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252262 | Michael Blair <branson2@s...> | 2014‑12‑13 | Re: Hays Improved Practical Mechanics Rule |
> 112/35.5 = 3.14..... > Thus I suspect something for deciphering circumference based on > diameter. I picked up what I thought was a typical blacksmith's 2 foot folding rule a few years ago but on closer examination it had a line of measurements for calculating circles, pretty much what you describe (couldn't open the photo). It turned out to be a tinsmith's rule. Perhaps your rule is for tinsmithing. Mike in Sacto |
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