Alienbaby17
Well-known member
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I knew I was in trouble when I opened the Facebook Marketplace website. Prominently featured right at the top of all of the listings was this mysterious, “Tool Chest” that had just been posted about an hour earlier. I could feel my “old tool Spider-sense” starting to tingle.
I had a feeling this might be something good but I wasn’t quite sure. I noted it had many of the characteristics of the types of things that usually got me excited. The rounded front corners and ribbed trim across the top were details usually shared by the type of 1940’s and 1950’s shop equipment that I typically sought out. I instantly began doing research to figure out what it was.
I was unable to successfully determine exactly what it was. I checked some of my favorite websites. First I went to www.servicemerchandisers.com but found nothing. Then I checked the collectingsnapon website, again without luck. I ended up here at Garage Journal and looked through the vintage Blackhawk thread. I scanned a few of the 100+ pages and didn’t see anything that looked like it. Rather than go though the entire thread I decided to trust my gut and contact the seller.
The seller responded quickly to my inquiry. Unfortunately he wasn’t able to shed any light on the origins of the cabinet. He was in the process of flipping a house in a very old part of St. Paul and had found the cabinet in a shed in the backyard. When I learned it was less than ten miles from my house I raced down to get it. Forty five minutes later it was loaded in my Jeep and I was on my way home with it.
After a quick stop at the car wash for a good scrubbing I unloaded it and began to try to determine exactly what it was. One big clue was on the back of the cabinet. There was a sticker that read, “Valve shop cabinet” and 115 volts.
That got me thinking it must have held or housed some type of piece of equipment for cylinder head service. I assumed it was probably a valve resurfacer of grinder. I could also see the faint remains of some lettering across the front. It looked like the letters, “Bl..ck.......”. I started searching the vintage Blackhawk thread again for cylinder head service equipment, but I found nothing again. It was then that I remembered that Black & Decker used to make valve surfacing equipment. That was the right track. A moment later I found a listing on EBay with a valve resurfacer still mounted on this exact cabinet (picture included). Mystery solved.
The cabinet is as well built as anything I’ve owned from this era. With the exception of some grease and grime still lingering and some paint loss, it’s really in good shape for a 70 year old piece of shop equipment. The upper shelf inside the cabinet appears to have been designed to slide forwards. It still wiggled but seemed resistant to pulling out right now so I didn’t force it. One thing I found surprising was what I originally thought was ribbed metal trim across the top edge was actually a sticker, most of which came off during the pressure wash. That was disappointing but not the end of the world.
It seems like the valve surfacing equipment is still fairly common although the only example of the cabinet I found was the one on EBay. That may mean it’s a bit rare. If I should find a person that needs it to put their valve grinder on I would probably make some kind of trade deal. Until then I will most likely use it as a base for my bench top parts washer.
I knew I was in trouble when I opened the Facebook Marketplace website. Prominently featured right at the top of all of the listings was this mysterious, “Tool Chest” that had just been posted about an hour earlier. I could feel my “old tool Spider-sense” starting to tingle.
I had a feeling this might be something good but I wasn’t quite sure. I noted it had many of the characteristics of the types of things that usually got me excited. The rounded front corners and ribbed trim across the top were details usually shared by the type of 1940’s and 1950’s shop equipment that I typically sought out. I instantly began doing research to figure out what it was.
I was unable to successfully determine exactly what it was. I checked some of my favorite websites. First I went to www.servicemerchandisers.com but found nothing. Then I checked the collectingsnapon website, again without luck. I ended up here at Garage Journal and looked through the vintage Blackhawk thread. I scanned a few of the 100+ pages and didn’t see anything that looked like it. Rather than go though the entire thread I decided to trust my gut and contact the seller.
The seller responded quickly to my inquiry. Unfortunately he wasn’t able to shed any light on the origins of the cabinet. He was in the process of flipping a house in a very old part of St. Paul and had found the cabinet in a shed in the backyard. When I learned it was less than ten miles from my house I raced down to get it. Forty five minutes later it was loaded in my Jeep and I was on my way home with it.
After a quick stop at the car wash for a good scrubbing I unloaded it and began to try to determine exactly what it was. One big clue was on the back of the cabinet. There was a sticker that read, “Valve shop cabinet” and 115 volts.
That got me thinking it must have held or housed some type of piece of equipment for cylinder head service. I assumed it was probably a valve resurfacer of grinder. I could also see the faint remains of some lettering across the front. It looked like the letters, “Bl..ck.......”. I started searching the vintage Blackhawk thread again for cylinder head service equipment, but I found nothing again. It was then that I remembered that Black & Decker used to make valve surfacing equipment. That was the right track. A moment later I found a listing on EBay with a valve resurfacer still mounted on this exact cabinet (picture included). Mystery solved.
The cabinet is as well built as anything I’ve owned from this era. With the exception of some grease and grime still lingering and some paint loss, it’s really in good shape for a 70 year old piece of shop equipment. The upper shelf inside the cabinet appears to have been designed to slide forwards. It still wiggled but seemed resistant to pulling out right now so I didn’t force it. One thing I found surprising was what I originally thought was ribbed metal trim across the top edge was actually a sticker, most of which came off during the pressure wash. That was disappointing but not the end of the world.
It seems like the valve surfacing equipment is still fairly common although the only example of the cabinet I found was the one on EBay. That may mean it’s a bit rare. If I should find a person that needs it to put their valve grinder on I would probably make some kind of trade deal. Until then I will most likely use it as a base for my bench top parts washer.
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