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54959 | "John H. Lederer" <johnl@i...> | 1998‑12‑20 | Why the young will triumph |
Kelly Cox stopped by this morning. Kelly is somewhat younger, and more importantly far keener of eyseight than I. He was able to discern and read letters on stuff that I had long ago decided was "unmarked" One was a small smoothing plane, all metal, but vaguely reminiscent in design of a Norris infill (thumbscrew on cap, pivot). The lettering which I had never seen says: "Palmer's and Storke's Patents May14 'x7, Oct. 19, '69 Metallic Plane Co., Albany, NY" The plane is a smoother about 7" by 2-3/8". The tote which appears to be fruitwood slightly overhangs the rear of the plane. The bottom is corrugated. The front knob has a metal sleeve from which it emerges like a toadstool (but the sleeve would prevet the cracking that aflicts the Stanley's)/ I paid $12 (that is what the tag says, I think I paid less) at a flea market. I have not cleaned it up or even sharpened the blade, but a few passes on wood were quite satisfactory. Might anyone know anything about this plane? |
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54960 | "John H. Lederer" <johnl@i...> | 1998‑12‑20 | Re: Why the young will triumph |
> Sorry a better Internet search would have told me that Tom Price > already had info on this company: http://members.aol.com/tomprice/galootp/auburn_hist.html Regards, John Lederer Oregon, Wisconsin |
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54966 | TomPrice@a... | 1998‑12‑21 | Auburn Metallic Planes (was Re: Why the young will triumph |
John wrote: >> Sorry a better Internet search would have told me that Tom Price >> already had info on this company: > >http://members.aol.com/tomprice/galootp/auburn_hist.html Storke's original patent for corrugated planes is also on the Galoot's Progress and was provided by Steve Reynolds the Patent Guy. The Auburn Metallic Plane Co. history was provided by Dan Weinstock, a noted Auburn Metallic collector. He may chime in since he is (or at least was) lurking here. Auburn Metallic planes are collectible and the few examples I have seen have been priced at >$100, some a lot more. Don't drop it. Heh, heh. **************************** Tom Price (TomPrice@a...) Bleeds Rust W.F.M. Goss On Bench Planes is featured at The Galoot's Progress: http://members.aol.com/tomprice/galootp/galtprog.html |
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54971 | "John H. Lederer" <johnl@i...> | 1998‑12‑21 | Re: Why the young will triumph |
Tom Holloway wrote: > John-- > You wrote: > >The lettering which I had never seen says: > > > >"Palmer's and Storke's Patents > >May14 'x7, Oct. 19, '69 > >Metallic Plane Co., Albany, NY" > > > The location is not Albany, but Auburn, NY, a center of > 19th-century tool manufacture about 25 miles from where I live. The > Metallic Plane Co. was founded by Mr. Storke about 1869, and it went out of > business with his death in 1879, so all there production dates from that > decade of existence. It says Auburn clearly -- my mind converted it to Albany. The first patent date is either "May 14,'67" or "May 14, '87". > > A few questions: Is there a moveable plate in the sole in front of > the mouth, controlled by a screw under the knob? It appears that the front of the sole has an inset plate that is separate but I do not see the mechanism for moving it. The knob looks like it might twist, explaining the rivet through the sleeve to attach the wood, but it does not turn easily, and I do not wish to force it. > Does the grain in the > tote run parallel to the long dimension, rather than horizontal? The grain is predominantly vertical, running at a slight angle across the handle.Viewed from the back end this would be the grain...\\. The tote's "foot" increases in thickness in front of the handle, then drops steeply to the raised ledge on the casting to give it a sort of Grecian architecture look. > Is there > a mark of any kind on the iron? In the same general location as Stanley > logos, it should be marked EXCELSIOR, and maybe Metallic Plane Co., or it > might be a Butcher or other iron, and still be original. Is it tapered > like a wood bench plane, wider at the cutting edge? It is tapered like a woodie, and is thicker at the cutting edge. There is lettering on the blade, apparently two lines, but quite indistinct. I believe the upper line ends in "ARK" or "ARY" . The second line in slightly smaller letters ends with "ER& Co" and leaves the impression of perhaps a "P" in front of the "ER" The "o" in company is small, raised and with an underline. The lettering style is reminiscent of civil war stuff. The blade fits the plane perfectly, matches the cap, and the cap has a small cricle of marks where the screw contacts it. It also is very similar in patina to the rest of the plane > > You say: > >I have not cleaned > >it up or even sharpened the blade, but a few > >passes on wood were quite satisfactory. > > I'm not surprised. These are quality items. It's your tool, as we > say, and you can do what you want with it, but keep in mind that to some > people it is literally a museum piece, and should be treated as such. If > it's in good condition as you suggest, with no globs of crud or rust, I > would not mess with the finish at all, on wood or metal, or do anything to > it other than a light protective coating of paste wax and hand buffing with > a soft cloth. I (blush) bought it because I thought it would be very easy to convert it to an infill. (guess not). I did sharpen the iron to make a few more trial passes. It is a nice plane. I have given it a light rub with a cloth with a little turpentine to remove some surface rust, and put on some some beeswax.....and I took off the $12 sticker. It had some rust, but little or no pitting. There is black paint on the sleeve, and black paint on the interior of the casting, and the metal on the sides almost appears as if it were once blued. The front knob has a couple of tight cracks but seems solid. > > I'm just writing this now so that you are aware of what you've got, > so that no one talks you out of it for peanuts (not that that would happen > here). If prodded I'll tell you my own Auburn Metallic story, but the > topic here is your plane. It is special. > I would be interested to hear it. This could be big trouble for me. SWMBO has been very suspicious that my meager assortment of indispensable user tools might actually be a "collection" which would put things on an entirely different footing. There was some discussion of this when she counted the saws I had craftily put up between the rafters, and coincidentally happened to notice that I have 6 braces. I thought truth was the best policy so I explained to her that I had no idea why I had 6 braces, they just sort of crept in, but she seemed somewhat unconvinced. Kind of difficult to say "this plane is so I can more easily trim the sticky bathroom door for you , dear". |
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54985 | DAN WEINSTOCK <WEINDAN@H...> | 1998‑12‑21 | Auburn Metallic planes; Was Re: Why the young will triumph |
John, As Tom Holloway has indicated, this is a desirable and uncommon plane. The 1867 & 1869 patented planes with the swinging lever cap are the first models made by the Auburn Metallic Plane Co., which continued in business until 1878. A good deal of the history and products of the company are in Roger Smith's PTAMPIA ("Patented Transitional and Metallic Planes in America, 1827-1927"), Volume 1, which is a must have for anyone interested in the subject. The company was very successful, and seems to have sent a fair amount of their product to the midwest where the planes turn up, it appears to me, with disproportionate frequency compared to, say, New England. I also believe that the success of the designs, quality and sales of Auburn Metallics in the 1870s was directly responsible for Stanley adding (in 1876) the Liberty Bell line of "Stanley" planes and the 110 series of block planes to offer a cheaper alternative to the Bailey bench and 9 1/2 blocks. A careful comparison-review of price lists of Auburn Metallic and Stanley for the years of 1869-1878 shows that Auburn *invariably* undercut the Baileys in the price of each model- bench plane, transitional & block. The Liberty Bells and 110 series of Stanley planes, however, were less expensive than the Auburn product. Your plane does have a movable throat. Loosen up the front knob- if necessary soak the threads at the base of the front knob with some penetrating oil and give it a determined twist to unscrew the knob. Tap out the throat adjusting plate from above using the exposed & tapped socket, and a little cleaning will loosen it up to move smoothly. I can't just now think of who the maker of your iron is. Original Auburn Metallics had Excelsior, Metallic Plane Co., Auburn, N.Y. I'll keep staring at the letters for a while longer. Nice find! Reassure SWMBO that you have been stewarding the family treasury intelligently. :-) Regards, Dan -Dan Weinstock Geneva, N.Y. weindan@h... |
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