The Lugzsonian - A Virtual Tour

[Private Lugnutz]

Cadmium-Evaporust Test: 48 Hours Later

No change. Very little to nothing happening inside this jar. No discernible deterioration of the cadmium-plating. No color change to the solution. No particles.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I do have something funny (haha, and ironic) to report, though. If you're following the thread, you saw that I found three (3) extra deep sockets yesterday. By pure coincidence, they were Walden-Worcester, wartime, and cadmium plated. I did not take a BEFORE picture of them, because I wasn't conducting an experiment. I did what I always do with tools that are a little rusty - and one of them was problematically, cancerously rusty, even when they're cadmium-plated: I plopped them into my Evaporust bath bin and I left them overnight. But you can see them in post #230 on page 12.

This morning, this is what they looked like after drying them off and lightly scrubbing with 0000 steel wool and WD-40. See Pic 1 & 2. None of the cadmium-plating had been removed. But, they had a green-ish hue. I have been soaking cadmium-plated tools in Evaporust for several years now and I have never had this happen before.

As a side-note, in doing some background reading for this experiment, I discovered that Evaporust is not patented. Intentionally. To distinguish it from other solutions, including other chelating solutions, that would require a detailed chemical composition, which would give away Mr. Harris's formula. Smart.

 

[Lotusnut]

Cadmium-Evaporust Test: 48 Hours Later

No change. Very little to nothing happening inside this jar. No discernible deterioration of the cadmium-plating. No color change to the solution. No particles.

Lugz

The treasurer also needs to know if there is any deterioration of the value of the test container. I am enjoying your third person split personality, well done.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Glad you're enjoying it, Lotusnut. My money is on the Curator winning the battle of wills with the Treasurer over the vintage Gerber bottles.

 

[Old Radar]

I came late to the party, Lugz, but am all caught up and loving it! I'm truly impressed with your collection and how well and appropriately it's displayed.

I'm not a big ironing fan--soldering or clothing--but I did have to pause and scratch my head when you spoke of your find actually being a soldering iron holder instead of a clothing iron holder you planned to repurpose. It's funny how we all sometimes make a leap like that--our minds see (to the exclusion of all other possibilities) the purpose of an object we would put to it vs. the one the designer intended.

I do wonder if the HOLD FAST IRON REST is in fact intended for a domestic iron used for flattening creases out of clothes, shirt collars and that sort of stuff. We do have a very similar modern version of it for an electric iron so as it can hang on the wall.

DOH!

Maybe the Curator spends too much time in the basement and not enough time upstairs in the Curator's Quarters! It even happens to be in the shape of clothing iron!


(He still plans to repurpose it.)

BTW, unless there were actually holes in the plate of that iron holder (which I doubt very seriously) it was never designed to hang on the wall. The clips are not for holding the iron vertically, they are for clamping onto the ironing board while gravity holds the iron horizontally. I believe very few wielders of domestic clothing irons in your holder's era would intentionally display it on a wall in their homes for all to see. Happy repurposing and I look forward to continued displays in the Lugzsonian!

 

[Farmer J.]

I came late to the party, Lugz, but am all caught up and loving it! I'm truly impressed with your collection and how well and appropriately it's displayed.

I'm not a big ironing fan--soldering or clothing--but I did have to pause and scratch my head when you spoke of your find actually being a soldering iron holder instead of a clothing iron holder you planned to repurpose. It's funny how we all sometimes make a leap like that--our minds see (to the exclusion of all other possibilities) the purpose of an object we would put to it vs. the one the designer intended.





BTW, unless there were actually holes in the plate of that iron holder (which I doubt very seriously) it was never designed to hang on the wall. The clips are not for holding the iron vertically, they are for clamping onto the ironing board while gravity holds the iron horizontally. I believe very few wielders of domestic clothing irons in your holder's era would intentionally display it on a wall in their homes for all to see. Happy repurposing and I look forward to continued displays in the Lugzsonian!

That's interesting. I'm also not a fan of ironing clothes, the only thing i ever iron is the brim of my Tilly Hat.
The iron holder we have is designed to hang on the wall with similar clips to support the iron , not for display but so the hot iron can be put there and prevent Mrs Farmer J from burning iron shaped marks into the nearby horizontal surfaces, or indeed progressing to burning the whole place down!

 

[Old Radar]

No doubt! Some are designed for a wall application. Especially in these times where many houses have a laundry room large enough to support permanent ironing stations.

Back when Lugz's holder was fabricated, homes were smaller, rooms were multi-functional and no housewife would want to have something like that screwed into her wall next to her "Home Sweet Home" needlepoint.

If you look carefully at his holder you will see it is made of two plates riveted together--and although these holes could be pressed into service as screw or nail holes, wear on the rivets would compromise the integrity of the whole--not something the designer or retailer looking for testimonials would advocate.

The top plate--the one that has "Hold Fast Iron Rest" has small raised points to minimize contact heat transference/loss from the iron to the plate, vs the other side (which has the spring clips) which is smooth and flat and that would **** heat from the entire sole of the iron.

I'm not an engineer and I didn't stay at an Holiday Inn Express last night, either.

 

[Farmer J.]

No doubt! Some are designed for a wall application. Especially in these times where many houses have a laundry room large enough to support permanent ironing stations.

Back when Lugz's holder was fabricated, homes were smaller, rooms were multi-functional and no housewife would want to have something like that screwed into her wall next to her "Home Sweet Home" needlepoint.

Yes, I think you are dead right about all of this. Our modern example is stored somewhere in a shipping container. We now happily live in a very old, very small, 2 room house, wearing clothing with creases. We decided we don't want to look at that ugly gimmick screwed to the wall!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I came late to the party, Lugz, but am all caught up and loving it! I'm truly impressed with your collection and how well and appropriately it's displayed.

Thank you, sir!

The finer points of clothing iron holders are the last thing I expected to be discussing here, but I am finding the whole conclusion-leaping misidentification amusing. I won't even try to mount a defense (e.g., it was with a bunch of tools, not a household appliance in sight...), because there's no getting around it being shaped like a danged iron!

Even funnier, I saw two antique clothes irons at the flea yesterday. As if my mistake is haunting me or the universe is conspiring to extend my slice of humble pie for my own good.

 

[Farmer J.]

Ha ha, I never ever imagined it would fit on to an ironing board as pictured!! It's no defence but I can only assume it's because of lack of experience with the things.. I recognised the shape but was 'hung up' on the concept of it hanging on the wall.

 

[drivesitfar]

I just started the tour and it looks like it will take me a few days to examine all the items in there so wanted to wish you a very good 2021 while I keep reading and enjoying your pictures and posts.

cheers!!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Cadmium-Evaporust Test: 3 Days Later

Still no discernible change going on here, guys.

 

[bonneyman]

None of the cadmium-plating had been removed. But, they had a green-ish hue. I have been soaking cadmium-plated tools in Evaporust for several years now and I have never had this happen before.

Could that green be due to a copper plating applied under the cadmium? I know that chrome tools have nickel or copper as a base coat.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Good thought, bonneyman, but it was on the surface. Scrubbed right off with foam sanding block and WD40.

EDIT: Pic added.

 

[drivesitfar]

Lug: I'll have to read this cool thread in installments cause i'm about 200 posts behind. that said i wanted to thank you again for sharing your passion and your cool stuff with all of us.

also I do like the metal doors from the outside (forgot what you called them) and happy to hear they don't leak. more than that I really like the wear on the inside of your inside basement door and steps and the wall graffiti.

after looking at your work station I think i'll put a piece of 1/4 inch aluminum that is about 4 foot wide by 2 foot on half of my 8 foot long and 2 foot wide butcherblock bench for ease of clean up and maybe a little protection for the bench too.

Here's to a great 2021 and hoping your Fleas and cool places where you make your finds will all be open again soon

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Lug: I'll have to read this cool thread in installments cause i'm about 200 posts behind.

No problem. Thanks for joining us. In addition to my updates (finding places for new entries, rotating displays, etc), it will be a good thing you catching up and revitalizing the thread with comments and questions from time to time. Although I do have a few other tricks up my sleeve for 2021.

also I do like the metal doors from the outside (forgot what you called them)

Bilco. Not sure, but that was probably either the inventor or the first major mfgr.

more than that I really like the wear on the inside of your inside basement door and steps and the wall graffiti.

Thanks. Me too! Those walls and that door, like the wall and the door to the former maid's quarters (master bedroom) at the top of the narrow hard right angle stairway from the kitchen, have never been touched. I like the old mechanism with the skeleton keyhole!

 

[jeffmoss26]

Here it is...

I just discovered this thread and subscribed...what a tease with the Ordnance lock!!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Haha! Gotcha.

 

[bluebolt]

I need to spend some time reading this!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I need to spend some time reading this!

Take your time, bb. Drives is playing ketchup, too.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The Acquisitions Dept thinks its funny busting the Curator's chops about his HOLD FAST IRON REST faux pas by posting this photo of an old ironing board spotted at the flea market this morning.

Meanwhile, the Curator was busy making a pattern for the socket holder he needs to make for the rare, yet to be revealed socket wrench set box, and pulling out the only power tool in the Lugzsonian to drill some practice holes in a 2 x 4 mock-up.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Cadmium-Evaporust Test: 1 Week Later

The Curator will let this go another 7 days, just for good measure, but the results are fairly conclusive after 1 week. Evaporust has had no discernible effect on the cadmium-plating on this socket. It's possible that Plombob's piece was a variant or a different formulation. It's also possible it was not cadmium plating.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The Acquisitions Dept done good today! The Curator added a 3-1/2 oz. ball-pein hammer to the Bonney wing of the Stomping Grounds shelves (see Pic 1), a 4-oz. ball-pein hammer to the Fairmount shelf (see Pic 2), and two new tools - a cutter and a Triple Open End wrench, to the Bell System end of the 'Services' table (see Pic 3). The Curator is not yet sure what to do with the long Berbecker & Sons (Made in England) sewing needle (sailmaking? upholstery? self-defense?), so he'll just post it here (see Pics 4 & 5) and put it away with some similar tools for now. You can see and read much more about the hammers and the Bell System tools on the Bonney, Fairmount, and Bell System threads. See the Index in the Sticky.

 

[drivesitfar]

Lug: I just finished post #100 so I've only got 164 more to go to get current. I just past the post were you have a drawing or floor plan of your museum/basement and even though i'm rounding the final turn I certainly know there are many many layers and more items to see in my future.

1) can you still lay on the bridge and spit on the RR track
2) I'm with you on ripping off the vinyl siding and exposing that old wood siding cause with a lot of prep and paint it will look even better (your home looks great now BTW)
3) some of us that are not WWII collectors don't quite understand all the initials and abbreviations so maybe you can spell out a few for us newbees?
4) keep up the good work and totally enjoying your tour and all the comments by other members

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Lug: I just finished post #100 so I've only got 164 more to go to get current. I just past the post were you have a drawing or floor plan of your museum/basement and even though i'm rounding the final turn I certainly know there are many many layers and more items to see in my future.

1) can you still lay on the bridge and spit on the RR track

Sadly, no. Access to the bridge is permanently sealed off. It was erected by the Zinc Company, gratis, for the town, as a way for kids on the east side, where I grew up, to get to an elementary school on the other side of the tracks. Otherwise, we would've had to make a very long rectangular-shaped walk to the left or right. The school, a beautiful brick building built around the turn of the last century, was closed many years ago and is now an apartment complex. With no need, and it deemed unsafe, they closed it off.

I'm with you on ripping off the vinyl siding and exposing that old wood siding cause with a lot of prep and paint it will look even better

There's a spot I can lift and peek at the fish scale longingly, but this battle is probably lost. In many ways this thread is a last hurrah. When I retire, I will not be able to afford this town. I will have to sell, take my equity, and downsize somewhere else, and unless someone like-minded buys it, it will probably get knocked down to erect a faux-Victorian. That is a major trend here, and, I imagine, everywhere.

3) some of us that are not WWII collectors don't quite understand all the initials and abbreviations so maybe you can spell out a few for us newbees?

Sorry about that. Hazard of my trade, as well. (Someone once PM'd me and asked me why I always spell out numbers followed by the number in parentheses, another habit of standard technical writing I have a hard time breaking.) I'll see what I can do.

Thanks for following.

 

[ray h]

Mr. Lug- The long needle could possibly been used in broom making. I have 2 my Dad used many years ago that looks like yours. Mine aren't flatten as much as you though and I'd guess were US made.

 

[Shiftless]

Cadmium-Evaporust Test: 1 Week Later

The Curator will let this go another 7 days, just for good measure, but the results are fairly conclusive after 1 week. Evaporust has had no discernible effect on the cadmium-plating on this socket. It's possible that Plombob's piece was a variant or a different formulation. It's also possible it was not cadmium plating.

As a retired Chemistry teacher, I agree with your hypothesis that the socket seemingly damaged by Evaporust was not a cadmium plated tool.

Keep up the educational and enjoyable postings! I hope that there are at least a few more years of your curatorship left before the inevitable closure of the Lugzonian. Perhaps the better known museum in D.C. with a similar name could be persuaded to accept a few pieces.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Mr. Lug- The long needle could possibly been used in broom making. I have 2 my Dad used many years ago that looks like yours. Mine aren't flatten as much as you though and I'd guess were US made.

Thanks for the input, Ray. That wide flattened part was making me shy away from sailmaking, which typically have a very small profile in the back where the eye is.

I hope that there are at least a few more years of your curatorship left before the inevitable closure of the Lugzonian.

Four or five. Ish. Probably.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: while i'm getting ready to read a few more posts and continue my tour tonight I thought I'd mention this for you and maybe others to think or chat about. if the taxes is the only factor in pushing you out of your old home you might check with the city or county to see if you might have an exemption as a senior for lower taxes?

if you are moving so you can get better neighbors and/or a big shop and newer home cause the equity in your current home is more than enough then i'm sure you'll make another LUGZONIAN to your liking even if it doesn't have the old walls and tight access.

just throwing out options in case you hadn't already considered these.

have a great weekend and maybe the flea and craigslist will have some skookum stuff to buy.

cheers (i'm still drinking a lot of homemade ice tea)

sad to hear of the bridge being gone or not accessible cause it might have been fun to see if you could spit on a rail looking thru with bifocals.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Welcome to the Lugzsonian’s first ever...

"Curator’s Corner"...

...dedicated to the subject of...

Waldes Truarc snap ring pliers

If that seems like an odd, obscure, and rather inauspicious subject to dedicate a Lugzsonian feature debut (for periodically highlighting tools that aren't permanently on display, special subjects, etc), the Curator might have agreed with you – if he didn’t know the backstory. And with the Acquisition’s Dept having just found a very interesting specimen, now the fifth in our collection, and with no thread on the subject on the Vintage Board, and only a handful of measly mentions, and Waldes not even included in the A-Z List of US Mfgrs, the Curator decided it was high time he do something about it.

(One production note. The Curator has already notified the Acquisitions Dept that he needs a pair of smaller and more suitable “C” (get it?) clamps to better execute his “Curator’s Corner” title banner idea. There are a few antique C-clamps in the Lugzsonian, but they are either way too big or don’t match.)

This CC spawned a thread that continues this meager debut in a much bigger and better way here...

Waldes-Truarc: From Ladies Dress Clasps to Snap Rings & Nazi Revenge

If the funny title hooked you, I'll cut right to the chase. Smart Jewish mensch named Jindrich Waldes in Prague, Czechoslovakia, invents and patents a clever jeweled clasp for ladies dresses that his company makes and sells a bazillion of in factories in Prague, Dresden, Milan, and elsewhere...

www.garagejournal.com

 

[Provincial]

Quilter's clamps make great light-duty clamps. They look like regular C-clamps, with wing handles on the screws. They were used to apply pressure to the quilting frame to hold the fabric while doing the needlework. They are often mistaken for C-clamps, causing disappointment when they twist or fail from overstress.

 

[JoCoSawdust]

I like the Curator's Corner! Will it have rotating subject matter or stay with the cool snap ring pliers? I have to say this is currently my favorite thread on GJ, I'm having a lot of fun with it.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Quilter's clamps make great light-duty clamps. They look like regular C-clamps, with wing handles on the screws. They were used to apply pressure to the quilting frame to hold the fabric while doing the needlework. They are often mistaken for C-clamps, causing disappointment when they twist or fail from overstress.

Thanks for the tip, Jock. If they make a nice "C" shape and will hook on the top, I'll look for them.

I like the Curator's Corner! Will it have rotating subject matter or stay with the cool snap ring pliers? I have to say this is currently my favorite thread on GJ, I'm having a lot of fun with it.

Thanks, JoCo. Definitely rotating subjects and themes. I used the pegboard on purpose, like a portable stand-up version of the displays on the L-Island in the middle of the Lugzsonian, just by use of the hinge in the middle. Whenever I want to highlight something in my collection that isn't on permanent display or to tackle a challenging subject etc I will just put them on the Curator's Corner board.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I decided to off-thread my debut "Curator's Corner" exhibit content because I didn't want to bury my Waldes research here. Not everyone reads this thread, and GJ does not have a Waldes-Truarc thread, believe it or not. These snap ring pliers are ubiquitous, they deserve their own thread, and the back story is amazing. Link to thread I just started here.

 

[tombell572]

Count another vote for the "Curator's Corner". Great to see little-known items explained and highlighted.

Tom B.

 

[steaks&anvils]

The Curator is not yet sure what to do with the long Berbecker & Sons (Made in England) sewing needle (sailmaking? upholstery? self-defense?), so he'll just post it here (see Pics 4 & 5)

Lugz,

I think the needle is for upholstery. Called a "Upholstery Regulator".

modern ones:

https://www.premiergroup.com.au/pg-ut-ur-upholstery-regulator.html

https://www.gencosupplies.com/product_detail.cfm?pid=145&cid=132

https://www.csosborneupholsterytools.com/product_detail.php?p_id=813

The premier group website has photos that show how it is used. Just look at the last two product photos.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Yeah, that's a pretty good match, S&A. Thanks for confirming.

 

[drivesitfar]

Lug: since you and I tend to make fairly long posts sometimes and we usually like to respond to others posting on our threads I thought I'd mention this. i've posted a couple times on this thread and you've posted at the same time coincidently and my post was just prior to yours so i'm guessing you didn't see mine. did you see my post yesterday? I was mentioning that if you really like your neighbors and would prefer to stay in your home there might be lower taxes available that might help you. just a tip when I make a post on a thread of mine i try to see if somebody posted while I was writing my post in case they had something to say worth reading.

also to comment on your awesome tool posts I vote for posting them here cause i'm thinking this might be a great thread to follow for years to come and if your tool or item is thread worthy then start a thread too. I used to love all the little vise threads, but eventually they disappear and get lost and hard to find even if you know they exist so I started Vise Repair 101 so maybe a bigger one might be the go to one.

your call and whatever you do I for one always enjoy your posts even if I don't always know what the heck you are talking about.

enjoy your Sunday and i'll see if I can take another few steps around your place.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

...my post was just prior to yours so i'm guessing you didn't see mine. did you see my post yesterday?

I did not. Thanks for pointing it out, and for the tips.

also to comment on your awesome tool posts I vote for posting them here cause...

I was only referring to the remainder of my debut "Curator's Corner", on the subject of Waldes-Truarc, Drives. I had introduced the feature, posted the folding portable pegboard with my Waldes snap ring plier collection hanging on it as my first ever episode, but then as I was about to post the rest of the content, I decided to post it as a new thread on the Vintage Board, posting a link to the content there instead of posting it here. And it's already paying off. Not all of the members who replied (mitusa, Dave455, and tool_scrounge) over there are following me here. So in this circumstance, I just thought Waldes-Truarc and its fascinating history deserved its own thread and a little more general attention and traffic. Rest assured that I have plenty of ideas for future episodes of "Curator's Corner", and most of them will all stay right here. In hindsight, I probably should've picked one of those first. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[drivesitfar]

Lug: just trying to help if I can and do what you wish. any finds for the Curator this weekend or too cold in your part of the world?