DaltonMasterson Report post Posted April 11, 2011 I just went to an auction that listed "leather tools" in the flyer. Well, expecting it to be a Basic 7 set and a wallet kit, I went anyway. I was pleasantly suprised with several boxes of nice older Osborne hand tools, lots of stamps, etc. Well, I bought a tackle box full of 63 stamps, a round knife, draw gauge, edgers, rivets etc. Most of the stamps are identifiable as Tandy, with several pre 63 ones in the mix. There are a handful of Kelly Tool/Midas in the pile as well. BUT, the intriguing part of the buy was the 13 no name steel stamps in the mix. They are shorter than the Craftool stamps (3.5" long) and very nicely made. They are not stainless, and are not plated. I will try to take a pic of them later, but dont have pic access right now. The tool faces are sharp and well defined, and the handles are knurled like Craftool stamps. Does anyone know who might have made these? Thanks! DM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Report post Posted April 11, 2011 McMillan didn't mark a lot of their stamps. Kevin Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Art Report post Posted April 11, 2011 There is a set of 15 from Ellis Barnes, made of 1018 steel and are a little short. I think they were not marked, but I'll check tonight. Art I just went to an auction that listed "leather tools" in the flyer. Well, expecting it to be a Basic 7 set and a wallet kit, I went anyway. I was pleasantly suprised with several boxes of nice older Osborne hand tools, lots of stamps, etc. Well, I bought a tackle box full of 63 stamps, a round knife, draw gauge, edgers, rivets etc. Most of the stamps are identifiable as Tandy, with several pre 63 ones in the mix. There are a handful of Kelly Tool/Midas in the pile as well. BUT, the intriguing part of the buy was the 13 no name steel stamps in the mix. They are shorter than the Craftool stamps (3.5" long) and very nicely made. They are not stainless, and are not plated. I will try to take a pic of them later, but dont have pic access right now. The tool faces are sharp and well defined, and the handles are knurled like Craftool stamps. Does anyone know who might have made these? Thanks! DM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DaltonMasterson Report post Posted April 12, 2011 I did a search of Ellis Barnes' stamps, and come up with someone saying that they were not attracted to a magnet??? Mine are steel/magnetic, but I dont know if that will mean anything. I got some pics taken tonite, and will try to post them tomorrow. The sad thing is that this box I bought sold after a few others sold. There were a few full plastic Craftool tool holders clear full of stamps and wood handled tools (didnt see them until they were selling, shame on me). They sold for 30 bucks each rack. I imagine there were a few good older stamps in those too. I wanted to make sure I got the box I got though, and didnt bid them up any more. DM Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DaltonMasterson Report post Posted April 12, 2011 Heres some pics. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WyomingSlick Report post Posted April 14, 2011 Sure, I know as much as you are ever going to know about who made them unless you can trace the ownership of the tools back through the auction house. And no, they were most likely not made by McMillin. There is a seller on eBay who infers that every old steel non plated tool he has for sale is a McMillin. The historical fact is that is was part of the apprenticeship of many saddleshops for the wannabe saddle maker to make his own stamping tools. And then there were others who made tools for saddlemakers in their area. Due to the fact that these have knurled shafts, and the regularity of them, they were at least partly made by a machinist. From the fact that they could use some touching up, I would say he was not a leather carver. From the impressions pic; going from left to right, top to bottom Top row The bargrounder needs to be ground down all around to make it work right. The "pine tree" is very well done, though with not as fine lines as a McMillan or older Craftool. The cam is very typical of old style cams in that it is more rounded across the top. The wiggler (sawtooth style) is very good. The wiggler (wavy style) looks okay but I am not impressed with it's impression. LOL The smooth shader looks a little flat for my taste Bottom Row The flower center looks very even - kind of an unusual line pattern there The veiner looks a little "clunky-thick" for modern tastes - I have several old timers that are like this The beveler - has the round heel like I see in many old bevelers which is a good thing The big seeder-definately done by a machinist with an indexing tool as it's so even The ribbed shader - very well done for being done freehand, I've seen worse. The birdseye backgrounder - definately done by a machinist, but like the bargrounder - needs touched up. You should notice that the pattern of 7 dots surrounding the center one is a bit unusual. The usual was 6 or nine dots. All in all, you have got yourself a nice little collection of very old tools dating back a half century or more. If I had to be more exact I would guess made in the 1940's to mid 50's. Since you live in dry country like I do, they shouldn't rust badly on you. I use Rain-X to coat mine with just to be sure. Below is a pic of some more "oldies" that I've accumulated over the years. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WyomingSlick Report post Posted April 14, 2011 I did a search of Ellis Barnes' stamps, and come up with someone saying that they were not attracted to a magnet??? Mine are steel/magnetic, but I dont know if that will mean anything. They were referring to the stainless steel tools that Ellis made after he took over Ray Hackbarth's operation. Later on he made some out of tool steel just as he made them out of tool steel when he worked for Cal-Carved, Craftool, RBS, and when he made his own line back in the old days. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
