Recent content by Peter Evans

"Original Henry Disston saws (made whilst he was still in England) are as rare as hens teeth," is very true, especially as he was 14 years old when he emigrated with his father, and did his apprenticeship i n Philadelphia. Goodman, History of WW Tools" p151 says of Disston "Learning his trade...

I have successfully levered the rivets out with a fine screwdriver without much damage to the handle. You only need to get them a small distance out and then use pliers to extract the rest of the way.

Gentlefolk, A perusal of the various volumes provides a few data points:- 1: JCS Brough had a fretwork/handicrafts background, and a rather murky publishing history (which landed him in court, and paying damages). He acknowledges his authorship of the Fretwork volume, and I think we can safely...

Spring steel should not be placed in acid (citric, vinegar, molasses, etc - it is the acid in all these substances that does the work. I know someone who sharpens files in Nitric Acid - quickly). I last studied chemistry 49 years ago, so you will need the science from elsewhere, I believe the...

For appropriate handle designs have a look at Ray Gardner's site Backsaw.net. You will have many mid-19th C handles to choose from. I like Taylor Bros (J & I Taylor) handles myself. The vintage split nuts may be a challenge; I would go back to the recycling centre and get the rest of the...

Interesting brace. Regarding the mark: The "Made in Germany" mark started after 1887, in response to British legislation, and continued at least until the USA entered the war in 1941. In the interwar years many German made goods were exported to Britain marked "Foreign" to counter anti-German...

Made in USA suggests very late 19th century at the earliest. Neither of the references available lists a Camden, so unlikely to be the maker, probably a retailer.

I think you will find Robinson Hall Ltd is a modern company; was registered 04/04/1942 and located at: DURACUT WORKS NEWCASTLE ST SHEFFIELD S1 4EF No longer exists I suspect, I have one of their marking gauges which I considered to be a late 20th century very ordinary quality product. Cheers...

There is a brief history reference on the Web: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=53400 and a modern listing, suggesting the company still exists, and indicating they have moved from Cannock: http://www.do-business.net/Indexer/Company/William-Gilpin-Senr-Co-%28Tools%29Ltd...

For removing the bend - Mike Wenzloff: http://www.sapfm.org/forum/index.php?topic=1279.msg5389#msg5389 For a quick method, place saw in machinist's vise- upside down, and above the bottom of the vise, and belt a stick of wood against the back at the toe to shift the back slightly - then check...

Here are some notes on citric acid http://www.tttg.org.au/php/tttg_Page.php?n=15&a=28 Remember: * strong, hot solution, agitated even better, eg hand mixmaster or submersible pump * short time, check often with a scourer - most items are pretty good after 30 mins * rinse with a scourer to...

As Paul says, a lot of research in the last 30 or so years. All the major references: Goodman - History 1964 (last reprint 1978) Salaman - Dictionary 2nd ed 1999 Goodman et al - British Planemakers 3rd ed 1993 Need to be supplemented with other references and material for an accurate picture...

Here are some old notes of mine. http://www.tttg.org.au/php/tttg_Page.php?n=15&a=28 A good source is suppliers to cleaners - CA is used to clean and protect stainless steel.

Don't overlook flea market files and rasps. You can sharpen them in citric acid (or any acid, but citric is cheap and safe - old battery acid is cheaper... but... ). I did not believe this would work - but even saw taper files resharpen at least once, assuming you have moved onto a new file...

Formats badly, if you put into a table with a space as the column split you will see the pattern.