Some of my favorite vintage carving tools. MUST see. G. Wilson

[george wilson]

I bought these old,never used Marples carving tools years ago in the Pa. flea markets. Actually at the Black Angus. I nearly missed them because the booth was dark,and nobody there. I mean,I saw them in the glass case,but where was the owner?

By now I can't recall how I tracked the owner down. I know I came back a second time. Having no idea what these would cost never helps me come back to an empty booth.

Somehow we got together,and I was able to purchase them. Of course,some of these are really pattern maker's gouges,but I had to have them. I make patterns sometimes,like the ones for the 18th.C. fire engine. Maybe some day a shooting board inspired by the old Stanley 52.

These are so evocative of a better age of toolmaking in England. The beautiful decals,and the great color of the handles are just superb. The colors are accurate in these photos.

Lurking in this drawer from one of my tool chests are handles from some of those saws I didn't make(says the punk). The closed Groves,and a few Kenyon styles. I'll have to bend up some brass backs,make some blades,and finish them up some day. I really don't need more saws,so it isn't pressing. But,I didn't need these gouges either.

[David Weaver]

Those gouges look superb - in and out cannel in the same drawer.

I tried for a while to find a good straight incannel gouge set to use for making tools, and I could not - there were places with them for nosebleed prices, but i do have some pride, even if it seems like I don't some day.

I ended up finding a very good (probably partial, but matching) set of 7 buck brothers incannel crank neck gouges of an older vintage than that for $160 online from sandy moss. I considered that a steal, they are superb. I'd love to have some straight patternmaker's gouges, even though they're overkill for what I want them for.

[george wilson]

It's more the great colors and decals that I find wonderful about these. Must be from the 1950's,when really good tools were commonly made in England.

[David Weaver]

What do you think the finish on the handles is? It looks like whatever everyone in continental europe was also putting on tool handles around then.

[Jim Koepke]

Anyone got a towel so I can wipe the drool off my keyboard?

jtk

[george wilson]

The finish is so clear and warm it might be nitrocellulose lacquer. I use it on guitars,or whatever. Acrylic looks cold and lifeless because its resin is blue. Nitro is yellow. Whatever it is,it was sprayed on I guess,because it is absolutely smooth and flawless. It must have some kind of coloring agent in it. I've seen plenty of old 1950's lacquer finished chisel handles done in just clear. They don't have this beautiful amber like color.

The finish on these handles is like a piano quality finish. There is no open grain anywhere,the surfaces are dead smooth and look like they were rubbed. I wonder if they could have been french polished by an old expert. They show NO sign of having been finished on the lathe.

The Pfiel is crude by comparison. open grain,cutter chatter on the handles sometimes. Their best work is their well polished blades,and the quality of their steel.Recently,Pfiel started using something on their handles that looks like dirty motor oil. I hate it. Maybe they've stopped using it. I haven't looked at new ones for a while.

[george wilson]

David,exactly which size straight bladed patternmaker's gouges are you looking for?

[David Weaver]

George, I pm'd you. The tool pig in me immediately responds "all of them!", but the reality of what ebay has done to the price of user tools - especially patternmaker's tools - has turned me into a chicken.

When I see stuff like a single otherwise common patternmaker's gouge for $100, with what appears to be a replacement handle, I'm just left shaking my head thinking that maybe patternmaker's tools are a sport for doctors and lawyers.

[David Keller NC]

George - The decals on your chisels are definitely (as you noted) from the 1950's through early 1960's period. The same decal shows up with some frequency on unused wooden planes from this era by Marples.

What you're seeing on the handles -might- be "french polish". I'm enclosing french polish in quotes because, as I'm sure you know, it isn't really french polish, which would be a ridiculously laborious thing to do for a tool manufacturer. However, a shellac/beeswax/linseed oil mixutre was in use by a few sheffield firms around that time period, and was termed "french polish".

[george wilson]

The finish is so hard I wouldn't think it had beeswax or linseed oil in it. I don't know what it is. Shellac in some form is a possibility. There are several types,such as seed lacs,which have color to them. Siam seedlac is one of my favorites. But,it isn't that color. It's more brownish,not orangish. Also,shellac loses its shine in a few years. The unrefined seed lacs don't. I think they lose some constituents refining the shellacs.

[Derek Cohen]

You know George, based on my experiences on the various forums, you can't be a professional woodworker if you enjoy the aesthetics of tools. They are just tools, right? :)

One of the things I have always enjoyed about your posts is the enthusiasm you bring to working with handtools - equally the art created and the pleasure of using a good tool. Too often it is only one or the other.

Those chisels are beautiful, and I imagine that they would add much pleasure when used.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[george wilson]

Derek,I like to be satisfied aesthetically when I walk up to a machine or a hand tool. It gets my mind ready to work,and excited about it.

Everything we have can't always be perfect,especially machines,but I try to get what I can to be "correct". It isn't always possible to get such things. To me,it's usually the old things that have better,more artistic designs. Frequently,the old machines are worn out,though.

My most pleasing machine is my Hardinge HLVH lathe. Google it to see a nice design. I am still looking for a replacement for my 16"X 40" Grizzly lathe. It works quite well,and is accurate. I just don't care for the "boxes upon boxes" look of modern design.

Another machine I think is one of the most beautiful is my belt change Bridgeport type milling machine. The castings flow around the parts inside. The column is beautiful,and the ram. The head is one of its nicest features.

A South Bend lathe like the heavy 10 is a beautiful lathe. I've never had one.

About the chisels: The things I like the most are the beautiful colors,and the evocative 1950's decals. The shapes of their handles are a bit "stretched",but I find them comforting and pleasing to look at.


My 1964 Dewalt table saw doesn't make it either,the old Delta Unisaw is a nicer design. The old Dewalt works smoother,and more accurately,though. I guess I'm stuck with it. Have been since I bought it new.

I probably sound like a bit silly to some. A machine's function should be first,but a nice design gets me better in the mood to be creative. I've had to produce numbers of things like saws and planes,but I am really a 1 off designer,not a manufacturer. I was fortunate to have the job I had,though. It had many good points. I got to make many extra nice things,along with the spurts of production. I was left alone 99% of the time to do what I did my own way.