Info on plane maker

[Bill Webber]

I bought a nice set of hollows and rounds. They are in great shape and seem relatively newly made. So far I haven't found any information for this maker. Marked R. A. Vaughan S. C., also known as Ashley Vaughan. Anyone know anything about this maker?433723433724433725

[Jim Koepke]

It is a deep rabbit hole one can fall into looking for information of past & present tool makers.

One site came up > https://workingbyhand.wordpress.com/tool-makers/ < There is also a page on vintage tool makers.

Did you ask Jim Bode if he had any information on their provenance?

jtk

[Bill Webber]

Did you ask Jim Bode if he had any information on their provenance?

jtk[/QUOTE]

Yes, I asked Jim. His answer was cryptic, evasive, I don't believe he knows anything more than the rest of us. I wouldn't be so bent on pursuing this but for the fact that these are high quality planes. High quality meaning comparable to Old Street or Bickford. A little shelf wear, but high quality never the less. You don't produce this quality in a one-off environment. This person made planes, more than one, in some environment, either for sale or for his/her own enjoyment. Having made multiple copies to improve the skills needed, I find it hard to believe no one knows of this person. I don't believe these are very old. When was S.C. the abbreviation for South Carolina? Or, heaven forbid, maybe it means Southern China. :-)

[Pete Taran]

You don’t have to look too far to learn about who made these planes:

https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?225444-Floats-for-making-hollows-amp-rounds

I agree with you, they aren’t terribly old, like maybe less than 5 years!

[Stewie Simpson]

Bill; you could try contacting Caleb James for info on that plane maker.

https://calebjamesmaker.com/contact

[Bill Webber]

You don’t have to look too far to learn about who made these planes:

https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?225444-Floats-for-making-hollows-amp-rounds

I agree with you, they aren’t terribly old, like maybe less than 5 years!

Thanks, Pete, but, yes and no. He posted here, but only once and no other information about him. The referenced post confirms my guess at a date but nothing else. I feel I've just gotten a glimpse of the lone ranger :-)

[Bill Webber]

Thanks. I did that.

[Pete Taran]

Bill,

If you dig deep and spend the $6 to become a contributor, you'll have the ability to send him an email. Perhaps it still works and perhaps he will answer.

[Bill Webber]

Bill,

If you dig deep and spend the $6 to become a contributor, you'll have the ability to send him an email. Perhaps it still works and perhaps he will answer.

Well, that eats up my lunch money for the week but I gave it a try. Thanks, Pete. Plus I can see my own pictures... who knew! Guess I ought to visit here more often.

[Pete Taran]

Let us know what you find out. Hopefully the Rona didn’t get him. Hard to believe that someone making full sets of hollows and rounds with that degree of quality is out there working in obscurity.

[Bill Webber]

Let us know what you find out. Hopefully the Rona didn’t get him. Hard to believe that someone making full sets of hollows and rounds with that degree of quality is out there working in obscurity.
I will. And how did Jim Bode get the set? Directly from the maker or a second party? If directly from the maker, why was this talented plane make selling to Bode.

[Pete Taran]

I can answer that question. It almost always goes something like this. Uncle Jack gets old and falls or otherwise has to go into the nursing home, or perhaps even passes away. His Children or Grandchildren start to get rid of his stuff however they can. They see a bunch of old tools and know nothing about them and google hand planes or old tools and websites like Bode's come up. Jim gets them for as little as possible and sells them for as much as possible. The kids think they are getting a deal and Jim makes a good buck. It's how it goes in the old tool world.

There could have been a few owners in between. They could have had a yard sale and a discerning buyer could have scooped them up and then sold them to Jim. I'd seriously doubt that the maker sold them to Jim direct. At $1750 that is less than $100 a plane. No way the guy who made them sold them that cheap, and that would mean the sale price was even less than that as Jim would have not bought them and sold them at cost.

[Jim Koepke]

I will. And how did Jim Bode get the set? Directly from the maker or a second party? If directly from the maker, why was this talented plane make selling to Bode.

Marketing is a skill which eludes many a talented artisan. Having such a fine set of hollows and rounds would make me proud. Like so many others, affording such a set is out of my range.

Maybe Jim Bode is doing the marketing for R. A. Vaughan until more of a reputation helps to sell their wares.

Mr. Bode offering a "cryptic answer" may actually be the answer.

jtk

[Frederick Skelly]

It's odd. I'm usually decent at finding companies on the web. I cant find any reference to this man at all, other than on Bode's site. Maybe he only sold by word of mouth. Can anyone else find him?

Doggone shame. Looks like nice work.

[Eric Rathhaus]

Assuming SC is South Carolina, I would try contacting some of the woodworking clubs in the south as well as the Woodwrights school and the MWTCA.

[Warren Mickley]

I found a telephone number for Ashley, called this morning, and left a message that people were discussing his planes on Sawmill Creek.

[Warren Mickley]

Ashley Vaughan returned my call just now. He is a hortaculturist in South Carolina who does woodworking on the side. He seemed pretty excited that people were interested in his molding planes. Just from talking to him, I felt that he was a serious and sensitive craftsman. I was able to view a few pieces of furniture that he made on the internet.

Ashley was not able to log in to Sawmill Creek, but thought he would try to reapply. He said he shows stuff on Instagram, which is apparently where Jim Bode saw his work. I think Bill Webber was able to speak to him as well.

[Frederick Skelly]

Thank you Warren!

[Hilton Ralphs]

Lovely thread this.

[Frederick Skelly]

Lovely thread this.

Going off topic a minute....
Hilton,
How are you and your family doing throughout this Covid thing?
Fred

[Jonathan Elliott]

A telephone....what's that?? :D

[Hilton Ralphs]

Going off topic a minute....
Hilton,
How are you and your family doing throughout this Covid thing?
Fred


Fred, thanks for the concern. We are all good, just trying to revive the economy. I keep a keen eye on the USA reported cases and it's certainly madness no matter which way you look at it. Trust you guys are all fine and I haven't seen any reports of Neanderthals under the weather from this dreaded virus. Maybe all that glue and sawdust we've sniffed or inhaled over the years has protected out lungs :-)

[Frederick Skelly]

Fred, thanks for the concern. We are all good, just trying to revive the economy. I keep a keen eye on the USA reported cases and it's certainly madness no matter which way you look at it. Trust you guys are all fine and I haven't seen any reports of Neanderthals under the weather from this dreaded virus. Maybe all that glue and sawdust we've sniffed or inhaled over the years has protected out lungs :-)

Glad you are well. I am too!
Fred

[Rafael Herrera]

What is his Instagram handle?

[Bill Webber]

I think Bill Webber was able to speak to him as well.

Yes, I have talked to him. He explained how he tried to be a plane maker but couldn't get any real traction. He had a web page for a while and he had tried to create some association with Lie-Nielsen that didn't work out. The half set of H&Rs were a commission where the buyer backed out. Ashley offered that was probably why the planes were not properly marked. He eventually put the planes on Ebay and that is where Bode bought them.

As an amateur woodworker he makes Federalist furniture and Windsor chairs and seems to enjoy those pursuits. I've inquired about his plane making efforts and his vague reply was "I would like to pursue plane making on a reasonable scale as interest dictates". I think he may have gotten burned out in addition to simply getting burned.

I'm pleased to say Ashley offered the loan of his name stamp and now my set of Ashley Vaughan planes is properly marked. I can also offer they all seem to work properly though that is my very limited experience speaking. I'm happy with them. Here's the lot of them.435310

[Jim Koepke]

Interesting follow up Bill.

You might want to write that down so someone 100 years from now will also have the tale of the Ashley Vaughan planes.

It is amazing how often hollows & rounds can be used in everyday woodworking.

My wooden stone holding blocks have gotten a few swipes down the sides with a 3/4" round to make finger holds.

Rounding over corners or making rounded edges is quick.

jtk