A friend of mine offered me this shaper that belonged to his grandfather about a year ago. Thinking that I wouldn’t have much use for a wood shaper, and not wanting a tool that would take up shop space, I hesitated. After a few months of having it in the back of my mind I decided to get it.  It’s in excellent original condition. A new power cord and some oil is all it needed. I bought an adapter to hold 1/4” and 1/2” shank router bits, it makes a great router table. It spins at 10,350 rpm and seems just about perfect for cutting garolite and the other materials I’ve tried so far.

Every Saturday morning I look forward to going to our local swap meet to feed my vintage tool addiction. I have a few folding allen wrench sets but I’ve never seen this brand before. Some of my friends have always called me “Smitty”, for obvious reasons, so for $2 I had to get it. A quick Google Search showed that B.H. Smith, no relation, was the first person to file a patent on this design in 1948. Like my other American made tools, this one was built to last.

I’ve come across some great finds as far as tools for the shop lately. Needing an industrial buffer for a while now, I couldn’t believe it when I saw this one by Valley Electric Co. last weekend. There’s not allot of information out there about about this buffer or the company. We read on the Vintage Machinery website that based in St. Louis, Valley was in business by 1920 and were still in business in 1942, but there is little information after that. They changed the name from Valley Electric Co. to Valley Electric Corp. in around 1939 so my buffer was probably made before 39.

This buffer is testament to the quality of American made machines of the era. All I did was add a new coat of paint and a power cord. It works perfect. I’ll use the buffer mainly for polishing aluminum and lacquer.

I saw this drill press at my local swap meet 3 weeks ago and thought by now it would be gone.  It was priced lower than some of the new plastic imported drill presses that they sell today and not one hole drilled into the upper or lower table from a careless user! I knew if I didn’t get it I’d kick myself later on down the road.

Its a well taken care of 1945 Craftsman made by Atlas in Kalamazoo MI. You also see the brand Dunlap on the motor. According to the history found on the Vintage Machinery website, Dunlap was a Sears brand used on their lesser-grade machines, however, some of the older Dunlap machines were really good quality. The Dunlap brand was first used in 1941. The name came from Tom Dunlap who was the head buyer of the hardware department at Sears at the time. Atlas was just one of many companies that manufactured for Sears. If you find a vintage Craftsman machine with the model number starting with 101, you know it was made by Atlas.

The Atlas company still exists in Kalamazoo under the name Clausing Industrial. Looks like they are coming out with a new drill press completely made in the U.S.A.

Last week while searching for a decent wood/metal band saw, I found another Delta 24’’ scroll saw for parts. It came with an original stand, a belt guard and a few other really nice parts.  Last night I combined the best of both to end up with this smooth running, and in my opinion, beautiful looking, 60 plus year old scroll saw that I’m sure will last another 60 or more years.

There’s quite a few people that love old American made tools but you’d have a hard time finding one that loves them more that myself. You’d also have trouble finding someone who hates the imported crap they sell as ”tools” now days more than I do. They always seem to fail just as the warrantee is up. I find it so annoying. Here’s a few shots of some of the details I like.

You gotta love well made American tools. I found this scroll saw at a swap meet a while back. With a little TLC it works perfectly. It weighs about 115 lbs., is 24″ from the blade to the front of the neck, has a tilting table and an air pump to blow the dust off the cutting area. I’ve been using it for various projects in the shop. In the video I’m cutting out a Bigsby-type arm rest for solid body guitars. They’re available for $85. plus shipping. Contact us for more info.

In our first blog post, T.K. said we would talk tools from time to time. If you look back at the”Today’s the Day”, he expressed that vintage American made is his preference when it comes to his tools. This especially holds true with items that have a connection to family history. We recently came across two wooden toolboxes that were hand crafted and signed by Heamer Sermersheim in 1949. They were made for his son Denny, who was T.K.’s grandfather. Heamer, who resided in Jasper, Indiana, was T.K. great grandfather. Like T.K., Heamer was a musician and a cabinet maker. Although most toolboxes today are predominantly metal or plastic, wood for the construction of them was the material of choice dating back to the early 1800′s.

As you can see, these boxes have very rustic dove tail joints done by hand, brass reinforced corners and brass pulls. We love the look of the two boxes with the patina from years of use from a grandfather and great grandfather who both worked with their hands, both craftsmen in their own right. We see the value of using and preserving these  artifacts from our past, channeling the knowledge of those before us. To see other great stories and examples of vintage toolboxes, check out the “Vintage Toolbox Club” or “Grandfathers Toolbox” on the H.A.M.B..