Beginning in mid-July, every batch (listed in column 1) is phographed when it is checked out (column 2), when it is returned (column 4), and sometimes during the process in between (column 3). An approximate description of the contents, together with comments, is found in column 5.
(When indicated the check-our / completion / check-in dates are links to photos of the batch at that stage in the process.)
| Batch number | Date borrowed | Date completed | Date returned | Description and comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-06-11 | 2014-06-11 | 2014-06-15 | 2014-06-18 | |
| 2014-06-18 | 2014-06-22 | 2014-06-25 | 2014-06-25 | |
| 2014-06-25 | 2014-06-25 | 2014-07-08 | 2014-07-09 | Includes several 'Yankee'-style (Stanley and Millers Falls) spiral screwdrivers, none of them very big, and a mutilated Millers Falls hand drill. Tried to turn it into a usable tool, but the result was not fully satisfactory. |
| 2014-07-09 | 2014-07-09 | 2014-07-13 | 2014-07-16 | Includes small "Worth" block plane (iron bent and rusty, body sound); Miller's Falls push-drill; Craftsman iron-bodied hand-drill (crank straightened, body repainted) with some twist drills in the handle. |
| 2014-07-16 | 2014-07-16 | 2014-07-16 | 2014-07-23 | 5 chisels, iron cordwainer's/cobbler's rest, Stanley no. 20 try square, Dykeman scraper, cabinet scraper (bare blade), leatherworker's head knife, farrier's knife, two long spatulas or scrapers? large coarse Craftsman rasp, drywall trowels, Wen soldering gun, Smith Perfect-handle screwdrivers, Russwin adj wrench (made by HD Smith?), GTD pipe wrench, mixed Trimo/Ridgid pipe wrench, Bemis &Call version of Coes pattern wrench, 4 Crescent-type wrenches (Crescent, Lago, two Lakeside (Wards)), light-duty monkey wrench, iron-hndld gimlet, heavily pitted long-handled float (?cobbler's peg breaker), Stanley no. 40 scrub plane (early type, but broken and brazed), a few files, screwdrivers, feeler gauge, tack puller, pliers, etc. One rare amputation saw [see Collectibles.] |
| 2014-07-23 | 2014-07-23 | 2014-07-27 | 2014-07-30 | Mostly files, drill bits (twist and auger), cold chisels from reputable makers (Proto/Plomb, Kraeuter, P.S.&W.), Stanley plastic-handled butt chisel, small (1/4") Simmons socket-style butt chisel with handle missing, 1/2" socket-style firmer chisel that was impressively mushroomed (and now ground down for safety's sake); several putty knives; Stanley no. 670 offset screwdriver (probably late, VG, but barely or non-collectible); file handles, promotional screwdrivers, small Starrett pin vise, 8" Ridgid pipe wrench [repainted], Wards expansive bit in VG+ condition (made by ...?). |
| 2014-07-30 | 2014-07-30 | 2014-08-06 (part 1) | Many files, small vise (no name, good quality), Sampson 18" pipe wrench*, four 8" or 10" braces, of which three are ratcheting (a no-name; a Goodell-Pratt, and an early True Value (i.e. Hibbard, Spencer, and Bartlett ?)), and one non-ratcheting (an undistinguished 8" Stanley no. 924, collector value ca. $5-$10); a Stanley 'Handyman' hand drill, a half dozen augers, linesman's pliers, trowel, two Irwin (and one decrepit) expansive bits, large Pexto monkey wrench with broken backstrap**, cheap adj wrench, Goodell-Pratt stab saw, basin wrench, Italian pruners, Swedish (BJ Vigor) jeweller's nippers, nice Utica pliers, Stanley and Dunlap block planes, good hardware-store branded hammer, a few cold chisels and punches, Crescent all-steel 3/4" wood chisel, two uninteresting pairs of slip-joint pliers, basic square***, some sort of miter clamp?, two Ace tap wrenches, spiral drill, Craftsman vise-grip-type pliers, automotive monkey wrench, two Coes monkey wrenches with 1900 pat. dates, well-worn rusty General caliper and protractor, odd offset snapring (??) pliers, no-name ignition pliers, a few screwdrivers, etc.. [separately, on 2 August, from Susan: coppered electric 'bowl' (space) heater, Universal brand; see Collectibles, below]. Provided ferrules for the file handles and a rough handle (made from a chair rung) for the socket chisel. Cleaned, lubed, and refinished the braces. Ground extensive mushrooming from the head of the cold chisel (with hand grinder and then bench grinder); sharpened wood-and cold-chisel. Repainted the (Goodell-Pratt?) saw handle. | |
| 2014-08-11 (part 2) | 2014-08-13 (part 2) | |||
| 2014-08-06 | 2014-08-06 | 2014-08-11 | 2014-08-13 | (1950-vintage??) "Whale" brand hacksaw (Forsberg Mfg, Bridgeport CT), two slipjoint pliers, two needlenose pliers (one heavily pitted), hollow-handle tool holder with one bit, a few screwdrivers, including a nice stubby Philips no. 2, Stanley awl with faded handle, cheap putty knife, scraper with interesting reinforcing strip, a pair of (buttonhole?) scissors, file handle, 'Ideal' automatic wire strippers. generic jab saw [a very small batch, only had 3 mins. to pick them.]. Repainted the awl and cleaned and sharpened it. Repainted the saw handle. For the hollow-handled tool holder, see below. Cleaned and buffed and sometimes oiled everything as appropriate. Reground some of the screwdriver blades if excessively worn or chipped. |
| 2014-08-13 All previously checked-out items now checked in. Refurbishment suspended till after ... VACATION WEEK (SPENT BUILDING A BARN FLOOR) | ||||
| 2014-08-13 | 2014-08-13 | 2014-08-13 | (from lower left) jeweler's saw (frame only), pruners, 4-in-hand file/rasp, keyhole saw and bundle of saw blades (some from different saws?), two 4" files, claw hammer, rip hammer, linoleum knife, hand drill, 4-in-1 brass screwdriver, wood chisel, nut driver, punch, rule (without square head), all-steel wood chisel, odd bolt driver, stubby screw driver, gimlet, broken reamer with square shank, triangular file, hdl for socket chisel, block plane, auger, odd flat chisel, socket chisel, wire strippers, gouge, some kind of ratcheting driver, double-ended file handle, two 6" files (triangular?), ignition pliers, cold chisel, awl, some kind of knife, wood chisel, needle-nose pliers, three misc. files, handle for socket-headed wood chisel, awl or ice pick?, multi-tap for restoring threaded holes, t-handle tap wrench, another nut driver, screw driver, handle-less socketed wood chisel, another ditto, spade bit, 2" c clamp, six slip-joint pliers, cape (?) chisel, some kind of putty knife or similar, long socket-handled wood chisel, four flat files, Sharpened the chisels (usually re-forming them on a belt sander), made crude new handles for four of the handle-less from sticks in my kindling pile; mated the two Stanley socket chisels to Keen Kutter (red plastic) handles. Refinished the hammer handles. Repainted the German ("British Zone") pliers; provided a blade for the jeweler's saw; painted the auger handle; cleaned everything. Don't think there is anything particularly collectable here, though one of the slipjoint pliers has Ford markings, the stubby socket chisel is a Keen Kutter (much used), the two middle-length socket chisels are Stanleys; the awl looks old; the user-modified knife looks uncomfortably like a shiv; two of the small files are 'knife' style which is a little less common than others; the rip hammer is a decent hardward-store brand; the pruners and needle-nose pliers are very clean, the nut drivers are Xcelite, the hand drill is a Millers Falls in decent working order; and the ignition pliers are Channellocks, ditto. The postwar German pliers are of an attractive design. Don't know about the huge gouge. The Klein handy tap is missing one of its two bits. The files are mostly so-so and the reamer has a broken nose. | |
| 2014-08-28 (pt 1) | 2014-08-27 | 2014-09-03 | A basic assortment: four pipe wrenches (Ridgid, Merit,Trimo, and a Chinese knockoff), one (the Chinese one) with bent handle; six hammers, two of them rather abused Estwings ; a Craftsman vise-grip lookalike, small pair of Channellocks, a deep jeweler's saw, a German brace, a crescent-type wrench, a couple of odd chisels (?if that's what they are), a small Stanley flat pry bar, a half dozen misc screwdrivers, a pair of slipjoint pliers, small Mayes adj square, three putty knives (one with a stiff body and flexible tip), an unmarked offset screwdriver, a round-shank bit extension, large Dunlap nippers, rather undistinguished coping saw, and a small combo wrench that accidentally slipped into the picture from the 'wrenches' picture. A never-used 'keyhole' router bit. One broken triangular file of no value. Oh, and an odd lot of screwdriver bits and allen wrenches from the bottom of the box that I will set aside and deal with separately in a future week, when I hope to sort screwdriver bits and Allen wrenches. Huh. One of the "estwings" was in fact marked "MALCO" rather than Estwing (see below); the four wood-handled hammers were a nice TrueTemper rip hammer, a nicely polished Plumb ball-peen, a good Plumb claw hammer, and a rather crude or abused Lakeside ball-peen. | |
| 2014-08-28 (WRENCHES) | 2014-08-27 | 2014-09-03 | About 110 open-end, box, and combination wrenches, LISTED HERE. After cleaning these, hope to combine these with those already for sale to produce (maybe) a couple of sets and then figure out some way to sort and sell the remainder in some way that makes sense. The current batch of wrenches include some of mild interest, including a handful of automotive ones (Ford, Toyota, Fiat, BMW, Lexus, Yamaha); a very clean Klein spud wrench, a Whitman & Barnes (Williams-looking) S-wrench with railroad markings, a set of Makita wrenches (part nos. 7810111 and 7810103, for the 2708 Makita table saw?) and a fairly common International Harvester engine wrench. One set was so badly pitted that we might try to sell them as having a non-slip surface :). Several nice older wrenches (early Williams, etc., still marked (pre-1927) with the old nominal bolt sizes instead of SAE nut sizes, and with the older Williams logo (1914-1924)) Some too damaged to sell, or too oddball to sell successfully. A few in perfect shape, brightly chromed and attractive. A mixed lot. This large a heap of wrenches is an education in American manufacturing history, reminding one of the existence of ...
(The two potential collectibles (the IHC wrench and the C&NW Railway wrench) held out for a day or two for further research [delivered to the sale on Saturday 2014-09-05, with informative labels. Received and priced by Bill H.] The handful of screwdriver bits (except Yankee) and Allen wrenches from this batch have been transferred to batch 2014-09-03 for sorting.) | |
| 2014-09-03 | 2014-09-03 (part 1) | 2014-09-04 | 2014-09-10 (picture 1) 2014-09-10 (picture 2) 2014-09-10 (picture 3) [Still outstanding: one screwdriver (in need of a ferrule); two wood chisels (in need of sharpening or reshaping and/or handles); one square file (in need of a handle); and five (?) cold chisels (in need of de-mushrooming and regrinding). Also retaining the Yankee bits till I have time to set them out effectively for sale.] [Completed the regrinding of the cold chisels, the provision of a ferrule, the sharpening of the wood chisels, and the creation of new handles for a chisel and file over the weekend 9/13-9/14. RETURNED 2014-09-17] |
Allen wrenches, screwdriver bits, and a few similar items (small, sized, difficult to sell). Hope to be able to create sets of the
more common sizes and package them, perhaps accompanied by an SAE size chart or metric size chart Sized all the allen wrenches, created seven fairly complete sets, sent the most complete metric set to the Bicycle Department as agreed; bagged each set with a size chart; bagged the remaining individual Allen wrenches by size; set out a few of each size, priced per size ($0.25 smaller than 1/8"; $0.50 smaller than 1/4"; $0.75 smaller than 3/8"; $1.00 for larger sizes, and similarly for metric. Separated the Yankee bits by shank size (5/16" [for the model 131 etc.); 9/32" (for the model 130 etc.); 7/32" (for the model 135 etc.). Also sized the Yankee push drill shank sizes (5/32" and 7/32"). Will set a few of each out as with the Allen wrenches. Small screwdriver bits were bagged up by length and type and priced by the bag. . |
| 2014-09-03 (part 2) | Lots of screwdrivers, including bits and pieces from several 'four-in-hand' screwdrivers; four hammers, and a few miscellaneous tools. The screwdrivers were made as presentable as possible. Some handles repainted or refinished; some chipped blades reground; all of them cleaned. The pile of 4-in-hand parts were resolved into a half dozen complete screwdrivers and a can of parts. Can of parts was set aside, the complete drivers priced at $2 each. There were also a number of bits belonging to multi-bit screwdriver sets (the kind with two 'wings' at the top of the shaft), but none of them seemed to fit any handle currently in stock. Those too were put in the can of screwdriver parts. Most of the screwdrivers remain unpriced for the moment, but have been relegated (along with most of the screwdrivers already out for sale) to the under-the-counter overflow box of ready-to-sell tools. There are simply too many screwdrivers. Still to do: size, price, and perhaps put together a set of nut drivers, which have been lumped in with the screwdrivers; and make sure that odd-ball screwdrivers (especially Torx) are adequately represented in the items available for sale. Tiny screwdrivers were segregated and put in the jar of tiny screwdrivers. |
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| 2014-09-05 (part 3) | The miscellaneous drawers emptied: drill bits and so forth; bagged up, then spread out on the Washington St. sidewalk for a quick photo. Set screws were separated out, to be either sold or returned to the Kiwanis hardware drawer. Drill bits were first divided roughly into 'sharp' and 'dull'; the dull ones were set aside to be kept for future sharpening? Or for sale as a job lot? the sharp ones were all individually sized, indvidually priced, and indvidually labeled, and were set out in the drill-bit block as before. Various miscellaneous bits and socket parts (e.g. drywall bits, magnetic bit holders, socket adapters, etc.) were all dumped in the $0.50 wrenches, etc. tray. |
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| 2014-09-10 | 2014-09-10 | Done, 2014-09-12. | 2014-09-17 | Very small batch -- a few bits to sort, a couple of drill gauges to de-rust, along with some nut picks, a bottle opener, and a razor-blade scraper. Done. Except that one nutpick disappeared: the wire wheel flung it across the garage, landing ... somewhere. Sized and priced the drill bits individually as before. |
| 2014-09-17 All previously checked-out items now checked in. | ||||
| 2014-09-17 | 2014-09-17 | 2014-09-24 (photographed on loading dock at warehouse) | Another batch of screwdrivers, tin snips, pliers, hacksaw, adj square, a couple of misc small items. [A no-name CLAW HAMMER ADDED on Saturday 9/20: had been put out for sale, overpriced at $6, rusty, with paint-spattered handle and loose head; I de-rusted and polished head, sanded down and refinished handle, removed head from handle, removed fragments of old epoxy, re-bedded in fresh epoxy and added steel wedges; now perhaps worth $5.] The pink "4-in-1" screwdriver had apparently been pounded on a little, so that the tubular shaft spread a bit at one end, and would no longer slide into the handle; I turned it down a little on the grinder and it works ok now. | |
| 2014-09-24 All previously checked-out items now checked in. | ||||
| A huge batch that will take a while to get through, taken from the 18 (?) boxes of tools sorted through at the warehouse on 24 September by Doug, Bill, Jim, and myself. | ||||
| 2014-09-24 | 2014-09-24 part 1 2014-09-24 part 2 2014-09-24 part 3 2014-09-24 part 4 | Too many to fit in one photo: 2014-10-01 (picture 1) 2014-10-01 (picture 2) 2014-10-01 (picture 3) 2014-10-01 (picture 4) |
Got through most of them the first weekend, albeit by cutting a few corners. Including: three claw hammers, a rip hammer, two hatchets, four pipe wrenches (from 6" to 24", including a 24" Merit Stillson and an 18" GTD); a pair of genuine visegrips, a small vise, several cold chisels and punches, several wood chisels (some with broken handles), a pair of Wiss shears, an airframe-industry 90 deg drill attachment (1/4"-28) with a number 0 Jacob's chuck; about a dozen files (from needle to large 'western cut'); a Goodell-Pratt push drill; a small Yankee (North Bros.); a very corroded set of Indestro box wrenches; an unusual jar wrench; water-pump pliers (flimsy); several putty knives, including one 'chisel cut'; a flat wrecking bar; a Bridgeport nail puller (to which I added a stop made of hickory); about a dozen screwdrivers and nut drivers; a low-end hand drill; a dozen stamped proprietary wrenches; a Bemis & Call S-wrench, somewhat bent but functional; a pair of Pexto pliers; an odd old C-clamp; a 2" Pony C-clamp; two badly abused Stanley awls; a fairly large set of hex-drive sockets (Duro??); a couple of ice picks; some linesman's pliers, mostly abused, but one good pair of Bokers; two or three pair of needle-nose pliers, including an old Kraeuter; four pair of old-style snips; one pair of new-style snips; a couple of utility knives; a couple of wooden-handled knives of uncertain purpose; a tuck pointer (?); a cheap Craftsman adj square; a pair of tiny snips; two nice solid bit braces (a Stanley and a Pexto); a tack hammer; a rule minus its square head; a box of ok drill bits; a box of dull or damaged drill bits; a couple of Allen wrenches (one of them a genuine Allen); a few ok box wrenches; a block plane; a tile nipper; about a dozen open-end wrenches; a few hacksaw blades; a pair of kitchen/utility shears; a pair of Bernard-style small pliers; a caulking iron; (?); some misc pliers; a ratcheting ball-head screwdriver; a tire gauge; a couple of square-shank thingies (countersinks, screwdriver, etc.); a ball-peen hammer; an auto wrench; some kind of hand-modified linoleum knife (?); and a few things I couldn't identify. | |
| 2014-10-01 | 2014-10-01 | A very small batch of things that happened to be lying around. | ||
(The description field may contain a link to more detailed background info or pictures)
| From batch no. | Description | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| 2014-07-16 | Dykeman cabinet scraper | Nicely made vintage (1906-1939) but user tool with minimal collector interest. May also have been sold under the Hibbard, Spencer and Bartlett "O.V.B." brand (cp. HSB 1915 catalogue) and maybe also through other hardware distributors. Ebay values it at $20-$60, with one outlier at $130 on the UK version of eBay. Kiwanis priced at $25. |
| 2014-07-16 | Stanley no. 40 scrub (rough) plane, pre-1920 type | Condition poor but iron good. If VG(+) condition, worth c$150. Broken and brazed body (and scored sole) reduces it to a user tool or parts tool. Body repainted since of no collector interest; iron and handles left untouched as having potential parts value. Worth $5-$10 as is. Kiwanis priced at $10, at least initially. |
| 2014-07-16 | Tool holder/set | Wooden handle VG, metal nose fair, collet worn, half of bits missing or broken, vintage but not valuable, ca. $5 |
| 2014-07-16 | Stanley no. 20 try square, pre-1902 type | Condition fair at best, markings almost gone, rescued from serious rust. Value ca. $5. |
| 2014-07-16 | Early scraper-type blade | Serious rust. Unknown maker or use, perhaps ca. $10. |
| 2014-07-16 | Fratelli Caselli steel spatula (for plaster work?) | Serious rust. Prestigious Italian makers of sculptor's tools. This one a decent user-grade tool, ca. $10? |
| 2014-07-16 | Wm. H. Armstrong surgeon's amputation saw, ca. 1895 | De-rusted the blade but otherwise left as is. More datable than most, and not a common type. Value may be considerable, though the nearest eBay comparable at the moment seems to have attracted no bids yet at a starting price of $70. Sent it to the Antiques Dept. with a suggested price of $25. |
| 2014-07-23 | Cold chisel marked "L. E. & St. L." | Abused tool de-rusted by chelation but otherwise left as is. Value?? Nearest eBay comparable seems to be asking $12; other similar items are asking a 'buy-it-now' price or minimum bid of up to $30, with the usual eBay caveats. Suggest sending it to Antiques with an informative label, pricing it around $8 or even $10, and see what happens. [Done, at $8] |
| 2014-07-30 | ca. 1930 electric radiant heater | Corrosion on polished copperplate reflector not remediable. But even as is, comparables on eBay are asking $99-$189. Put $30 price tag on it and sent it to the Antiques Dept. |
| 2014-08-06 | Millers Falls no. 500 tool holder | With one 'tool' only (of the original 10): the 1/2" chisel point. Vintage (1910-1920??) but incomplete and a less popular collectible than previous fads would indicate. Price at $5 ? |
| 2014-08-28 | Ford wrench | A (common) Ford-marked open-end wrench. |
| 2014-08-28 | Railroad wrench | A Whitman & Barnes (W&B) S-wrench stamped with "C&NWRYCO" i.e. the Chicago and Northwestern Railway Company (1859-1995). Probably easier to date as a "W & B" wrench than as a railroad wrench. Value? Ca. $20? Maybe a candidate for the Antiques dept. Whitman & Barnes was founded in 1877 and sold their wrench business to J. H. Williams in 1920, which presumably dates our wrench to the 40-year period 1880-1920. |
| 2014-08-28 | IHC wrench | One of the commoner (to judge from eBay) International wrenches, used on their "M" series 6 hp engines, including the Farmall F-series. Excellent condition, ?moderately collectable by wrench collectors and IHC collectors (who are almost as avid as John Deere collectors). Value: $8-$15? |
| 2014-08-28 | Klein spud wrench | A very clean steelworker's spud wrench 1-1/8" (nominal 3/4" bolt size). These go for $10-$30 on eBay. Kiwanis priced at $6 |
| 2014-08-28 | Merit Stillson wrench | Merit was a Sears brand, I believe. This one seems clean, but not especially collectible. Handle repainted and steel cleaned. Kiwanis priced at $8 |
| 2014-08-28 | A pair of Plumb hammers: a claw and a ball-peen | Good user-grade tools that polished up nicely. Refinished the handles. Kiwanis priced at $5 or $6 each. |
| 2014-08-28 | A pair (?) of (1930s?) tools made by Bridgeport Hardware of Bridgeport, CT a screwdriver (here) and an open-end wrench (the latter unmarked aside from the distinctive moly steel label) | Well-made user-grade tools from an often unrecognized maker (1895-c1960), whom no one collects (?). |
| 2014-08-28 | A pair of Estwing-style hammers | A puzzle. Only one is actually an Estwing. The other is labelled "Malco" (a company better known for its professional HVAC-installers' tools). Did Malco simply copy the Estwing design? Distribute Estwing hammers? Or license the design? Note how EXACTLY the handle plates match. Ahh, on the internet and thus possibly true (from a DIY discussion board): "I was told by Estwing that they do in fact make the hammers for Malco" (-- user 'flati' on http://www.diychatroom.com/f2/plumb-hammer-60933/) Estwings in decent shape with stacked-leather handles tend to ask $15+ on eBay. Kiwanis-priced at $6. |
| 2014-09-03 | A curious Phillips screwdriver | Wood handle, missing its metal ferrule. Marked "PHILLIPS-LIC. 6 / PAT. 2046837 / V. T. CO. TOOL / KIT DRIVER / MADE IN USA. The "license 6" label is interesting because it suggests that this driver dates from the period when the Phillips patent (1936) was in force and the technology needed to be licensed (the patents were eventually sold to Ford in 1945, since the auto industry was an eager early adopter of Phillips screws). So roughly the 40s. A question in an online tool forum about a similar screwdriver -- also missing its ferrule! -- elicited suggestions that the "Kit" in question may be a car kit (a similar driver appearing in the tool kit supplied with a 1950 DeSoto); and that the "V.T." may stand for Vlchek Tool Company (of Cleveland), who certainly made similar screwdrivers. http://www.papawswrench.com/vboard/index.php?topic=9374.new#new No reason to think the screwdriver is especially valuable, however, so I felt only a few qualms in cleaning the blade, repainting the handle, and supplying a (crude) ferrule made from copper tubing. Now a workable tool. |
| 2014-09-24 | A Stanley Bed Rock no. 604. | This is a no. 604 smooth plane, type 4, with some type 3 features ("B" casting marks), which dates it to ca. 1909-1910. The Bed Rock series in general is often regarded as the best bench plane ever made. Collectors tend to prefer the earlier types; woodworkers often prefer the later ones (type 5 and later) with the improved adjustment mechanism. But they are all good planes. In good collectible condition (VG or VG+) this type 4 might fetch $150 to $250. Unfortunately, as often with Kiwanis donations, this one is broken: the cap is chipped (a relatively minor defect); the handles have split and to some extent disintegrated (not uncommon with the wooden handles), and above all the left wing of the cast-iron body has broken off (probably dropped). What is left is probably a usable tool, maybe even a good one, but these defects remove it from the collectible category. As is, I'd price it at the usual Kiwanis price for planes, viz., $5 to $12. |
