First boot-fair haul

[memzey]

Hi,

I've taken the plunge on the slippery slope of old English hand tools and gone to my first boot sale this morning in the hope of picking up good old English users. Most of it came from house clearance sellers who were present in abundance. Please take a look and give me your thoughts:

First up is an old dovetail saw:



It fits really well in the hand, is straight and cuts ok. I've read others mention this brand so hopefully it's a goody:



It does have a crack in the handle though which is a bit of a worry. Can this be fixed? Is it also possible to source split nuts to replace the ugly fix it has at present?

Next up a rather lovely hammer/mallet:



Leather on one side copper on the other. Beautiful.

Now we move on to the chisels:


All straight, with tidy handles and in fairly good nick. Also all made in England. From left to right we have the following:

This is a nice beefy one about 1"


Then one a little smaller:


A bit smaller:


And one smaller still:


This is an interesting one. I'm not famiar with the maker but think it's something Bell & Son - does anyone know?


Then there is this one:


Does the maker ring any bells with anyone? It feels lovely and well made in the hand is all I can say at this stage.

There is another chisel of which I can't make out the mark:

Does anyone have any tips on cleaning these up and restoring them? Please assume you are giving instruction to a cack handed cretin.

Then we have the oil stones:


The South African Carbonundurum combi has never been used judging by the rate it is soaking up 3 in one at the moment. The smaller one in the wooden box feels very fine but has clearly had a hard life. Any hints on bringing it back to life?

Then some clamps. As Norm always says "you can never have too many clamps"



The G clamps are all Record made in England. I also got a tin of 3 in one thrown in.

So what do we think of this hall? Is there anything of note or interest amongst this lot? Everything was bought for 50p an item or less so I am fairly relaxed as regards to value but it would be good to know if people on this board think I've been ripped off or done quite well!

 

[BRYAN]

Did you really go out in those shoes?

 

[memzey]

Did you really go out in those shoes?

Hey - I'm a dad with daughters of 4 & 9. If I'm not being embarrassing I'm doing it wrong!

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Just don't do the dancing thing

Seriously though, again I'm always impressed with the quality of some of the tools that come up at these boot fairs. Bit of fettling and those chisels will be happily cutting again. The dovetail saw looks lovely, I hope that's capable of being restored.

 

[hanser]

"......it would be good to know if people on this board think I've been ripped off or done quite well!"

I don't think you need us to tell you (hammer) Great haul =D>

 

[memzey]

Thanks! If they can be good users then that's fine for me. I would like to see what people know about the makers though. Can you shed any light on them?

 

[AndyT]

You did well.

Richard Melhuish was one of the big London Tool dealers, based at Fetter Lane, near Holborn Circus in central London. The chisel would have been made for them, almost certainly in Sheffield, but marked with their name.
(Branding ideas such as own brand or OEM are not new.)

According to their 1925 catalogue they were established in 1828. They sold everything for the professional or amateur woodworker.

 

[JohnPW]

I've given up on going to boot fairs as the ones near me are absolute crap. They charge an entry fee so I can go in and look at piles of old clothes and shoes etc.
I've also got a "Colonel, Sheffield" and a EA Bell and Son chisels, but there doesn't seem to be any info on the web about them.

 

[OLD]

That Marples cast steel is very desirable and would sell on eBay well. The steel is very good and holds a edge.

 

[AndyT]

I meant to say that your first chisel - by Footprint Tools - is hard to date as they are one of very few hand tool makers still in production, in Sheffield! Though I would guess that the mark, which looks etched, would be relatively recent - possibly within the last 50 years.

Your Tyzack saw could be a good user. I can't see the crack, but its probably possible to glue it.
For that old style of split nut, as far as I am aware you will need to make your own or salvage one from a saw which is beyond hope.

 

[memzey]

Cheers Andy. Here's another picture of the footprint. I agree it does look more recent than some of the others although the brass ferrule and general quality of the tool makes me consider otherwise as well.


Here's another pic of the Tyzack where you can clearly see the split nut (and the crack).

Does that help with ageing it? I don't want to leave it in this state and would ideally like to source a like for like split nut but have no hope of making one (I wouldn't know where to start).

 

[dickm]

Does make me envious, seeing threads like this. Up here, if tools haven't been out on the rigs, exposed to salt water for years and are rusty as ****, you never see them at car boots

 

[woodiedonald]

Not a bad lot of stuff at all, as for saw nuts have a look at the bottom of this page, 2 euros each, and another 9 something euros to post it with DHL couriers, that must be the equivalent of nearly a tenner for a saw nut which is the later (wrong) type, its up to you. I'd probably just leave the nut and bolt that's there on it.

Cheers
Donald

 

[jimi43]

I think if that is what you come back with on your first outing you should go more often!

Great haul and also a good deal of tools that need gently restoration and therefore are great practice for you which would yield excellent users...another bonus!

And think of the fun you have searching for them and getting all that exercise!

I'd get another pair of shoes though next time you go! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Jimi

 

[Self Taught]

Hi memzey, Looks like a good day was had, as stated a little cleaning and sharpening you should be good to go. I recently have put a foot on that slope with moulding planes, be careful it gets slick real fast, and there is no bottom!. Jamey

 

[memzey]

Cheers guys. It's great to be able to share these experiences with such a good mob!

On to the tools - I've started cleaning up the chisels but have found that some of the gunk is really difficult to shift. Does anyone have any tips on the way to go for this? The brass ferrules came up lovely with a bit of brasso though. I was also planning to sand the handles down to wood with some 240 grit and then finish them with a bit of Danish oil. Do we think that would work well?

 

[Racers]

Don't try and make them look brand new, keep the patina, just wax them and use them.

Pete

 

[hanser]

Crumbs! Wouldn't try sanding/brasso. If you want to get the dirt/grease gunge of them try a bit of WD40 on a fine/used nylon abrasive pad. Do it gently so as to remove dirt but not the patina of the tool. Then wax as Pete suggests.

 

[AndyT]

As already noted, cleaning can be minimal - letting old tools still look old - or vigorously 'back to the metal.'

For the tools you have just bought, in my opinion, you don't need to do much cleaning at all to get them into usable condition. The chisels will need sharpening, and there are plenty of ways to do that, each with its own supporters.

As as sort of FAQ on this, I did a series of notes a while back, and rather than repeat it all, I'll just offer links to them in the hope that they will help:

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/old-tool-cleaning-part-1-use-of-wax-t64195.html
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/old-tool-cleaning-part-2-rust-removal-with-abrasives-t64233.html
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/old-tool-cleaning-part-3-paint-removal-with-turps-t64290.html
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums...t-4-general-cleaning-with-reviver-t64945.html

For the crack in the saw handle I would try removing the nut and bolt, gently opening up the crack a little by levering or flexing by hand and then run some liquid superglue into the crack. Then hold the parts together tight for a minute until the glue has set. Others may have better ideas, so don't rush.

The old sort of split nuts will rarely go back in place well, so resist the temptation to remove the remaining one. Originally, they would have been fitted and tightened up, then levelled off by filing to leave them flush with the surface of the handle. That only works once. I'd be inclined to keep the repair you have and just use the saw.
The teeth look well shaped and even and could be sharp enough to use.

It's not essential to remove the handle in order to clean a saw, and it's not essential to have a shine on the metal for it to work well. You do need to scrape off any lumpy or powdery rust.

If you want a bit more of a sheen, this post may help
https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/cleaning-rusty-saws-with-autosol-t73647.html.

 

[memzey]

Thanks Andy. You're a star! I'll have another think about to what extent I shall restore these items but I must admit to liking shiny things so we shall have to wait and see!

As regards sharpening the chisels: I have already sharpened them all on the South African carbonundurom stone. I'd never used an oilstone before but got the hang of it after a few minutes and judging by the bare patches of shaved skin on my left arm they are good to go in that respect!

On the topic of oilstones I've had another look at the smaller one and discovered it is actually a two grit one but very different to the larger stone. I had thought it was all the same mucky colour but on closer inspection it is actually two tone with the finer side a chocolatey brown and the coarser one a strong coffee sort of colour. More peculiarly the line isn't totally even between the two sides and has some areas where they sort of to into each other - like its a natural stone or something. But that wouldn't make sense as you don't get natural course/fine stones do you? Here's what I mean:



Is anyone familiar with stones like this? The finer side feels almost creamy by texture.