Tag: planes

A Great Auction

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Antique Tools4 Comments

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend the tool auction of Jim “Rooster” Brown. I knew Jim a little bit. He always helped out the Amish Tool Auction in Adams Co Ohio every 4th of July. I went to that auction every year for over fifteen years, and it was always something I looked forward to every year. Jim would help out the auctioneer Hess Auction Co as they sold Hostetler’s tools. I would always end up with a boatload of tools. So much so that one year, my Mom got mad at me for all the money I spent (about $500) when I came home with my loot.

Since it was an auction, I never spent too much time talking to Jim because he was too busy holding up and handing out tools during the auction but when I did talk to him he was a super nice guy. I remember one year, a Stanley No 444 Dovetail Plane came up for sale, and I ended up winning it for $200. Jim yelled out, “He stole it!”  Everyone laughed, but I was happy that I did indeed steal it. I owned that plane for many years until I had to sell it due to being unemployed after losing my job.

Jim was a collector of Ohio made tools. He had thousands of them after collecting for decades. His collection consisted of hundreds of molding planes, cooper tools, axes, and saws. The first part of the auction was all of his axes, so I had time to look around and examine all the woodworking tools. I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. 

Dozens of panel raiser planes, multiple scroll saws, cooper jointer planes, dozens of plow planes, and several tool boxes full of tools that sold as a complete set.

There was a Stanley No 1 plane that sold for $1450.00, and this panther saw that sold for $2625.00. I’ve never seen one in person, and I doubt I ever will again. Some of us thought that the winner overpaid, but one just recently sold for $3500.00.

This Ohio Tool Center Wheel Ivory Tip Plow Plane sold for $2700. The gentleman who won the bid was a personal friend of Jim’s, and he would show it to him every time he visited his home. He was ecstatic that he won his friends favorite plane.

This workbench sold for over $1400.00. I hope it won’t become a kitchen island but you never know these days. lol

This was Jim’s obituary. He worked for the post office for 30 years and was a founding member of the Ohio Tool Collectors.

During the auction, I started to get more involved and bid on the tools. Some of the hand planes I wanted went a little too high for me as a couple of Stanley No 2’s sold for $300 each. At first, I didn’t think I’d win anything, but about halfway through, things started to heat up for me. When they got to the table with all his panel raiser planes, they sold “Choice” off the table. After a couple of rounds, the auctioneer sold all the planes on the table at once. I thought to myself, “Holy shit,” so I got in view of the auctioneer and kept bidding. By the time the bidding ended, I ended up winning all the planes on the table (about 25) for a few hundred dollars. Then, a few minutes later, it happened again, and I ended up buying a second table full of planes for one money. After that, it was full go for me as I was bidding and winning multiple lots.

In the end, this is what I ended up winning. A total of 166 tools. The most tools I ever won and the most money I ever spent at an auction. But boy, did I have fun!

When I got home, I wrote in my book everything I won and what I paid for each tool. I could hear Jim call down from Heaven. “He stole it!”

A visit to Colonial Homestead

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Antique Tools8 Comments

A couple of weekends ago, my wife and I drove up to Millersburg, OH to check out the fall colors and the antique malls up there. We visited Millersburg a couple of years back only to find out after we left, that there is an antique tool store in town. I saw Colonial Homestead on Instagram when we got home and couldn’t believe I missed it so, this time I knew I had to put it on our list of stops.

The building is about ten minutes outside of town and is a really big. Inside there are thousand of tools laying on tables and bookshelves. I immediately took a step back just to absorb everything I was looking at. There’s a table in front with a bunch of Stanley planes that are restored and ready for use.

Every tool you could imagine in this joint with some rare and unusual pieces. The prices on the tools are equivalent to eBay pricing, so don’t expect to get a steal. At least it’s not for me as I’m a picker so there was no meat-on-the-bone with the pricing on the tools. He was asking $2100 for the Stanley No 1 which was way above my budget. It looks like it’s sitting on the original box but I don’t remember noticing the box when I was looking at it.

He did have a real nice selection of molding planes with prices that were in my budget however, he only takes cash and I didn’t have any on me so, it was pretty much a few minutes of browsing.

He also had a nice closet full of woodworking books. There were a lot of out of print books along with Lost Art Press favorites. I looked for the 2nd edition of the Stanley Tool Collecting book by John Walter but, there was none to be found.

After twenty minutes of browsing, I said goodbye and went on my way as my wife was waiting in the truck. The weekend wasn’t a total lost as I was able to find tools in my budget in antique malls in Berlin, and Walnut Creek, OH. The prelateral Stanley No 37 Jenny’s Plane was my favorite pick of the trip.

Nicest Compliment I ever Received

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Antique Tools4 Comments

Last week I received a message in my Instagram messaging page. I’m small potatoes on Instagram as I only have a few thousand followers, so I don’t get many messages. The ones I do get, the majority of them are some sort of spam bullshit trying to hack my account, so I usually don’t pay much attention to them.

However this time, the message was from one of my followers. Johnson21800 sent me a couple of pictures of his Great Grandad’s Stanley No 32 Jointer Plane. He said he was so inspired by my posts on restoring tools, he decided to restore his Great Grandad’s plane.

Here’s the plane all cleaned up and restored. I think Peter does a better job than I do!

The fact that Peter would send me pictures of his plane that he restored after watching my feed humbles me. It makes feel good inside that I inspire people to restore and use these old tools that just sit around collecting dust. It’s pretty much the reason I post so many antique tools on Instagram.

I’m Back in The Game

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn WorkshopLeave a comment

After dealing with the corona virus and getting hit with a tornado in the spring, my eBay store took a major hit as I ran out of inventory to sell. Since all the antique shows and tool auctions were cancelled it was simply tough to find tools. So, I decided to shut my store down until things got better and life settled down a bit.

Thankfully after a few months, antique shows started to open again and I was able to have some free time after Anita and I put our house back together after the tornado. I was able to acquire almost fifty tools in the past few weeks and began listing them on eBay.

I listed about twenty tools on eBay and threw some of the pictures on my Instagram page letting people know they were available for sale.

Amazingly of the five planes I posted on Instagram, all of them sold within 24 hours. I’m not sure if everyone who bought the planes originally saw my post but it sure seems like that. I was thinking that I should start promoting my tools on social media

So I decided to try it again, but this time with a couple of Craftsman No 3C BB’s I also had listed for sale. I again threw a few pictures on Instagram promoting the listings pointing followers to where they can buy them. But after a few days, no one bought them. Drats! Looks like Instagram isn’t a sure way to promote and sell tools.

Had these planes would have been Stanley No 3 planes, they would have sold right away, but few people realize that Millers Falls made Craftsman planes for Sears for a few years. Even though the Craftman planes don’t share all the same features as Millers Falls planes, they still make nice users.

I still have a few tools for sale and hopefully they’ll sell quick. I need some money for The World’s Longest Yard Sale this week. Lol

My First Speaking Gig

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Workshop10 Comments

After working with wood for the past 30 years, I have my first speaking engagement this month. I was contacted by a member of the Cincinnati Working Club a few weeks ago who asked if I would be interested in speaking in front of the group. At first, I was shocked and confused. I didn’t understand why he would want me to be a guest speaker, but after reading further into the email, he saw that I restore planes and have a nice tool cabinet full of antique tools. Apparently, he wants me to talk about my journey into antique tool collecting and describe the process of how I clean my tools.

I’m going to start off talking about my tool cabinet and how it came to be. I started building it in 1999 but didn’t finish it until 2001 as it sat in my parent’s basement unfinished. It’s undergone a few transformations over the years as I added and deleted tools from the doors and back. It actually looks nicer in pictures than it does in person as the oak veneer plywood tore off in places where I removed the tool holders.

From there, I’ll describe the process of restoring this Diamond Edge Jointer. I took a bunch of pictures of the process and will upload them to a thumb drive so I can plug it into their laptop. The group meets in a church basement so I’m not sure if there is a workbench down there for people to work on. The idea of actually doing the restoration while I’m there doesn’t make much sense so pictures it will be.

Bill told me that each meeting has between 65-75 people attendees so this presentation is going to be as big as a session at the Woodworking in America events.

If you’re a member of the Cincinnati Woodworking Club, stop by on Saturday Sept, 14th at Northminster Presbyterian Church 703 Compton Road in Cincinnati, Ohio around 9:00 and watch me be nervous as hell. Just please don’t bring tomatoes to throw at me.

eBay Listings 7/14/19

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Workshop5 Comments

Life has been busy lately with my wife and I working around our house, but I have found some time in the shop to restore planes. Below is what I have listed tonight.

One of the planes I have for sale is this Sargent No 4 1/2C . Nice and hefty, it will perform well in the shop.

Ohio Tool CO No O5 1/2C Corrugated Plane is well made and and has a thicker blade than comparable Stanley planes. These Ohio Tool planes are some of the most under appreciated tools in the hand tool world.

I also listed the GTL plane I blogged about last month. It’s a nice plane but I really don’t need it.

The workhorses in most shops are the classic Stanley Bailey planes. I have a few available in my eBay store at reasonable prices.

Since you guys are following my blog, I’m offering a special 15% discount until the end of July only available to my blog followers. You can access the discount by clicking on the link. It’s a simple thank you for following me all these years.

GTL British Plane

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Antique Tools13 Comments

Over the weekend, I received a box from The Fine Tool Journal with a couple of planes that I won in their latest auction. I’ve been disappointed with my winnings the past few auctions as I have only won one lot at each auction after sending them two pages of my bids, but apparently that’s my fault for not bidding high enough. Nevertheless, I was happy to get something from them. Inside was a Stanley No 104 Liberty Bell plane and this guy. An odd looking bronze plane with GTL stamped on the lever cap.

Searching online, I discovered that GTL stands for Guaranteed Tools Limited. It was a short lived plane maker in London, England from the 1920-1930’s who marketed to the DIY and amateur carpenter market. Apparently, the makers of these planes were trying to fill a gap between the Stanley Bailey planes that were taking the world by storm and the traditional Norris style planes that British craftsmen were accustomed to using at the time.

The lever cap and frog look rather crude which made me to believe at first, that it was user made. According to guys on UK woodworking forums, these planes were garbage to use. No one liked them as they thought they were too light and the “Norris” adjustment was a joke compared to real Norris style planes.

Intrigued by the plane, I decided to restore it and see how well it performed. I removed all the paint that the previous owner sprayed on the body and handle and sharpened the blade.

The plane cuts, but not very well. The biggest issue with it was because the Norris adjuster doesn’t have any lateral adjustment, I was unable to dial in the cut when the blade was cutting too heavy on one side and not enough on the other. I would have to either play with the setting of the frog or hone the edge at a slight angle for it to take a nice feather like shaving. Neither of which I was willing to waste my time doing.

Another big issue with the plane was the screw on the bottom of the bed that holds the tote in place stuck proud of the bed’s surface leaving gouge marks on the work piece when I used it.

Obviously, when I took the plane apart to clean it, I removed the screw so when I went back to install it, it wasn’t in the exact position it was before I removed it. This left a little nib of the screw head sticking proud of the surface which I had to file back down.

The oddest thing about the plane is that the frog is bent for some reason making the blade and cap iron not seat fully on it. I’m not sure if it was manufactured that way or if it got damaged some time during it’s life. No way would I try to bend it back straight. Knowing my luck, I’d end up cracking the frog in half.

All in all, it’s a fun to look at, but not the best to use. If the idea of a Norris style adjuster on a modern bench plane appeals to you, just buy a Veritas or even a new Stanley plane and avoid all this nonsense.

The Tool that Changed my Life

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Antique Tools4 Comments

It was thirty years ago this summer. I was thirteen years old visiting my grand parent’s house on my Mom’s side in Detroit, Michigan when I walked into my Grandpa’s garage and spotted this little drill press on top of his cabinet.

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It’s was a little German-made drill press. It had no manufacturer’s name on it, so I have no idea who made it, but I thought it was the coolest tool I ever saw. I played with it for a few minutes, and my Grandpa seeing I took a liking to it, gave it to me. I was stoked.

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My Grandpa was never really a woodworker. He was a mechanic who restored old cars like Ford Model T’s and Maxwell’s, so he had no use for the press. I just started to work with wood in my parent’s basement, so I was glad to have it.

A few days later, my Mom, Grandparents, and I went to the flea market. While there, I started hunting for more cool tools. I found some old wrenches and a Ohio Tool Co wooden razee fore plane that I still use to this day. The only money I had was a few bucks I saved up from my allowance of cutting the grass, so I bought all my tools dirt cheap. Nevertheless, even though I didn’t realize it at the time, it was the start of my antique tool collecting.

As the months and years went by, I started buying more and more old tools. I’d buy planes, chisels, drills, saws and clean them up. As my tool collection grew, my woodworking skills developed right along with every tool I bought as I learned how to use it. I enjoyed the process of restoring old planes so much that I kept buying more of them and before I knew it, I had collected nearly 100 old tools by the time I was sixteen years old. I used to have white bookshelves in my parent’s basement filled with all my tools. My friends would come over, take a look, and asked what the hell was wrong with me.

At the height of my collecting I had over 600 tools. Then one day, I stared at all of it and decided that enough was enough. I took some of the tools I didn’t care much for and threw them on eBay. I watched the auctions end and realized that I enjoyed that process as well, so I threw more tools on eBay. Before I knew it, I was buying and selling tools on a regular basis.

Today, I’ve figured that I have bought, restored, and sold almost three thousand tools on eBay. It’s become a hobby within a hobby. Something that I would never have believed would have happened thirty years ago when my Grandpa gave me his little drill press.

Brown Tool Auction Winnings

On By MVFlaim FurnituremakerIn Antique Tools6 Comments

Every few months Clarence Blanchard from the Brown Tool Auction holds an antique tool auction in Pennsylvania. Even though some his auctions are within a day’s driving distance for me, I’ve never been to one. It’s just too easy for me to place a bid online and pay a $3.00 absentee bidder fee for every auction I win. Plus at $3.00, it’s a lot cheaper than spending the money on gas and a hotel room.

I never know what or if I win until about a week later when UPS drops of a box at my door. So you can imagine the excitement when I see a big box at my door. Typically the bigger the box, the more tools I have won.

As soon as I open it up I see molding planes neatly bubbled wrapped up. I love molding planes. To me they’re the router bits of hand tool woodworking. With a little bit of work, molding planes tune up nicely and create some of the nicest profiles that you can’t even produce with common router bits.

After unpacking the box, the results were in. Seventeen molding planes and two Stanley bench planes. All of the planes were in good shape and need only a little bit of tuning to bring them back to working condition.

Of the two Stanley planes I won, one was the Big Boss of Stanley planes, the No 8C Corrugated Jointer. This plane is in excellent condition and with a little bit of work, it will clean up to be a top shelf tool. The other bench plane was a nice Stanley 5 1/2C corrugated plane. Collectors go crazy for the corrugated soles as they tend to bring in higher prices, but for me, the corrugations just act as a place for dried glue to hang out. The theory behind corrugated soles was that they tend to be easier to push because of the less mass on the workpiece, and they were easier to fettle the bed because you didn’t have to remove as much metal. I haven’t found either one of those benefits to be true.

The molding planes were nice with a wide variety of profiles in the mix. Over the next few weeks I’ll tune them up and list them for sale on eBay.

As you can see, I have a soft spot for molding planes. The day I figured out how to tune one up and make it sing, I was hooked. I intend to sell some of my duplicate profiles on eBay in the coming weeks.