Saturday, October 24, 2009

Eye Candy

The Brown International Tool Auction and Dealer Show was held yesterday and today in Harrisburg, PA, and did not disappoint.

Despite the enormous selection of tempting goodies, I only bought a little caliper and a marking gauge that I had never seen before (photos at right). The dealer, Dan Ludwig, told me it was made by a company called Fulton from Washington, D.C., and was patented in 1888.

It has three marking knives, two of which can be advanced and retracted by unscrewing the knob and sliding the two halves of the body apart. The third knife is friction fit and can be adjusted by pushing or tapping on the iron. I bought it because it was cool and I'd like to make one.

DuCo Tools, from the Netherlands, had several 18th c. carved planes—one built in 1718—the styles of which I had only before seen in books.

Tony Murland had some fine pieces, as well: a carved Dutch plane from 1776 and a carved oilstone holder (both pictured last). The low relief carving of tools on the box's lid was especially eyecatching and has been added to my to-build list.

I also ran into some familiar faces: Lee Richmond, from The Best Things; Shannon Rogers, the Renaissance Woodworker; Jim Leamy, maker of gorgeous plow planes; Tom Graham, from Midwest Tool Collectors Association; and a number of other friends.

What a great way to spend a rainy day!

10 comments:

  1. You are the queen of the marking gauges! You can never have enough, right? :) Looks like an excellent way to spend monsoon season.

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  2. 'Tis a butt mortise gauge for hanging door hinges. Mostly intended for carpentry, they're fairly unusual as most didn't survive. Also, I think many antique pickers had no idea it was a tool and never bothered to grab them.

    Gary

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  3. Kari - some nice stuff there...one or two of my pals from this side of the pond would have had a field day with that little lot! - Rob

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  4. Emily, you can never have enough tools, clamps, or pizza. hee hee

    Thanks for solving the mystery, Gary. The dealer said that they are hard to find. There were actually two at the show, but the other one was missing one of the irons.

    Rob, it's quite the candy store for antique tool lovers. :o)

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  5. BTW Kari... you're now a tool collector. When you buy something you don't need just cause it's interesting, you're hooked. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

    Gary

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  6. Gary, who says I don't need them??? haha

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  7. I think tool curator is more appropriate since you have designs on making one yourself. You are preserving and promoting old tools!

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  8. Gary is correct about the butt gauge (for mortising butt hinges on doors and jambs). I still use one, made from metal though. In fact I just hung a French door with one two days ago.

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  10. I love old tools I feel they are better quality.
    I guess it's an old school attitude!

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    ReplyDelete