Bluegrass Tools

[lowell holmes]

It's a threatening day here in Galveston County, overcast and low rumbling thunder.
Nothing going in the shop, so I started checking my tools.
I'm sure that I'm not the only one that does this occasionally.

I picked up a 7 ounce Bluegrass hammer that I inherited from my Dad.
I have since found and bought a 16 ounce Bluegrass hammer. I really
like both hammers.

One time while surfing on the internet, I found a Bluegrass spoke shave.
I bought it. I am curious, do any of you have Bluegrass tools?

Check the following link

'http://www.ebay.com/bhp/belknap

[Andrew Hughes]

I don't have any but your post reminds me of a fence job I did last month.I forgot my hammer at home so I asked the homeowner if i could borrow a hammer.
He came back with a 16oz Rocket hammer I worked with a old carpenter back in high school that used a Rocket.
I had had a hard time giving back the hammer.
I dig old hammers.
The bluegrass tools looks great!

[bridger berdel]

I have 3 bluegrass hammers and a set of bench chisels. Good stuff, all.

[Stew Denton]

I have a single Bluegrass claw hammer, which I like very much.

Stew

[lowell holmes]

I had forgotten that I have a 3/4" Bluegrass chisel until you mentioned yours. Like you say, it is a good chisel.

[Bill McNiel]

I had a Bluegrass hammer but damned if I have any idea where it is. Possibly another victim of my son "the shop raider".

[steven c newman]

When I started out doing foundation work, I was using a Blue Grass 48" metal level. DeGraff Lumber used to sell Blue Grass items, along with Vaughn, and Fuller. I think I still have that 1-1/4" Fuller chisel, came in handy scraping of forms.....and it is still going strong.

[george wilson]

Blue Grass use to be a common brand sold n hardware stores back years ago. I remember the brand from the 50's and 60's. Especially found in the South.

Nicholson marketed "Black Diamond" files in the South. They were the same files as regular Nicholsons,but that name just sold better in the South. I was told that by a museum visitor who was the quality control guy at Nicholson. Then,he sent me about 50 pounds of new Nicholson files!!:)

I can see how a name like "Blue Grass" might appeal to Southerners. I never saw how the name "Black Diamond " did,though.

[Kevin Yarger]

I have a 1/4" drive ratchet, cute little breaker bar, and some sockets labeled Blue Grass. Inherited from my father.

[Stew Denton]

Hi George,

This may or may not explain the "Black Diamond" sold well in the South, but Nicholson bought G&H Barnett Company in 1912, and the Barnett company made files with the "Black Diamond" brand name. Nicholson continued the trade name, and even kept making files in the same location. From what I read, the brand name was popular in central and south America, as well as the southern part of the United States, and Nicholson maintained the brand name for that reason, so it is possible that the brand name was well established in the south going back for a lot of years before Nicholson bought them.

This is purely a guess on my part, based on Nicholson's history.

Stew

[george wilson]

Thank you, Stew. I did not know that !

[bridger berdel]

An old carpenter told me once that bluegrass hammers were made by stanley. I'm certain that my bluegrass chisels are whitherby.

[alan west]

I just bought a lot of four saws to get two Disstons, and one of the other two is a Blue Grass

[Jeff Heath]

I have several of their hammers; 3 or 4, I'll have to look. They were my grandfather's.

[Rob Luter]

A few years ago I stopped at a flea market in Kentucky and a vendor had a whole table of Blue Grass tools. All the planes and scrapers he had appeared to be Stanley, but with Blue Grass branding. He was very proud of these tools! $60 for a #80 scraper seemed a bit steep :eek: