Antique Tools

[dutchman9798]

I've been given 4 old Wooden Shaping Planes from my aging Uncle, along with a collection of every conceivable shape of Patternmaker's Chisels You could think of. I want to know what is the best way to handle the planes. They appear to me to be in worn but working condition and have a lackluster, working finish. Completely clean and varnish/finish them.....merely clean.....leave in working condition...etc? Are they of antique status.....or just old junk? Mount and preserve them?
Y'alls considered opinion please.

[Thaddeus J. Van Gilder]

Mount and preserve them? No way! That is why we have trouble affording old tools!

I say sharpen em and use em.

Thad

[Mrleft8]

If you thin shelac with turps you're going to get an interesting salad dressing kinda solution.
Where I come from we thin shelac with alcohol...

[Bruce Hooke]

The value of old wooden planes depends to a large degree on which company made them. I picked up a book called A Price Guide to Antique Tools that gives you an idea of the price ranges for tools like these.

[Bruce Hooke]

My basic rule with antiques is to try to keep the tool or object from deteriorating further but otherwise avoid making changes unless I am very sure that the changes are called for. For the most part antiques are more valuable if they have the old finish and patina. That said, my impression is that most old wooden planes are not worth huge amounts of money so I have some old wood planes that I keep in my shop and intend to use if I come across a situation where they would be useful...

[Jim Budde]

I agree w/ the others ... use em'. I have 15 or 20 assorted old planes (mostly Stanley) and use them all the time. Properly cared for, I'd match mine against any new ones .. and it's fun to think of the projects (and people) that these old tools represent

[Sailman58]

I purchased 2 wooden planes at Saint Michaels about 5 years ago. They sat around until I started to work on the mast for my latest boat. Since the one plane was longer than any of my other planes I decided to use it. That long sole and heavy iron worked better than any other plane that I have ever used!

[gunnar I am]

How about a picture of the pattern makers gouges. Ya know? A little eye candy?

[Wayne Jeffers]

I would repeat the "no varnish" admonition. For the same reason you don't varnish the grips on oars: you don't want blisters on your hands from using them for extended periods.

I think you'll find that most old wooden planes were treated with oil, not shellac. I hand rub mine with linseed oil and wipe off the excess. Seems to keep them in good shape.

Wayne

[Dave Fleming]

Old tool handles had no finish on them. What you see as a finish is the old oils and sweat worked into the wood pores. Ayup many came with a coating of some sort but that was for shipping and storing before sale. First thing a workman did was to scrape or sand off that coating and leave the handle alone. You work with a chisel most of the day say, cutting those frame heel pockets in that timber keel and see how a nice new 'nekkid' wood handle looks at the end of day. ;)
You especially don't want varnish or shellac on a handle too slick, you go to pick up that chisel with that shiney varnished handle from your tool box up on the ways with your hands dirty and sweaty...zing goes that chisel over the side and down either on the gravel or into the drink and, that slick coating does promote some serious blisters also. :rolleyes:

PS: remember those handles came as 'one size fits all', with no two set of hands exactly alike most all good workmen shaped a handle to fit their hands. A fella with hands as big as shovels would be very uncomfortable with a tool fitted for some one like a...hobbit. Ya folla?

[ 12-17-2002, 08:40 PM: Message edited by: Dave Fleming ]

[ken mcclure]

Don't you want to use those tools?

For years I've had a pet peeve about people who grab great old tools and put them on the shelf like an ornament. These are the same people who would buy a Great Dane puppy, have it put to sleep and get it stuffed by a taxidermist to display.

Clean off any crud, clean up and sharpen the blades and go use the tools. If you haven't used an old wooden plane or a GOOD set of gouges, you're in for a treat!

[Cedarhill Boatworks]

Use them. Clean them up, adjust them properly and use them. Thats what they were built for. I have been extremely lucky in that I have never had to purchase many hand tools. I have inherited woodworking tools from both sides of my family. Boat builders on my mothers side and carpenters, cabinet makers on my fathers side. The vast majority of my hand tools are much much older than I am. I will put them up against just about any new tool.

I was in the shop this past Saturday making the wooden boat hook from the new issue. I made it out of teak for my favorite uncle and I was having fun consciously using the older of the tools I could put my hands on. I limited the power tools to ripping the blank for the handle on the table saw. I made the shaft octagonal by paring it down with a spokeshave and finishing it with a block plane. I did use an electric drill to bore the hole for the pin, but I secured it with opposing wedges through the shaft. That hole I drilled with the old egg beater. I was feeling wistfull because I start to miss my dad around this time of year and I knew he would have done the same thing. He taught me a long time ago to cherish the tools that had been passed down from his grandfather and such.
If you read the string about hand tools vs machine tools there is a thread I detect from those of us that beleive that there is a certain soul, a warmth and a life that comes from using our hands and hand tools that is absent from mass produced machine jigged stuff. Even really high end mass produced machine jigged stuff.
I know in my heart that my forebears have left me so much more than simple tools. There is a legacy of pride and respect in each of those old chisels and planes that leaves a mark on all that I do with them. I look forward to the day that I can hand them over to my sons and nephews and stand back and watch what they produce.
Use the old tools, make them proud.

[Cecil Nickerson]

You're on the money, I just finished a Shaker step stool for a Christmas gift and in the process used tools that belonged to my father, my wife's father and her grandfather who was a cabinetmaker and woodworking instructor in a prison. Oh, Ken, if you do that again my supply of dry undies will be decimated. You've been warned.

Cecil

[john welsford]

My hsabit has been, when taking over teh guardianship of an old wooden tool, to submerge them in a container of linseed oil and vegetable turpentine for a couple of weeks, then let it dry slowly in a shady cool place and polish the wood from time to time until it no longer leaves oil on the hand. The treatement completely stops cracking and warping of the wooden body or handle and needs to be done about every lifetime or so to keep the tool in good order.
By the way, I travel a lot, and make a point of calling at junkshops , not antique or "collectable" shops as the prices are about five times as high. I found one new to me yeaterday and picked up a Stanley No 4 Bailey in very good order for US$8 00. The handles are already in the oil bath and when I have done the job on them will be wiped over with boiled linseed and driers.
I got a nice little Record roundbacked spokeshave for $5 00 as well. Good place!

JohnW

Originally posted by dutchman9798:
I've been given 4 old Wooden Shaping Planes from my aging Uncle, along with a collection of every conceivable shape of Patternmaker's Chisels You could think of. I want to know what is the best way to handle the planes. They appear to me to be in worn but working condition and have a lackluster, working finish. Completely clean and varnish/finish them.....merely clean.....leave in working condition...etc? Are they of antique status.....or just old junk? Mount and preserve them?
Y'alls considered opinion please.

[Ted Ford]

Buy or borrow the book "Restoring,Tuning and Using Classic Woodworking Tools" by Michael Dunbar.

Tells you everything implied in the title. I have a poorly controlled passion for old woodworking tools and the book is my bible.

Ted Ford
Rochester, NY

[Alan D. Hyde]

Well said, Cedarhill.

I agree.

I have a backsaw that was my great grandfather's, and a hand-operated bench grinder that was my grandfather's. They (and other tools that they left me) bring to mind two men of whom I have many fond memories.

Thinking of them, of their discipline, strength of character, resourcefulness, sense of humor in difficult situations, all those things come to my mind when I pick up one of their tools.

I hope that someday my own son and daughters will have similar memories, and I wish that every child could be fortified by such potent, though departed, ghostly allies and advisors.

Alan

[skuthorp]

I use tools that were my grandfathers and fathers, and my wifes great great grandfathers from a family of shipwrights in the Falkland Islands. Irons from England Scotland , the U.S. and Germany, wood from wrecked sailing ships. I use them wherever possible and oil them with linseed. Planes, chisels, Saws with hand- made handles, draw knives and spokeshaves. Theres a lot of romance in using tools with a history and mostly they have a name or initials to remind you of other hands and your own responsibility to conserve

[capt jake]

Wasn't Bayboat looking for some mast planes? Are these in that realm? I think he posted under resources.

[Concordia..41]

With modern day plastics and the fine craftsmanship of far off countries, old hand tools are worthless. They are also dangerous as they can be very sharp and will hold a cutting edge for long periods of time. It is highly recommended that you carefully pack these tools and ship them to Dave’s Hazardous Tool Disposal, St. Augustine, Florida. For the next 90 days we are running a special and will not charge for disposal. Hurry as this is a onetime offer!

Dave

[ishmael]

That's Margo, always ready to lend a helping hand. :D

Oop, Dave too! redface.gif

[ 12-19-2002, 09:45 AM: Message edited by: ishmael ]

[Wild Dingo]

Originally posted by dutchman9798:
I've been given 4 old Wooden Shaping Planes from my aging Uncle, along with a collection of every conceivable shape of Patternmaker's Chisels You could think of. I want to know what is the best way to handle the planes.Well mate the very best of ways to handle them is to get one of them large boxes from FedEx and load em all in their with some suitable packing tape it up go to FedEx office and send em on down here... thats the best thing for you to do... mate believe me I WILL LOOK AFTER THEM!! I WILL USE THEM Your ageing uncle will look on you with utter pride for having done such a good thing... beleive me!! ;)

Oh other than that... clean em up sharpen them up if they need repairs or fixin then do it... and then use em! ..make a boat perhaps?? :cool:

Take it easy
Shane

[ken mcclure]

Cecil you will be gladdened, I am sure, to know that I perform these underwear destruction services at absolutely no charge whatsoever.

Even though I have been offered compensation by a large underwear manufacturer (the company itself is relatively small - they actually make large underwear) I turned it down. I feel that this is one thing I can do to give back to society in measure for what society has given me over the years.

So for quite a while, I've practiced and honed my skills as much as I could and tried to perfect my timing so as to catch the unwary in a situation where nature's course may not have yet been taken and provide the impetus for a spontaneous evacuation.

So. A little bladder pressure, a forumite who's trying to finish reading that last thread before he or she runs for the bathroom (or loo, if you prefer), a bit of humor strategically placed and (as they say) Bob's yer Uncle! Another pair of didees bites the dust.

The unfortunate thing is that my memory is not what it used to be. So once in awhile I run across one of my old threads and catch myself unawares. So while working on the forum I've learned to wear a pair of dark pants to make this more like a charitable experience. You know how it goes - if you wet yourself in a pair of dark pants you get that nice warm feeling but nobody notices.

[Ed Harrow]

Originally posted by Concordia..41:
With modern day plastics and the fine craftsmanship of far off countries, old hand tools are worthless. They are also dangerous as they can be very sharp and will hold a cutting edge for long periods of time. It is highly recommended that you carefully pack these tools and ship them to Dave’s Hazardous Tool Disposal, St. Augustine, Florida. For the next 90 days we are running a special and will not charge for disposal. Hurry as this is a onetime offer!

DaveDutchman, this guy is not to be trusted as far as you can throw him. He'll chuck them into the local landfill. If they get traced back to you, well you can forget about whatever is left in your IRA. I suggest that you send them to me. I will hand carry them to the local hazardous waste incinerator. You have my word on that.

[dutchman9798]

Thanks for your thoughts folks. To save postage, I'll just burn them in my lil ol pot belly stove in case I get tired of using them. :rolleyes: I'll re-read the distructions fer using the digital Camera and provide that eye candy.

Mo later.....Chuck