G Wostenholm & Son Sharpening Steel

George Wostenholm and Son were manufacturers of table knives and forks, pen, pocket, and sportsman's knives, and general dealers in cutlery in Sheffield during the 1800's.

The Tilt hammer.com website has a history of George Wostenholm.

 

They were famous for the l*XL brand of knives. There is a lot of information and discussion on the knives (see British blades forum britishblades.com). There was little information on the sharpening steel.

 

Here are detail photos of a steel.

 

The steel looks and feels smooth, however there are actually
very fine markings on the blade

Fine pitting from rust on the tip

The original hook appears to have broken off
and been replaced with an eye hook. The end
looks plastic, possibly bakelite. It is definitely not wood

The wooden handle has various marks, scratches and dents

Early tool makers: 1) W Staley, 2) HD Marples Hermitage works, 3)JB Addis

Early Tool makers

1) W Staley

1

This is a chisel gouge with a W Staley brand which I hadn't seen before

Found these references to W Staley in a thread on www.backsaw.net
"William Staley joined Kirjarth Maw(what a great name) to create Maw and Staley in about 1825 who made all kinds of edge tools. I have examples of these tools in blades, mortice chisels, and plough irons. I am interested in seeing an example of a saw with the two names on it, if there is such a thing. I have pictured here an example of a saw with just William Staley's name on it. Did Maw die in 1833 when William became the sole owner and are there examples of his other tools with only his name. It was later bought out in 1839 by Fenton and Marsden as per Roberts."
and

"William STALEY edge tool, joiners' tool and table knife manufacturer, steel refiner and merchant 50 Rockingham Street White's 1833"

2) HD Marples Hermitage works

Robert Marples owned Hermitage works in Sheffield, England 1800's - 1900's and he was related to William Marples, owner of Hibernia Works in Sheffield, England. I believe he was William's uncle and a competitor in the tool business.

Haven't found HD Marples but obviously associated with Robert Marples. Unusual to find this history about Marples tools and family.

The screwdriver below has the hermit logo

3) JB Addis
James Bacon Addis was awarded a medal at the Great exhibition in 1951. This was stamped on the tool see below. He went on to win medals in 1862, 1870 & 1871. He commonly stamped these dates on his chisels. This suggest this chisel was made between 1851 and 1862. The large lettering and fancy script also suggest early manufacture. See this article for a history of Addis tools Gary P. Laroff, old tools archive 2006

Elastrator - The cringe factor

What will bring tears to the eyes of grown men - Follow on with what this tool will do. I recommend the video clip.

The elastrator -  a device for the castration and docking of livestock.

The whole device has a surgical look to it, bright chrome finish, enough to make you shiver.
Visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elastration for a description of the process.

Here it is though
The elastrator - with rubber rings

Ring applied to the prongs


Ring pulled open by the four prongs. The 2 bottom one are pulled down by the centre post

The centre post is marked Elastrator and on the reverse side Made in New Zealand

Now for the real gem The video clip: enjoy

Chouinard Frost - Ice axe and Chouinard - Alpine Hammer

 Chouinard Frost - Chouinard Piolet ice axe and Chouinard Alpine Hammer

Chouinard Frost Ice Axe

The Chouinard Piolet ice axe was first made in 1969 (1972 Catalogue)

Blade markings.

Riveting detail on the handle

End spike

Alpine hammer

By 1972 Chouinard had produced 3 hammers, the Yosemite, Alpine and Crag

Chouinard first produced the Yosemite hammer in 1966. This hammer had a big blunt pick for removing pitons from rock cracks.  The Alpine hammer (below) was first produced in 1967. Its special design feature was the long, narrow dropped pick with notches at the tip. This was for use as an ice dagger on hard water ice. The Crag hammer was produced in 1972. It was lighter than the Yosemite hammer and had a long thin blunt pick. It was designed strictly for free climbing. (1972 Catalogue)

This hammer pictured would be an Alpine hammer. There were many versions of the hammer. The notch and the 4 teeth are indicative of the 1973 version. There is a good message (#80 CHOUINARD ALPINE HAMMER HISTORY - WOOD HANDLES) at http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=762638&tn=80 which details the various styles and dates the hammers were made. 

The hammer was marked on the handle with the C in the diamond symbol then "Chouinard over Made in USA" to the right. The markings on this hammer have been worn down from use but can still just be made out.

The head of the hammer is held on by two metal plates riveted through the handle.

(The hole in the handle is not original.)

A metal wedge is also driven into the handle as well as the hooks for the metal plates.

Reference

http://www.climbaz.com/chouinard72/chouinard.html This catalogue has a history of Chouinard gear. It also has articles on the introduction of free climbing techniques.

 

I have also found a podcast Yvon Chouinard: A Reluctant Businessman where Yvon Chouinard recounts his young life, including his start as an innovator and an entrepreneur in the climbing business. This was part of the "Yvon Chouinard Winter 2011 Oppenheim Lecture" at UCLA in February 2011

 

Also found this article The Craftsman, Four routes, four lessons from Yvon Chouinard which gives some Yvon history and 4 climbs

 

Also see my other blog for - Ice axe - Himalya-Pickel, Modell, Kuno Rainer

Record Imp Vice, No 80

This is the Record Imp Vice, No 80

 

First reference "The "IMP" table vice first listed in Catalogue No. 12, 1933. Last listed in 1982." from http://www.recordhandplanes.com/rare.html

Second reference from http://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/post266429.html

1959 edition of 'Planecraft' states

"The #80 "Imp" Vice is really a minature #74 vice, having 2 1/4" jaws and opening 2 1/2", and in no way must it be confused with either toys or cheap and unsatisfactory vices. It is sturdily and compactly made; the screw is accurately made with machine cut square thread, and there is a parallel grip which is free from any suggestion of looseness. The steel jaws are hardened and of high quality; there is a hardened anvil as in the #74 vice, but of smaller dimensions of course. The slide is of steel. Small tubes and rods can be gripped in the specially designed jaws, and can be bent in the tube bender. It is fastened to the bench with an exceptionally well designed and well-made clamp which is incorporated, which has a grip that is almost unbelievable until it is experienced. The vice weighs 4 1/4 lbs."

I have 2 versions of the Imp vice the maroon one on top and the red one on the bottom. The red one matches the 1959 planecraft description. The maroon one I think is an earlier model

Close up of the maroon (early model) name

Close up of the red (late; at least 1959+) model

The first difference is the screw thread, square thread in the late model, fine thread in the early model

 

Next is the anvil knob, the early model has a groove around it, the late model is straight sided

The  handles are also different the late model having a distinct ball shape

 The colour schemes are also different, maroon for the early and red for the late model.

The clamp washer is oval shaped on the early model. The late model washer was not original as it had been replaced at some stage so it couldn't be compared.

Other features are the same, the pipe bender 

Anvil present on both

Number the same

Both with "Made in England"

Conclusion

The maroon vice is most likely the early version with later improvments in design which were at least incorporated by 1959 but probably earlier than that.

Welcome

I've been buying and selling tools for 16 years and have come across a range of interesting tools. This blog is to share some of the items I've come across and what I've been able to find out.

Come share the journey

Cheers
Barry

PS Where did Barold come from?
My work mate Carmen: "What is Barry short for?" Me: "Nothing", Carmen: "But Harry is short for Harold ... Barry must be short for BAROLD!!!" Thanks for the great name Carmen