It followed me home (Part 2)

jblyttle said:
My feeling is not, it just doesn't have the look, and no beveled edges at all. My feeling is that this was a consumer purchase that mostly sat in the shed. Commercial use of this tool would never leave it in such fine condition.
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I never suggested it actually saw commercial use but it seems to me that is what it was meant for. Hardened poll heads are not necessarily bevelled at the corners, and and what I find curious is that an OEM straight haft certainly indicates the potential for blade and poll end use.
 
300Six said:
I never suggested it actually saw commercial use but it seems to me that is what it was meant for. Hardened poll heads are not necessarily bevelled at the corners, and and what I find curious is that an OEM straight haft certainly indicates the potential for blade and poll end use.
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Likewise, I never suggested that you did. Just giving my thoughts on it. Beyond that I have nothing to add.
 
jblyttle said:
Likewise, I never suggested that you did. Just giving my thoughts on it. Beyond that I have nothing to add.
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I was thinking maybe you'd discretely tried to run a file over the poll. Answers are immediate (and convincing) once you do that.
 
aikonen said:
A jeep kit, two spades and one Hults Bruk axe, lovely condition, never been used. A couple of files and a wire cutter, also never used! I'm a happy man today!

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Good lookin' stuff! Quite a haul!
 
A few things I've dragged home lately.

Warren drift pick - has the narrow eye of a drift pick. 4 pound, 19" point to point. I like old Warren stuff.
Warren%20Drift%20Pick.jpg


Warren fire axe - 6 pound beast.
Warren%20Fire%20Axe.jpg


Oddball. Brass loggers branding hammer. Never seen one in brass before so I grabbed it.
Brass%20branding%20hammer.jpg

Brass%20branding%20hammer2.jpg


And off topic, an old Milwaukee Road railroad lantern - CMStPRY stamp so prior to 1927. Glass is perfect. Looks like it's ready to light. I'll have to dig out the kerosene.
CMStPRY.jpg


I collect Chicago Milwaukee St. Paul and Pacific Railway tools because the old railbed has become one of my favorite local trails.
 
I grabbed this lot for $55, the turning tools are Disstons. I kind of like the old knife too, no name that I can see but nice carbon steel patina.

 
Square_peg said:
Another great haul. You sure go through a lot of vises.
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Yeah, I have a feeling that there is a ton of most things here if I went looking for them. It's a result of our population density and the fact that there are generations and generations of stuff here. I'm sure it's the same for old crockery/dolls/jewelry too I'm just not looking. Part of it may also be the old Yankee mentality where people just hate to throw things away so junk (to most) gets stored and stockpiled.
 
Y'know Square_Peg I get a kick out of fondling and inspecting old picks and shovels etc but I no longer can be bothered to bring them home. I do remember looking with complete amazement at an old pick head that was so thoroughly worn that the picks were about 1/2 the length they should have been. You really have to stare at something like this in trying to imagine how many 1000s of back-breaking hours it had spent in human hands.
 
300, last weekend I was out on a volunteer habitat restoration planting. Pouring rain - rocky soil. I had a nice vintage railroad pick from Seattle Hardware (closed 1960's) with me. Comfortable slim handle. Good hard points that don't turn when you hit rock. As much pleasure to use as a good vintage axe.

The shovel hurts your back, the pick helps/strengthens your back.
 
Square_peg said:
300, last weekend I was out on a volunteer habitat restoration planting. Pouring rain - rocky soil. I had a nice vintage railroad pick from Seattle Hardware (closed 1960's) with me. Comfortable slim handle. Good hard points that don't turn when you hit rock. As much pleasure to use as a good vintage axe.

The shovel hurts your back, the pick helps/strengthens your back.
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I don't imagine you see picks on commercial jobsites anymore, everything has been replaced with motorized, electric or air-powered tools. The construction company I worked for swapped breaker bars and picks for compressed air jack hammers (and these were heavy brutes) in mid summer of 1973.
 
Landscape and irrigation crews still use them. There are places where you can't take equipment because of narrow openings, steep terrain or the potential to damage the landscape.

Long picks work best. A pick mattock is good for cutting roots but most you see these days have terribly short picks. New imported long picks will bend under heavy use. As with so many other tools they were made better when men used them more commonly. Pick work and sledge work are dying arts like axe work. Axe work has seen some revival but I don't thing pick work ever will. It lacks the romanticism. Never the less it's a good invigorating axercise that leaves you feeling strong and healthy the next morning.
 
Not so much today, but great for $40. The jack is cool, it ratchets in both directions. And that unusual axe/brush hook combo, it's my second one of those, so now I can sell one. The top right hammer head has what looked like a broken handle, but it's metal. Looks like a drift is stuck in there which would be cool because I wanted one. The bottom tool, any ideas? I thought bark spud, but it's made like a shovel, too short. Then I thought it was one of those tools for planting baby trees but it isn't exactly like those either...close though. I'm pretty sure it is for ground work, and it has a slight curve.


 
That bottom tool is a tree planter. I've seen similar ones from the CCC days but that one looks uncommon. Also could be some kind of bulb planter. Definitely a planter.
 
Not my normal lot, but it's what I found yesterday. I found that I lately have an interest in older folding pocket knives. I picked up everything here for $53. I am not an expert on these knives and don't know much about what is collectible or valuable (yet) but I know enough to stick with American or European knives that are in good shape and move freely. In this lot is a Klein Tools, a Solingen and several Imperial USA knives. I paid $5-6 on average for these knives so I think I'm good. I'll pick a favorite and sell the rest. BTW, that is a NOS 2lb Collins Homestead ballpeen that was $5. Pretty cool.

 
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My parents surprised me with an early Christmas gift tonight. I don't know anything about old saws. It will look great hanging on the wall of my work shop.





 
Numerous makers - practically all of the major crosscut makers - sold 'Warranted Superior' versions of their saws. It doesn't give any clue as to the maker.

What you have is an almost new condition perforated lance tooth single-buck saw. The one broken off tooth won't effect performance terribly if the remaining teeth are properly sharpened. Original handle, very little wear, maybe never sharpened. A good find.
 
I think the railroad spike hammer qualifies as folk art. That handled garden hone/scythe hone is pretty cool. I find ones like that once in a while.

The little site level with the leather case - those are handy if you're excavating for a foundation. Rest it on a shovel when you take your reading so you get a consistent height. Put a mark on a tree or fence post as your bench mark. A good dozer operator can cut a hole as flat as if he'd used a laser level with just that thing. Also good for setting grades in trail work.
 
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