Gary Ragatz
08-09-2019, 1:22 PM
I have an old wooden Stanley level that my Dad passed on to me, probably 25 years ago. It's been gathering dust in my shop, but I picked it up the other day and thought I'd like to clean it up and put it out where it can be seen. It looks like it's seen its share of use, but is in generally good shape. All three vials are intact, and two of them are accurate to within a half-degree, according to my Wixey.
The level is 30" long, 3" wide, and 1-1/4" thick. It has brass end caps (removed in the photos). The brass rings around the two side vials read "STANLEY PATENTED MAR 25 90 ADJUSTABLE." The brass frame around the primary vial (photo 3) reads "STANLEY RULE & LEVEL CO. NEW BRITAIN, CONN USA PAT 6-2-91.2-4-96.6-73-95" (some of the numbers are a little hard to make out, so I won't swear I've got them exactly right). On the other end of the brass frame is a little "cap" that reads "PAT FEB 1890 SCREW" - I assume the cap is protecting the adjustment screw for the primary vial.
Also, I can make out a faint "25" stamped into the wood near the primary vial - I assume this is a model number. The wood (along with some of the brass) has been sanded - so I don't know how (or if) it was originally finished. I've read that Stanley used, at various times, cherry, mahogany and rosewood in their levels. Mine looks like mahogany to me.
I've spent a few hours Googling to see what I could learn about this level, but haven't come up with much. So, a couple of questions for the group:
Does anyone know of a good resource for information on Stanley levels? I was hoping to find something like a "type study" that would help me date it.
Does anyone know how the wood might originally been finished? I was thinking maybe shellac or lacquer?
Thanks, in advance.
Gary
414115
414116
414117
The level is 30" long, 3" wide, and 1-1/4" thick. It has brass end caps (removed in the photos). The brass rings around the two side vials read "STANLEY PATENTED MAR 25 90 ADJUSTABLE." The brass frame around the primary vial (photo 3) reads "STANLEY RULE & LEVEL CO. NEW BRITAIN, CONN USA PAT 6-2-91.2-4-96.6-73-95" (some of the numbers are a little hard to make out, so I won't swear I've got them exactly right). On the other end of the brass frame is a little "cap" that reads "PAT FEB 1890 SCREW" - I assume the cap is protecting the adjustment screw for the primary vial.
Also, I can make out a faint "25" stamped into the wood near the primary vial - I assume this is a model number. The wood (along with some of the brass) has been sanded - so I don't know how (or if) it was originally finished. I've read that Stanley used, at various times, cherry, mahogany and rosewood in their levels. Mine looks like mahogany to me.
I've spent a few hours Googling to see what I could learn about this level, but haven't come up with much. So, a couple of questions for the group:
Does anyone know of a good resource for information on Stanley levels? I was hoping to find something like a "type study" that would help me date it.
Does anyone know how the wood might originally been finished? I was thinking maybe shellac or lacquer?
Thanks, in advance.
Gary
414115
414116
414117