The Oily Shop Project

[Branson]

I wouldn't say the seem on that chisel is welded so much as both sides butting with ever ever so slight overlap with very thin metal at the edges.  No evidence of any metal seamed in.  I believe the stamping reads "MOTTR"

Curious mark.  What I can see of it makes me suspect a pretty professional stamp was used.  Then there should be more things lying around someplace that bear the same mark.

I wonder if there was an attempt at a weld that just didn't take, or if the smith forgot to weld it.  Looks like he could have scarfed the edges but didn't complete the process.  Can't tell much from the top of the socket since it is so deformed.

Eric Sloane had a drawing of an 18th Century gouge in his book, A Museum of Early  American Tools that I remember as looking similar.

[OilyRascal]

I wouldn't say the seem on that chisel is welded so much as both sides butting with ever ever so slight overlap with very thin metal at the edges.  No evidence of any metal seamed in.  I believe the stamping reads "MOTTR"

Curious mark.  What I can see of it makes me suspect a pretty professional stamp was used.  Then there should be more things lying around someplace that bear the same mark.

I wonder if there was an attempt at a weld that just didn't take, or if the smith forgot to weld it.  Looks like he could have scarfed the edges but didn't complete the process.  Can't tell much from the top of the socket since it is so deformed.

Eric Sloane had a drawing of an 18th Century gouge in his book, A Museum of Early  American Tools that I remember as looking similar.

Branson - Clearly you are well versed in this subject.  I appreciate your comments.  It could be there is/was a weld there, but my untrained eye isn't helping here.  If it would make sense to you, I would be willing to bear the cost of sending this tool to you for your hands-on assistance.

Are there "tell tell" signs of a blacksmith made product that I should be more aware of .....that may assist me in honing in on those things blacksmith'd?  I will tell you that I would NOT have eyed this as made by a blacksmith.  I did note mentally the old clevis was blacksmith made, simply because of the look of the iron.

[Branson]

>Branson - Clearly you are well versed in this subject.  I appreciate your comments.  It could be there is/was a weld there, but my untrained eye isn't helping here.  If it would make sense to you, I would be willing to bear the cost of sending this tool to you for your hands-on assistance.

>Are there "tell tell" signs of a blacksmith made product that I should be more aware of .....that may assist me in honing in on those things blacksmith'd?  I will tell you that I would NOT have eyed this as made by a blacksmith.  I did note mentally the old clevis was blacksmith made, simply because of the look of the iron.

Oily, I'd be more than happy to check it out in person.  But before we start shipping it around, let's look at it some more.  First, why don't you de-rustify it a bit so we can see the metal.  It's a pretty heavy chisel, and before the stock removal production of more modern chisels, one this heavy would have been made of iron with a thinner piece of steel forge welded on for the cutting edge. 

The color of the two metals is fairly easy to see -- maybe an eighth of an inch thickness of steel on the bottom like the sole of a shoe, and the rest iron.  It's a bit trickier way of doing things since Iron welds at a significantly different temperature than steel.  The iron tends to be etched by rust and time, and would show something like wood grain because it's essentially fibrous, also.  I have a pair of saddler's pliers that were intensely etched, and you can tell every step in their production since the grain moves with the hammer's blows.  It will swirl around a punched hole, and spiral when it's wound around a pin.  (That's why I kept those pliers!  They're a book about how they were made.)

Rust removal might also reveal other marks that will tell more of its history.

I kinda think it was supposed to be welded.  Looking at the peined over end, that looks like a tear, like the end of the tear held...

>Again - my guess is old but not a clue as to what it may be a part of - I'd guess some strapping on a horse or mule harness.

Tool wrench, probably for changing the blade on a table saw, and issued with the saw.

[OilyRascal]

It has been nearly a week since my last update so I thought I'd share my efforts since then.  I've spent the better part of that time trying to get a Mack winch truck back in order.  I remember it as a mid flight project where the truck was purchased, the bed built, the brownlight gear reducer was found (not installed), cables found (not installed), etc.  Insofar I've been able to get the engine running, and establish the air brakes were locked/frozen at every wheel.  I've been able to free all of them except one via the slop adjusters......but the remaining ONE seems it will go down fighting hard.......and I'm up for the challenge.

I now have a fridge and microwave in the shop.  May not sound like a big deal, but for me it saves ICE money daily and puts me in a position for a descent lunch.

The idea of taking in the 8x50 slab just outside the back door is present.  The current thinking is to make it an office area - free of oil, dust, tools, and with climate controlled.  I need a place to put electronics, and a place to sit at a desk for the "business end" of my life, and place to cool off - summer is fast upon me in an all metal building.

The Columbian vise is in the machine shop now to square up that lower section and to cut an L-shaped jaw.  I hope to have it back and in service by end of next week. 

The Champion drill press is restored to the extent I'm able - but "On Hold" pending a decision on the degree of restoration with the driver.  I'm still struggling with whether I should tackle trying to restore it to it's original state, or to place it in service within the shop with an electric driver and v-belt shiv.  I would love to see it restored to original, but frankly I'm concerned with the cost/time associated with tackling that, and given I've never used a hand driven drill press I'm a bit concerned with usability over an electric driver.  I welcome any feedback those of you with first hand experience, with hand driven drill presses, may lend.

I suspect I will spend the next few weeks between that winch truck, and a concrete pumper - getting them in proper order for use or sale.  I'll check back in on this thread when I have something interesting to share that is relevant to the forum, as I don't want flood it with "off topic" winch truck and concrete pumper related posts.

Rust removal might also reveal other marks that will tell more of its history.

Branson - I appreciate your feedback and my education the result.  I'm in the process of removing the rust, and I'll report back when I have that complete.

[OilyRascal]

Interesting find today as I was looking through an old service truck for a particular PTO.  It is marked Winchester.





AND THIS - This is what you call a very tight fit.  I won the battle of the locked up air brakes.  I had to let some air out of the front tires to gain the additional 1/4" clearance I needed to get past the doors.

[john k]

That Mack sure makes a big shop look small in a hurry!  Glad to see some of the iron is still runnable.   Just a quarter inch out of the tires?  Looks mighty tight from my seat!  The Winchester drill doesn't look too bad, several firearms mfg.s  turned to tools when times got rough, Winchester also had their name on chisels.  Am thinking that drill is coming up on 100 years pretty fast now. 

[OilyRascal]

That Mack sure makes a big shop look small in a hurry!  Glad to see some of the iron is still runnable.   Just a quarter inch out of the tires?  Looks mighty tight from my seat!  The Winchester drill doesn't look too bad, several firearms mfg.s  turned to tools when times got rough, Winchester also had their name on chisels.  Am thinking that drill is coming up on 100 years pretty fast now. 

I'm telling you it was tight - sliding metal with lube tight.  You can see the front tires squatting on one of the pictures.  I think I could have gotten away with letting more out of the tires being I was on a slab - and creeeping slow.  It amazed me how low geared that truck is already, without the brownlight.  Found good news in that transmission has a PTO so I can have a second winch to raise/lower poles, and not have to get off a load to adjust.  That is a feature few winch trucks I've seen have.  It will be rated at 80,000lbs load in the end. 

I'll need to remove the stove to have enough room to work now, but I wanted to make the stove portable anyway - OUT in the summer time.

If a person were looking to find that hand drill in a catalog, where might they look?

[Papaw]

Check here- http://www.roseantiquetools.com/id220.html Rose has a Winchester catalog for download.

And here- http://www.thckk.org/

[Lump]

Winchester made a full line of hardware products and "man junk," (as my wife would call it). I have had Winchester flashlights, monkey wrench, tappet wrench (still have it), pipe wrench, and I even have two antique glass-eyed Winchester brand fishing lures, from the 1920's. There are many Winchester collectors out there.

Nice find!!

[OilyRascal]

The 1923 catalog has a very broad selection of tools.

[johnsironsanctuary]

Your Mack is either a DM or an R Model with a hard nose radiator. It is a very handsome truck and with 80,000 lb rears, it is a serious hauler. The Tag on the inside of the door will have a model number. I know it is off topic, but as a Mack fan, I would be grateful if you would keep us posted. Is it a Mack engine? How many shift levers? If those are double reduction rear axles, get a manual. They are kinda fussy, very expensive and difficult to fix. The truck is WAY COOL!

[Branson]

Oily, this is getting to be like a TV series!  Only much more intelligent and a lot more interesting.  Thanks for all you are sharing here.

[dimwittedmoose51]

RUMOR CONTROL  has it that Oily is discussing his own reality TV show with Tim the Tool Man Taylor....if he can just grow an Al Boreland style beard and look studly in plaid....


DM&FS

BTW, anything Winchester brings big buck on ebay.  I just got $40+ for an above average pair of 8" lineman's pliers.....

[OilyRascal]

>Branson - Clearly you are well versed in this subject.  I appreciate your comments.  It could be there is/was a weld there, but my untrained eye isn't helping here.  If it would make sense to you, I would be willing to bear the cost of sending this tool to you for your hands-on assistance.

>Are there "tell tell" signs of a blacksmith made product that I should be more aware of .....that may assist me in honing in on those things blacksmith'd?  I will tell you that I would NOT have eyed this as made by a blacksmith.  I did note mentally the old clevis was blacksmith made, simply because of the look of the iron.

Oily, I'd be more than happy to check it out in person.  But before we start shipping it around, let's look at it some more.  First, why don't you de-rustify it a bit so we can see the metal.  It's a pretty heavy chisel, and before the stock removal production of more modern chisels, one this heavy would have been made of iron with a thinner piece of steel forge welded on for the cutting edge. 

The color of the two metals is fairly easy to see -- maybe an eighth of an inch thickness of steel on the bottom like the sole of a shoe, and the rest iron.  It's a bit trickier way of doing things since Iron welds at a significantly different temperature than steel.  The iron tends to be etched by rust and time, and would show something like wood grain because it's essentially fibrous, also.  I have a pair of saddler's pliers that were intensely etched, and you can tell every step in their production since the grain moves with the hammer's blows.  It will swirl around a punched hole, and spiral when it's wound around a pin.  (That's why I kept those pliers!  They're a book about how they were made.)

Rust removal might also reveal other marks that will tell more of its history.

I kinda think it was supposed to be welded.  Looking at the peined over end, that looks like a tear, like the end of the tear held...

I've learned some about the likely source of the chisel we were discussing.  The sole local blacksmith of the last 100 years has been described to me as a "RiverRat" and going by the name of Duke Mason.  He had a cabin and portable blacksmith shop setup on the river just a couple of bluffs from where my grandfather owned land (and my family still does).   At some point in Duke's later years the cabin (built with huge logs as the foundation) lost part of it's foundation.  Duke was not physically able to make the repairs required to remain at his place.

My grandfather was in the final stages of building a timber frame "camp" about the same time, and had just made available an old bus he had used for temporary shelter as the camp was being built.  Again - on property my grandfather owned just a couple bluffs away from Duke's cabin.  He offered the bus/property to Duke as housing until such time he could find his way.  Duke lived in that bus, on my grandfather's property, for about 3 years.  His health finally failed him and his family made a decision to place him into a home for care.  There whereabouts of his portable blacksmith shop are still unknown to me.  It was last seen at his cabin.

I'm told Duke Mason left a number of his hand made tools to my grandfather.  I suspect the chisel is just one that survived.  I'm working to make contact with his descendants (still in this area) to see what else I might learn.

All that said, I was unable to find the chisel today to post pictures of it de-rusted.  I remain in a battle over organization of tools.  I'm hopeful it will show up soon.

[OilyRascal]

A quick update!  I have some downtime with driveline fabrication on the Mack so I decided to..........well dig her out of the pasture and give her a bath for inspection.  I'm very excited, and optimistic, about this project.







I welcomed this new addition to the shop.  While I love the idea of the old Lincolns - something to be said for here and now.  As you can see by the hours, it is nearly worn slam out.







Lastly, I wanted to share a 1" drive drill that surfaced outside the shop.  I would say this is the largest drill I now own, but there is the matter of that McCullough gasoline powered 250cc auger I found in the rafters.