Late 1940's Union (Craftsman) Machinist Chest

[Private Lugnutz]

The last thing I need is another project, but I couldn’t resist this Union machinists’ chest, picked up at my flea market this morning.

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Here are some additional BEFORE photos…

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As you can see from the branding on the center clasp, this is from the Union Steel Chest Corporation era, which was the fourth of the four incarnations of Union (following Union Tool Chest Works, Union Tool Chest Company, and Union Chest and Cabinet Corp.), after the move to Leroy, NY from Rochester, NY in 1932. As the name change implies, Union Steel Chest was making steel chests, including flip-top tool boxes popular with WWII GMTK collectors, myself included. However, due to the popularity and demand for the hardwood cases, they continued offering them in their product line, supplied to them by The Pilliod Company, until 1953.

In fact, from 1943 to 1949, these Union chests were badged for Sears & Roebuck as Craftsman!

A nice image of the chest can be seen on page 8 of the 1948 Craftsman catalog, and here is an excerpt of the same image from the 1946 Sears & Roebuck Christmas catalog

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Another pic of mine taken for comparison

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From 1943 to 1945 they had knob pulls, but from 1945 to 1949 they had these unique formed sheet metal pulls, which I find very attractive.

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The chest is all Oak finish, measures 20” W x 12-1/8” H x 9” D, with a 5/3 drawer pattern. Union catalogs indicate the model number as F-20. The Craftsman model number was 99 PC 06535. (Ironically, at $25.35, it originally cost $5.35 more than what I just paid for mine. )

The box itself and all the drawers are in remarkably good condition, as is the leather-clad handle. (While I have several vintage leather handles cannibalized from old suitcases, I am glad I don’t have to mess with it.)

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The felt lining is roached, of course. It has all the corner pieces and hinges. It’s missing the mirror, the lower half of the center locking clasp, the drop front panel (which had a felt-lined rectangular depression on the inside), and the badge, and the lid retention chain is broken.

I believe the markings on the backs of the drawers are factory. I don’t know if 297 was a model or unit number, but the upper drawers were obviously also numbered by their configuration, probably for/during assembly.

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I plan to do a light-handed preservation, not a full-up restoration. I am not going to remove any hardware or fixtures, opting to clean up the metal and wood in place. I will try to find an original drop front panel, if possible, or something of similar vintage and size, eventually. Or I may have one fabricated. That will be my last priority. I am going to try to find a suitable replacement for the missing lower half of the center locking clasp piece. Replacing the green felt lining, and a decent facsimile of the lid chain and mirror will be easy.

Because it’s missing the badge (they were tacked into the face of the largest bottom drawer), I can badge it Union or Craftsman. The Union badge will be hard to come by, and I already have a few Craftsman badges, salvaged from rusty steel toolboxes, so I plan to make this a Craftsman box.

Credit and thanks to ‘The Guide for Wooden Machinist Chests’ website, Union pages linked here, for much of the above information.

One final note: GJ member Davefr recently completed a First Class Restoration on an example of the earliest Union Tool Chest era box with ring pulls. His thread can be found here. Between his and mine we’ve got the bookends to Union’s entire production timeframe (1910-1953).

 

[Gerry Clarke]

Great find and a very nice design. The hinges themselves are a work of art! I really applaud sensible preservation as opposed to renovation.

Gerry

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Thanks, Gerry. I really like the hinges and the drawer pulls. As for preservation vs restoration, I always lean that way. No judgement on those who prefer to restore. I am just as wowed as anyone else by a perfect restoration, I just have a thing for keeping the been-there done-that look.

 

[bmwrd0]

Are you going to make a new front panel also? Either way it is a nice chest.

I have a George Scheer on my bench that needs restoring (someone painted it rattle can black) so I am watching this pretty close.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Are you going to make a new front panel also?

I don't have the skills or tools, beemer. But I have a line on someone with both who also has some unsolicited desire to help.

I have a George Scheer on my bench that needs restoring (someone painted it rattle can black) so I am watching this pretty close.

I'm not sure how to proceed on the wood. I can't tell if the flaking in some places is some kind of varnish or veneer that has dried up or if it's gunk or what. Either way, I'd like to get down to just wood and decide if I need to lightly sand that, with the finest grain paper possible, by hand, or leave it as is. Hoping for "as is." I may experiment on a corner in the back today. You should take cues from others as well. The last wooden cabinet I "preserved" was a cathedral radio. It turned out excellent but I don't profess to be an expert. EDIT: You should definitely see Davefr's Union chest resto thread. That thread can be found here.

 

[alinc100]

My first inclination would be a bit of Murphy's oil Soap and warm water. Maybe a cautious use/trial of Simple green or a citrus based degreaser. Any of which I do not believe would harm the wood,unless submerged for extended time periods.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I just found out that ed4banger has one! He posted a photo of it a few days ago on drivesitfar's "Wood cabinets yada yada" thread. It's beautiful!

I'm going to PM him and get more photos and the dimensions of the mirror, the center clasp, and the drop-front panel.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Okay, now that I know what's it's supposed to look like, it's clear that my much darker box has been varnished and verneered and god knows what else. It even shows traces of gray paint.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

It was nice day so I tore into the old felt removal.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The bottoms on the drawers are tin or cheap sheet steel and will need some de-rusting on the inside. Bottom sides are pretty good.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Of course I found the number "297" on the lid and the top panel under the old felt!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

You see those split pin type rivets for the handles under the lid? They also used them on the hinges and the drawer pulls.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I identified one area of concern. For your orientation, I have the box sitting on its lid. You are looking from the bottom of the box up into the top, where the drop-front panel would seat into two pins on springs, retained in those two holes. (When the lid is closed, the pins slip into fitted holes in the upper edge of the drop-front panel. When the lid is open, the panel can be removed and tucker underneath. This is the same design on my machinists' box.) As you can see, it's missing some wood there. If I had to guess, someone improperly removed the drop front, without the pins recessing, and it cracked the lip. I don't know if that will affect the pins or not yet as there are no pins present and I don't have the drop-front panel.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

This photo is just for kicks. The OD green panel with the ring pull is from a steel WWII machinists' box I have. I was looking at the opening in this Craftsman box, about to take some measurements for the missing drop front panel, and it seemed awfully familiar. So I went and got my steel box out. It might be a Union for all I know. It's just funny how standard these boxes were. If not for the tongue on the OD green steel drop front that is slightly longer than the groove on the bottom of the wooden box is deep, it would fit perfectly.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

This is where the spring-pins need to go. I have to identify a source or fab them.

 

[beatcad]

hey, lugz.
nice union chest ya found.
i hope you didnt pay to much for it. it's a cool chest, but i've never paid more than $50 for a chest that was missing the front lid.

i do agree that the drawer pulls on it says 1940s to me...but....
that pic of the craftsman/union aint quite the same..

craftsman subbed out both Gerstner and Union for their wooden machinist chests in the 40's and 50s.
the one thing i cannot place a date on is the lock/latch..

the bottom of your latch is missing, but the top is there.
it would have a square bottom.
that is an EAGLE lock/latch.

the pic you showed of a craftsman had a round bottom lock/latch...
a round bottom is a YALE latch.

both companies(gerstner and union) bought hardware from either companies(yale and eagle) depending on the year and the price discount.

i've talked about this with a bunch of fans and collectors..even the prez of gerstner and the guy that put together "the list" of machinist chests.

so far nobody can nail down when EAGLE or YALE latches were used on any chests.

i'm not making this up. i've been gathering info for a loooong time.

i've got both brand chests(and others) with both both brand latches.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

i hope you didnt pay to much for it. it's a cool chest, but i've never paid more than $50 for a chest that was missing the front lid.

See post #1.

that pic of the craftsman/union aint quite the same..

I'm not sure which pic you're referring to, the 1946 Sears & Roebuck Christmas catalog excerpt I included in post #1, or the photo of ed4banger's chest that I included in post #7, but the chest shown in the 1946 catalog and Ed's chest look identical to each other and to mine. If you see any differences between the chest shown in the 1946 catalog, Ed's chest, and my chest, please point them out.

the bottom of your latch is missing, but the top is there.
it would have a square bottom.

In the figures of the Craftsman machinists' chests shown in the 1946 and 1948 Craftsman catalogs, the lower locking center latch piece that you are referring to is sort of triangular in shape, like an arrow head or some police badges, and it has a rounded point on the bottom. It has the identical shape and rounded point on Ed's chest. And if you look at the pic I have attached below of my chest, you can see that there is an outline left by the missing lower half of the center locking latch piece, and that this outline has the exact same shape, with a rounded point at the bottom. If you have a dated documentation source showing that piece on a Craftsman chest with a square bottom, as you assert it should have, I'd be happy to consider it. Otherwise, I have to go with the other sources, which are very consistent with each other.

Do you know of a good source to buy the center latch piece I am missing?

Thanks for your interest.

 

[bmwrd0]

Lugz, have you tried Restor-a-finish before? It is used a lot in the antique world to clean up things like this.

I restored a Gerstner a year ago, and it helped a lot. I had to fashion part of the front panel and a drawer but sadly lost the before pics with the photo bucket fiasco.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

No! Thanks for the link!

 

[Billythekid1]

Anyone have a pic of the knob pulls these boxes had from 1943-1945??

 

[alinc100]

Anyone have a pic of the knob pulls these boxes had from 1943-1945??

Might find what you are looking for here:
https://sites.google.com/site/theguideforwoodmachinistchests/pg-31---union/pg-37---1914-brochure

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Yes, see the 'Chest Styles By Co.' section under 'Union' and scroll all the way down. What they refer to as knobs (round) I believe are on the last chest at the bottom. And those are the same knobs that are shown on the steel chests of the same type and style in the 1942 Craftsman catalog. Link here.

 

[Bigbandguy]

I'm not sure how to proceed on the wood. I can't tell if the flaking in some places is some kind of varnish or veneer that has dried up or if it's gunk or what. Either way, I'd like to get down to just wood and decide if I need to lightly sand that, with the finest grain paper possible, by hand, or leave it as is.

The flaking finish is most likely thick Shellac with probably a small percentage of Lacquer added for hardness. A good test would be a mix of 70 percent denatured alcohol, 20 percent Lacquer thinner and 10 percent Acetone. Brush it on and let it sit a few minutes then wipe with a towel dipped in the same stuff (needless to say use gloves) . If I am right it will melt the shellac and the wipe will remove the outer layer of finish and all of the embedded dirt. If that works, do the entire piece with it ... add a fresh coat of orange shellac and then steel wool it a little to dull the shine, then maybe some wax.

It sure works on furniture from the same period.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Yeah, I'm a little ahead of you on the same wavelength, Bigbandguy!

After work I scrubbed it with Orange-Glo (my wood cleaner and polisher of choice) to at least get a better look at what was under the grime and it was clearly some kind of old thick finish, varnish, or, as you suspected, Shellac. As soon as I brushed a light coat of Zip-Strip gel (a little more recklessly on-hand than your more careful recipe! ) on a back corner, it gooped up, and I scrubbed it off with 0000 steel wool, and the beautiful oak came right up, I did the whole box and all the drawers. There are some I-got-sloppy streaks and some areas where the varnish or Shellac is dried a little deeper into the grain, but all of those areas will be easy to remove and blend in with another light rub down and a light sanding, which will also bring up a little more grain.

The light touch will get even lighter now because I LOVE the darker honey maple/Goose Island IPA hue of this wood - as is!

 

[misterbill]

Lugz,

Are you going to fab up a front cover? Do you have a source for quarter sawn oak? I'm eager to see you bring this together. It looks like it would fit right in with a Roycroft or Morris decor! Great find, sir.

Bill

 

[bonneyman]

Great find and nice job so far, Lugz!

Better you than me - I am no good with wood.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Thanks, Bill and bonneyman!

I'm okay with wood, as long as it's confined to chopping it up to burn in a fireplace, and refinishing things, like the original front doors of my 1897 house, a 1926 Philco cathedral radio cabinet, and a few other pieces of furniture. Anything in between and I am all thumbs.

Fortunately for me, a kind soul here on GJ (who shall remain as anonymous as he wants to be or not) has offered to fabricate the drop front panel for me, out of QSWO! (Oh yeah, I can throw cool wood-working acronyms around now too!) Ed4banger sent me photos and dimensions of his, so that component is well on its way.

I've got a source (Gertsner) for the plunger pins that lock the top of the drop front panel in place when the lid is shut.

I'm looking at a center locking latch on the same site. It comes in black oxide, brass and nickel finish, and it looks very similar. Based on what beatcad was saying, Yale and Eagle were commonly supplied to both Gerstner and Union, so I am fairly confident the shape will work. I took some measurements of the missing piece, dimensions between holes, top to bottom hole, etc, and matched it to the dimensions of the center lock latch helpfully provided on the Gerstner site. EDIT: The only problem is it says Gerstner on it.

I've been longshot searching like mad on-line (etsy, eBay, etc) for salvaged originals of that piece, with no luck. Used to be a guy in the business of restoring chests who apparently had some stock, but he passed away in 2013.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Houston, we have a problem!

One of the dimensions that I and my Anonymous Drop Front Panel Fabricator got from a kind stranger on FaceBook (1/2" thick) were not jiving with my measurements of the opening. (If you recall upthread - see Pic in post #14 - I even tested it with the steel drop front panel from one of my steel machinist's boxes, which is 3/8" thick and slid in and out of the bottom, a little tightly.) It took me a couple or three embarrassing minutes to figure out why, which became even more obvious when I put the box on its back and looked at more closely.

I'm going to try to remove the warping in place by wetting the bottom panel and clamping it to a bench.

 

[RubiconJK]

What an awesome, historic chest! Keep up the good work and I'll be following along.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

What an awesome, historic chest! Keep up the good work and I'll be following along.

Thanks, Rube. Sorry I missed this post earlier.

I have a MAJOR UPDATE to make!

I picked up another Union Steel Chest Corp "parts box" today on the cheap at the same flea market. The leather cover on the handle is gone, as is the mirror, and it is missing all but one drawer, but as you can see, it has the center latch and the drop front panel, which is all I really needed/wanted it for. Unlike Gerstner, there is no reproduction market for these parts, so I consider myself very fortunate. I am sure my anonymous buddy would've done an outstanding job on the fabricated drop front panel, but I am saving him some time, effort, and QSWO!

As for the latch, I only need the bottom half, but it's a perfect match, as the top half of the latch has the exact same UNION marking as mine. These are fastened with split pin type rivets, so I will need to snip and drive pin punch these out from the back to salvage it, and buy replacement rivets from the Gerstner Replacements store for putting it on my other box.

 

[RubiconJK]

Cool! You are on a roll!

 

[Stuart in MN]

You have one heck of a flea market. All kinds of cool stuff turns up there.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Thanks, Stuart. It's funny, Little Lugnutzes #1, #2, and #3 are out of the house, #4 just left for her freshman year in college, #5 is a rising sophomore in HS, and I am four years from retirement and itching to downsize and try somewhere new for the last leg of my life. But I honestly wonder if I can leave the flea markets here!

 

[bmwrd0]

I know how you feel Lugz. The Boy graduated college a year ago, but not before we pulled up stakes and left CA, where I had six solid flea markets every weekend within an hour drive. Now that we are here, I have maybe 6-8 a year.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

For those still following along, in post #28 I noted that the bottom of my chest was pretty badly warped up in the middle, I did not have 1/2" across the span in the front under the bottom drawer that the drop front panel requires, and I could not get a 1/2" thick dummy into the slot.

This (see the Photo) is how I fixed it.

According to a few woodworking sites I read, including one alinc100 sent me, you're supposed to wet the other side of a bowed board, and dry the side that's up, but this is what I did, mainly for convenience, and it worked. I put a folded wet towel in the bottom and clamped as tight as I could turn it right over that in the middle. I could eyeball the difference. A day later I was able to get another half turn on the clamp screws, telling me the board was soaked and even more malleable to conforming. At this point it was actually bending the other way, but I figured that was good, as it would probably come back when I unclamped. On the fifth day I was able to get a smidge tighter. On the seventh day the towel was almost dry and I unclamped. The board was straight and I had an even 1/2" slot under the bottom drawer all the way across.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

And, voi-fuggin'-la… I just tested it with the donor drop front panel.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I know how you feel Lugz. The Boy graduated college a year ago, but not before we pulled up stakes and left CA, where I had six solid flea markets every weekend within an hour drive. Now that we are here, I have maybe 6-8 a year.

Ouch. I guess I'll see where my priorities are in 4 years!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

One more pic. As noted before, the serial number all over my box, on every piece, is 297. The serial number of the donor box, including the drop front panel, is 382. Not that far off! I don't know if it turned over year to year, but not that far off.

 

[alinc100]

And, voi-fuggin'-la… I just tested it with the donor drop front panel.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I removed the bottom half of the center latch from the donor box this morning, and I don't mind saying that I underestimated how hard that task was going to be! Once I got the split pin at the back of the rivet-nails lifted and straightened, it was easy enough to tap them out far enough to grab the head with pliers and pull them out with twisting force. Lifting and straightening the splits, not so easy.

Here it is after de-rusting (Pic 1) and in place loosely with some brads (Pics 2 & 3).