Barnsley tools

[whinewine]

Recently,I am seeing a lot of 'Barnsley' tools being advertised on ebay- mostly awls of various kinds, a round knife... Are they any good (as in Bob Douglas quality), or a waste of money (I'm not in the market for awls or head knives, so I have no axe to grind [no pun intended, btw] one way or another, but I'm just curious as to their overall quality.)

Or are they in realm of the many 'tools' on ebay listed with key words like "sweet", "a new beauty", "a real beauty", etc...?

[barra]

Barnsley made exceptional tools.

Barra

[bruce johnson]

I have an old Barnsley plough gauge and an old Dixon and can sure appreciate the quality of both. I was under the impression that Barnsley had closed down some time back. I am seeing that Barnsley stuff on ebay also, and Hale & Co are selling it. I really would doubt if there is that much old stock sitting around. I would like to hear some feedback on this apparently newer stuff too. Ebay feedback might be good, but you do that when you unpack it - not a after a year's use.

[celticleather]

We still use Barnsley tools in the shoe trade, and I can testify to their quality. The company ceased trading as George Barnsley in the early 1990s, and their stock was absorbed by a company called Woodware Repetitions - still in Sheffield - which is owned by Colin and Roger Barnsley.

They now seem to specialise in woodturning tools. We recently bought a couple of new leather knives from one of our local stockists, and they were the traditional shape and quality, but now stamped with the Woodware Repetitions name, so it seems that they are still making some leather-related tools.

There are some poignant photographs of their old factory at http://www.28dayslat...ead.php?t=30363.

[UKRay]

I'm always on the lookout for old Barnsley and Dixon tools and picked up a superb pair of Barnsley saddler's nippers this weekend. On a personal level, I rate Dixon slightly higher than Barnsley, but they are both extremely fine makers.

Ray

[whinewine]

I'm always on the lookout for old Barnsley and Dixon tools and picked up a superb pair of Barnsley saddler's nippers this weekend. On a personal level, I rate Dixon slightly higher than Barnsley, but they are both extremely fine makers.

Ray

Ray,

I'm asking about the current (not older) Barnsley stuff being offered- I know that the old Barnsley stuff was/is very good. [it's like saying that Osborne stuff is good because their old tools were decent- we all know that the new Osbornes don't use as good a steel as what is in the older tools]. So when I see all this plethora of Barnsley stuff on ebay right now, I'm just sceptical...

So, to reiterate: does anyone have knowledge of the stuff currently being marketed under the Barnsley name? Has anyone actually purchased something from the seller & compared it to an original Barnsley?

russ

[celticleather]

Bearing in mind that George Barnsley & Sons ceased trading many years ago, I would suspect that any Barnsley items being sold as 'new' or 'unused' are probably old stock, made by the company before its closure.

I don't think anything has subsequently been made bearing the Barnsley name, but as I said earlier, knives of the Barnsley pattern are still being produced by Colin and Roger Barnsley of Woodware Repetitions. These knives have the Woodware Repetitions name on them.

It's difficult to say whether the quality of the Barnsley knives diminished before their closure, or whether this may have contributed to their decline; I don't have anything with which to make a comparison. I would agree with Ray, that in ranking I would put Dixons (and old Osborne) higher than Barnsley.

I discovered that the old Barnsley factory was a favourite haunt of photographers, with more pictures at

http://www.flickr.co...57608626780966/

http://www.whateversleft.co.uk/?p=161

http://www.pretentio...Sons%20Ltd.html

The site of their building has now been redeveloped as a housing estate.

[UKRay]

Ray,

I'm asking about the current (not older) Barnsley stuff being offered- I know that the old Barnsley stuff was/is very good.

So, to reiterate: does anyone have knowledge of the stuff currently being marketed under the Barnsley name? Has anyone actually purchased something from the seller & compared it to an original Barnsley?

russ

Russ, apologies I misunderstood your question.

As an old tool enthusiast I was interested to hear that Barnsley stock had started to re-appear so I phoned Woodware Repetitions (owned by the Barnsley brothers) and spoke to a delightful lady who told me that George Barnsley tools are back in production again, but almost all the stock that is appearing now is the last of the old Barnsley stock that was purchased from the liquidator when George Barnsley closed its doors. I believe they found a warehouse full of finished tools and a mass of spares.

So, to answer your question, the stock you are seeing for sale in the US is old (and almost certainly genuine) Barnsley stock purchased by an American tool dealer direct from Woodware Repetitions and re-sold. I was assured the Barnsley tools always used good steel!

Hope this helps,

Ray

[whinewine]

Russ, apologies I misunderstood your question.

As an old tool enthusiast I was interested to hear that Barnsley stock had started to re-appear so I phoned Woodware Repetitions (owned by the Barnsley brothers) and spoke to a delightful lady who told me that George Barnsley tools are back in production again, but almost all the stock that is appearing now is the last of the old Barnsley stock that was purchased from the liquidator when George Barnsley closed its doors. I believe they found a warehouse full of finished tools and a mass of spares.

So, to answer your question, the stock you are seeing for sale in the US is old (and almost certainly genuine) Barnsley stock purchased by an American tool dealer direct from Woodware Repetitions and re-sold. I was assured the Barnsley tools always used good steel!

Hope this helps,

Ray

Thank you, Ray. This helps. This is the info I was looking for.

russ

[bruce johnson]

Thanks from me too, Ray! I guess we see enough knockoff and rebranded stuff over here that we get a little skeptical. Glad to hear that report, and makes me look at that stuff with a whole different perspective. How would you like to be the guy who opened that warehouse door?? Hard to believe someone knew it was there and just let it sit. Glad they did.

[celticleather]

Well done, Ray!

Your research bears out my suspicion that these tools were old-stock Barnsley originals. It's good to see that they are making their way back into circulation. It seemed a bit unlikely that they were knock-offs, since the market is pretty specialised, and on a global scale, pretty small!

Opening that warehouse must have been like walking into Aladdin's Cave!

Terry

[celticleather]

I came across an interesting article in Cutting Edge magazine about George Barnsley & Sons, which explains everything that we've speculated about here on the Forum.

My thanks to Colin Barnsley for granting permission to reproduce the article here, and to Tony Driver, Editor of Cutting Edge, for his assistance in providing the attached pdf.

WR_Article_(web).pdf

WR_Article_(web).pdf

[whinewine]

I did finally purchase a Barnsley awl (the 2" diamond awl) from Hale & Co. I have to say, it is a very decent tool- good steel & for $9 + minimal shipping, it is a great buy for the little bit of handsewing in thin leather I do.

russ

[UKRay]

I came across an interesting article in Cutting Edge magazine about George Barnsley & Sons, which explains everything that we've speculated about here on the Forum.

My thanks to Colin Barnsley for granting permission to reproduce the article here, and to Tony Driver, Editor of Cutting Edge, for his assistance in providing the attached pdf.

Many thanks for posting the article, Terry - very interesting. Ray

[bootsmt]

Hello everyone, I saw the discussion about Barnsley tools. Edwin Hale is selling Barnsley tools through Hale and Company. He has been working with Colin Barnsley for the past 7 years to get these tools back on the market. He has very high standards when it comes to the trades. He grew up around bespoke trades in England and somehow found himself living in the U.S.. If you are looking for quality tools I would give him a call. You can view his Ebay store site but if you wish to make a purchase call him directly. 805-636-3087. He a very upstanding merchant, check his feedbacks on ebay. If you have questions about the tools purpose he will gladly tell you. He has a great deal of information, many of his friends are bespoke leather makers using traditional methods. Sorry about the length of this.

bootsmt

[wvcraftsman]

Does Hale and Co. have a website? Or a store name in Ebay? This has been a very interesting topic.

[jeeperaz]

Does Hale and Co. have a website? Or a store name in Ebay? This has been a very interesting topic.

http://haleandco.com/

The website needs serious work... but it does link to his ebay store.

[bootsmt]

Does Hale and Co. have a website? Or a store name in Ebay? This has been a very interesting topic.

The name of the ebay store is Hale and Co.

Edwin is working on a new website. I would call him and ask about the old site. The prices are wrong on it. His number is in the previous reply to yours. Remember to call him and not order through ebay.

[bootsmt]

The name of the ebay store is Hale and Co.

Edwin is working on a new website. I would call him and ask about the old site. The prices are wrong on it. His number is in the previous reply to yours. Remember to call him and not order through ebay.

My mistake. The ebay store is haleandco . Don't know when his new site will be up.

[chiseltooth]

Hello, I now own three old Barnsley fleshing knives and I use them for fleshing Beaver and Raccoon and Deer hides and they are some of the finest knives that I ever used for this job. Thank You for all the information on Barnsley tools as I 'am still learning about The Barnsley Tool Company. Thanks for such a fine form for information !!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks , Chiseltooth

[Tannin]

I have several George Barnsley tools, including two NOS leather knives and I really like them, both arrived sharp. The blade on my most recent purchase, my round knife, rings like a bell, which sends shivers down my back! I enjoy using them.

BTW I was once fortunate to be invited to an event at the Cutlers Hall in Sheffield - I hadn't previously realized just what a rich culture of steel, tool and cutlery making Sheffield had. I thought it was basically British Steel Ltd. but there are/were actually dozens (perhaps hundreds?) of small and medium sized companies doing all kinds of things related to steel there for a hundred years.

Edited August 13, 2014 by Tannin