School me on these older German drafting tools and their value

[Farmall450]

Was wondering what these were, and their value. A few different models of turnabout compasses, german from the few that are marked. A post, and a original Lotter. Google came up with this on the latter. http://collectingme.com/drawing/Original_Lotter_Turnabout_Compass_Set.aspx

Not a clue about what's on the far right.



Are these bad boys worth anything/useful? Thanks.

 

[beatcad]

useful, yes! worth big bucks? that's a tough call.
I've got some like 'em and rarely use 'em. I don't do drafting like I used to.
I do use stuff like that for making patterns or finding the center of something i'm about to cut up.
in the new business world most folks use a computer program to make diagrams and the like.
so most "kids" aint into old quality cumpuses like those.
collecters or weirdos like me may be into 'em.

w/o the orig case it hard to say, but what you've got I've seen go for 50 to 100 clams.

 

[machine_punk]

They would be moderately useful to me, since I still actually occasionally draft by hand. The reality of today's world, though, is that nobody drafts by hand anymore. Everything is done on the computer with 2D or 3D CAD programs. There are still folks out there looking for these (I wouldn't mind having a nice set, myself). There are tons of these on eBay all the time. I sorta laugh at the folks asking big money for this stuff now. It USED to be expensive, but just isn't the way it is done, anymore.

Kev

 

[Stuart in MN]

The things that look like little pincers are actually for drawing circles with ink, which no one uses any more for drafting.

I still have the Keufel+Esser drafting set I bought 40 years ago for drafting class, and pull it out every once in a while to draw a circle, but for the most part they aren't much more than an interesting collectible these days.

 

[pepi]

CAD killed the drafting tools went by the wayside as did the slide ruler. Those don't appear to be a quality set. The one compass is missing the extension for large circles, third piece from the bottom.

 

[Givl Reggin]

The thing on the right is used to extend to make large circles, they usually come in several lengths... you use it by inserting it in the leg and moving the lead holder portion to the end of the beam.

When I started architecture school I bought a bunch of compasses made in West Germany as I recall...even supposedly really good ones weren't all that expensive. It seems that at that time it was a tool of an architect, but sometime around 1970 they became less popular as everyone started using those green see-though plastic circle templates instead.

 

[Dave455]

There are a lot more of these things around than people who need them professionally, thanks to CAD, so this affects the value!

The 'top end' modern drawing instruments by Haff, Kern, British Thornton or even Clemens Riefler hold their value well, but the older stuff or the 'mid range' quality wise (which this stuff looks like) doesn't go for big bucks!

 

[laser3kw]

collecters or weirdos like me may be into 'em.

huh?
is there another use you're not telling us about?

 

[Farmall450]

The thing on the right is used to extend to make large circles, they usually come in several lengths... you use it by inserting it in the leg and moving the lead holder portion to the end of the beam.

When I started architecture school I bought a bunch of compasses made in West Germany as I recall...even supposedly really good ones weren't all that expensive. It seems that at that time it was a tool of an architect, but sometime around 1970 they became less popular as everyone started using those green see-though plastic circle templates instead.

It seems it would be easier to have one of these vs numerous templates.

The things that look like little pincers are actually for drawing circles with ink, which no one uses any more for drafting.

I still have the Keufel+Esser drafting set I bought 40 years ago for drafting class, and pull it out every once in a while to draw a circle, but for the most part they aren't much more than an interesting collectible these days.

That's what I was heading, thanks. Ink as in you dip it into a bottle of ink.

 

[Steinmetz]

CAD killed the drafting tools went by the wayside as did the slide ruler. Those don't appear to be a quality set. The one compass is missing the extension for large circles, third piece from the bottom.

Slide Rule. I still use mine on occasion…A Hemmi Expert Mechanical Engineer.

I also still use mechanical drafting pencils, sharpened with a Dietzgen rotary pointer in my office.

 

[Mark118]

Ebay (Germany) listing:

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Antiker-Zirk...issenschaftliche_Geräte_1&hash=item2a3db0cb6e

 

[Farmall450]

Ebay (Germany) listing:

http://www.ebay.de/itm/Antiker-Zirk...issenschaftliche_Geräte_1&hash=item2a3db0cb6e

So like $15 in a snazzy box too. Thanks.

 

[Vegaman_Dan]

Drafting tools are beautifully machined, built, and are meant to last. Unfortunately they outlasted their purpose and now really have more of a value as a static display in their case. They commonly show up on www.shopgoodwill.com for cheap. I see them in estate sales and pick them up now and then. I haven't done any drafting since the late 80's, so now they are just good for measurements and reference tools.

Still very neat.

 

[bassbone52]

Speaking As a retired engineer and surveyor, over the past 25 years I might have used these things five times. AutoCAD (or something similar) is the standard for turning out drawings. It's faster and infinitely more accurate than hand drafting. Time is money and most clients wouldn't entertain the idea of a hand drawn product.

I've sold all of my sets on eBay and honestly, there is not much demand, even for a high end set like a Dietzgen Master Pro outfit with a beam compass.

 

[scw1991]

I started out as a mechanical draftsman on the old drafting arm machine complete with tilting table, electric eraser, light, and all the various tools 23 years ago. Once my employer handed over a CAD station a few years later, you never look back.

Having vintage drafting tools is like hanging onto 3.5" floppy disks or external zip drives. They turn into more of a conversation piece than anything else.

I'd probably reference similar drafting tools on Ebay to get a feel for their market value. If you don't want to keep them, you'd probably get more for them as a set rather than by individual piece.

 

[rickhigginshtbr]

I snagged a similar pile for the misses, she actually used a few in a few sketches. She likes them, and it created the distraction I needed to sneak another toolbox in. win, win! But yea, researched them first and not worth too much at all

 

[senlow]

I also still use mechanical drafting pencils, sharpened with a Dietzgen rotary pointer in my office.

I've been using 2mm leadholders for my shop pencils for years.

I run across drafting instruments fairly regularly at estate sales. Compasses, protractors, triangles, eraser shields and T-squares seem to be pretty common. Leroy lettering kits, lead pointers, and electric erasers pop up less regularly. It seems that the leadholders must get lost or discarded. I seldom see them at sales.

 

[RCStocker]

It seems it would be easier to have one of these vs numerous templates.



That's what I was heading, thanks. Ink as in you dip it into a bottle of ink.

templates like French curves are use for elevation lines.
Anyone that does a lot of wood working will use them for laying out curves and scrolls.
As an architect I do all my house and small buildings by hand. I do a much better job of lay out and design on paper. Auto Cad is fine for some things. I find nice German and American drafting sets in the case for $10 to $20. There is really no value in an odd lot. They are so common that they are almost not wroth the price of shipping in a $5.35 little flat rate box. You are also missing parts and extensions. Sometimes they are nice for doing lay out work on sheet metal. If you know how to lay out sheet metal and leave enough for folds and bends. There is an exact science to it You can use them to lay out duct work if you are making it up. There are hundreds of uses for them. Many model rail roads are laid out with drafting tools. You can find the grade for elevation and get the right grade to scale and get the right curves to scale. A little trig and drafting skills can be used in many things.

I still do all my renderings by had. I don't draw them up with Auto CAD. I have the program and use it for Plot plans and some commercial buildings.
Be careful. You can draw things you can not build and never see it on paper.

Auto CAD is great for CNC machines, civil engineering and all forms of Engineering. Architects still need to know how to draw and sketch. I can draw a house faster than you can do it with Auto CAD and I don't care how good you are.

The bottom line is they are worth keeping. Not worth the gas to pick them up.

 

[beatcad]

i aint all that weird ..maybe I am, but I like old/cool/quality stuff.
never did it for a living, but I took a lot of years of mechanical drawing and drafting classes in school. I love that stuff, but I was an art major. than in the late 80s they started showing this new thing called CAD
I still use these for custom stuff like finding the center of a 1/2 circle or making a line to cut/**** up...yeah, I do stuff like that now, but I know what i'm doing.
I bought these a few years ago for $40 bucks(on CL) because the stuff I had from when I was a kid was cheap, and I wanted good stuff.