OldTools Archive
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274526 | sushimonster | 2021‑09‑07 | Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
Galoots! I've found this small brass calliper, which looks finely made. It seems to date from when units of measurement varied across Europe, before widespread adoption of the metric system - as it records measurement for Baden (German province which used the Zoll, Fuss or Elle unit), Switzerland (Similar to Baden, depending on region) and Paris ( the Elle), from the little I can find on this. As far as I know, Paris was one of the first areas of France to go metric in 1795 - which hints that this piece could be quite early? I'm assuming that "BRUDER" stamped on the end might be the maker's mark, but I've never heard of the name Bruder as a tool or instrument maker? Has anyone come across other tools baring the name Bruder at all? It's a nice little find, so I'd really like to fill in some knowledge gaps about it if I can, before I store it away in the very crowded "Mysteries I haven't solved yet" draw :) ...but then there's that strange dot under the D. Does that mean an abbreviation of the name, or is it just a random mark in the brass? Apologies about my rusty German knowledge - it's been a while since I took it at school. https://groups.io/g/oldtools/album?id=267887 |
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274527 | Kirk Eppler | 2021‑09‑07 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
The site for vintage German toolmaker research is Wolfgang Jordan's site, a member here. He does not have Bruder in his DB. https://www.holzwerken.de/museum/hersteller/markensuche.phtml Krik in Half Moon Bay, at least that's how someone else spelled it this morning. On Tue, Sep 7, 2021 at 9:29 AM sushimonster via groups.io |
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274528 | sushimonster | 2021‑09‑07 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
Wow - thanks for the super speedy reply Kirk! Great link - thanks. I'm maybe now thinking that it's two words? Brud - being short for 'Bruder' or 'Brothers', and then 'Er' being an abbreviation of a longer name maybe? |
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274529 | Kirk Eppler | 2021‑09‑07 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
The book pdf pg 34 has a reference to a Hermann Bruder, looks like he is in many businesses, but this one looks like an Iron works If I;m reading abbreviations correctly. Also, the tool has the look of many German Silver drafting tools, so maybe determining the German word for drafting, and googling like below. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Adressbuch_aller_L%C3%A4nder_der_Erde_der_K a/XRx9sYiVUvkC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22bruder%22+werkzeug+%22baden%22+%22schweiz%22&p g=RA1-PA34&printsec=frontcover Image of vintage drafting stuff front and center here https://kirkhmb.smugmug.com/Woodworking/Woodworking-Tools/i-DBPgTLj Kirk in HMB, where the chainsaws and tree chippers are revving up for another day of meeting interrupting. On Tue, Sep 7, 2021 at 9:29 AM sushimonster via groups.io |
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274531 | John Ruth <johnrruth@h...> | 2021‑09‑07 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
Kirk, > Image of vintage drafting stuff front and center here > > https://kirkhmb.smugmug.com/Woodworking/Woodworking-Tools/i-DBPgTLj I showed that picture to my GF and she said," OMG! There ARE people that are worse than you! " John Ruth Who, on Sunday, hit an indoor flea, an outdoor flea, and a sale at a sort of an overgrown junkyard. |
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274534 | Brian Ward <bri@a...> | 2021‑09‑08 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
This might be Swiss, given that it says "Schweiz" (Switzerland) on it. There's a Baden in the north there up by Zuerich. I have no idea about the N ("nord?) and the U ("umgang? unter? ueber?"). The Bruder looks like a proper name, being without dots over the u. I can't seem to find anything under searches with Schieblehre or Messschieber that matching a caliper. Regarding metric, it took a little while for SI to make its way across the continent. According to our ever-reliable wikipedia, Switzerland made it compulsory in 1877. |
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274535 | Erik Levin | 2021‑09‑08 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
Is it possible to give dimensions, maybe take a couple pics with modern rules aligned with the scales? *** This message was sent from a convenience email service, and the reply address(es) may not match the originating address |
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274539 | Troy Livingston <horologist@w...> | 2021‑09‑11 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
My wife got a chuckle out of John's comment but currently has no complaints about my scrounging. More in another email to follow. I did stumble on another of Kirk's photos that showed some miscellaneous clock tools and offer the following identifications in the off chance that he hasn't already sorted it out. Detail of photo here: <https://www.flickr.com/photos/91137513@N.../51444609543/in/dateposted-public/> 1. The items in the wooden box are clock movement assembly posts with a bracket that will let you hang the assembled movement for testing. I have a set of these but didn't care for them. For movement assembly I find them awkward and they make nasty marks on the plates. For assembly it is hard to beat the cardboard tube from a roll of packing tape. Although I do have a nesting set of wood rings that I really like. 2. This is a tool for adjusting the beat on anniversary clocks (400 day clocks). Everyone knows that clocks need to be level, but actually the critical thing is for them to be in beat. Grossly simplified, to be in beat means the interval between the "tick and tock" must be equal. I think i might have one of these but can't say too much about these tools as I was made to swear never to work on anniversary clocks. 3. A Waltham watch mainspring gauge. Used to measure the thickness and width of watch mainsprings. I've never used mine. Have better ways to measure such things. But still it is a cool tool. 4. A traditional mainspring winder for watches or small clocks. Hard to date, could be anywhere from 19th century into the early 20th. 5. I'm not sure it is hard to judge by the photo. It is similar in construction to my Ollie Baker clock mainspring winder. The manual did have some photos of accessories that could be purchased but I haven't seen the paperwork for years and haven't the foggiest idea of where it could be. There were a couple of manufacturers who made tools with similar construction but a quick scan though old catalogs turned up nothing. It could be part of a movement holding system. But then may be something entirely unrelated to clock work. Troy |
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274541 | Kirk Eppler | 2021‑09‑11 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
Troy Thank you sir, some comments on your comments 1. I figured these might make nice clamps for small work if I never expected to use them as intended. Didn’t know what it was at the time, nor until about 20 mins ago. Good to know at least one person won’t be upset if I misappropriated their tool. 2. Would never have guessed. My first trip through my Otto Young catalog drew a blank, Otto Frei was to be my next attempt, then try to find something in the middle age wise if that failed. 3. This one, with the huge name on it, was easy. I doubt I would ever have a use for it, but 1/1000 “ calipers and micrometer and digital whatnots are not nearly as cool as the technology used on that. 4. winder as in maker, or wind before installing (my guess).? The seller thought for weekly winding the clock, but I have a key for that. 5. This one I am pretty sure is unrelated to clock work. I think it’s quite a bit newer than the rest, and says Sharpen on end and, and Burnish on the other, of the little flippy thing your 5 landed on. The knob seems to open and close it to hold a flat file. There was an Oregon chainsaw sharpening piece at that sale that I left behind. Figured I could reuse pieces of this. I appreciate the expertise. Our local luthier Greg I has shown us a few cool tools he has made that could solve a problem or two, so I grab anything inexpensive from the jeweler and horological trades for small work, cuz you never know what you might need. My watch holding clamp has saved me on earbud repairs before. Here’s another fun image of some dull knives I acquired. https://kirkhmb.smugmug.com/Woodworking/Misc-Images/i-Z774jr4 A few years back, I found a knife with a short second blade, fairly dull, so I sharpened it up, only to find out a few years later it was a watch case opening tool, and sharp wasn’t very smart. Turns out it wears the Favorite brand, same as one of these. Think it’s the obverse of the Green Guild tool https://kirkhmb.smugmug.com/Woodworking/Misc-Images/i-Z774jr4 https://kirkhmb.smugmug.com/Woodworking/Woodworking-Tools/i-jmzVsJw Thanks again Kirk in Half Moon Bay, CA, who will try to make John Ruth look good, by comparison, again tomorrow. On Fri, Sep 10, 2021 at 7:21 PM Troy Livingston |
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274543 | Troy Livingston <horologist@w...> | 2021‑09‑11 | Re: Anyone know German tool makers of the past? #photo-notice |
Kirk, Clocks and watches with trains driven by a mainspring typically house the spring in a barrel. When you overhaul them you remove the spring to clean, inspect and lubricate, then it goes back into the barrel. This is possible to do by hand but can distort "cone" the spring and is generally considered bad form. The mainspring winder is the tool used to remove and reinstall the springs into the barrels. There are a wide range of sizes and shapes for these tools. Thanks for the clarification on 5 and I'm glad you have it sorted out. Watch movement holders can be handy for all sorts of things. I have quite a few and made good use of one at work to hold an irregular shaped object in a 3 D scanner. An impressive assortment of case knives, you have me beat. I must scrounge more! Troy On 9/11/2021 2:08 AM, Kirk Eppler via groups.io wrote: |
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