Central Texas Tool

[Ryan]

A belt driven machine shop ran out of Abilene, Texas by three generations... It doesn't get much more romantic than that....
To read the rest of this blog entry from The Garage Journal, click here.

 

[Zrexxer]

I think I must have been separated from that family at birth... I wonder if they'd take me back now.

 

[Cryptic1911]

This is too cool. Dirt floors and everything!

 

[gringowillie]

That is double bad a$$

 

[uniballer]

The way it should be! Wish more companies were ran this way. More american!

 

[bsaint]

Bunch of cool guys, but too old. Id rather work in a modern shop.

 

[Todd.Brock]

This came up a couple months ago, thanks for putting on the front page. Might be time for another DrPepper!

 

[BradTx]

They take their Dr. Pepper break at 9:30? They're a half hour early.

 

[tcianci]

That video got me kinda misty

 

[davidB382]

It doesn't get much cooler than that.

 

[K13]

Thanks for posting Ryan reminds me of how much I learned from my Dad and how much I miss him. Definitely a cool old shop and it's nice to see that kind of business still has a place.

 

[Bill Ramsey]

They take their Dr. Pepper break at 9:30? They're a half hour early.

Maybe they take the next break at 2:30 and it evens out.

Great story. Three lucky guys.

 

[tskills10]

This is just absolutely too cool. Ya just gotta love the old school shops like this

 

[marty_p]

What a total inspiration!

 

[btamkel]

9:30 is right on time those boys start when the sun comes up.

 

[Boyd]

Deja vú. Wasn't this very thread posted a couple months ago? I remember replying to it.

 

[Boyd]

Whew...I'm not going crazy.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=189524

 

[Mr. Hill]

Wow. You don't see places like that anymore. How great is that, they all seemed like liked they were a great family and they enjoyed working together. I agree it make u sentimental about your family and what it would be like if u worked there.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

Some good ole Texas Southerners carrying on the family tradition.

We need more places like that...

 

[lessersivad]

Reminds me of a shop that used to be south of my town. Belt driven machinery and the brothers that ran it could do dang near anything.

You just didn't want to be in a hurry. You dropped off your part(s) to be machined and checked back in a few days. Chances are they would be done with whatever you brought them.

Gosh I miss that place.

 

[hydramatic]

Nice..There's a similar shop like that in Montgomery,Al.

 

[trainer]

Pretty cool place. It looks like they have not invested a cent back into this business since their ancestors built it.

You would think that an operation like this would have earned enough over the years to at least invest in a level concrete floor.

 

[FunkyfullWidth]

I had a soda at 11 this morning and thought I was being bad ***.. That is the coolest shop i've seen along with guys that know how to work it makes it way cooler. That's the kind of equiptment I see one here or there and think that's when men were men. Well it's still happening.

 

[Coleman]

Real special story. It defines family and being an American to the finest.

 

[Demon]

Blacksmith shop in the city of Rice,Mn. I have not been there for a while, I think their still in business. They specialized in sharpening huge saw blades for saw mills. Most of the tools where run by belts running overhead. You walked in and it was like going back in time,pretty cool.

 

[NUTTSGT]

This came up a couple months ago, thanks for putting on the front page. Might be time for another DrPepper!

Damn straight.

 

[backwoods96]

Was a military brat, went all thru high school @ Abilene High. Got out of there in 1962
went there on a shop tour w/our shop class. Was a really cool place then, even cooler
now. Glad to see it is still in operation.

 

[87GN]

How cool is that? I'd say very cool. They are truly craftsman and can figure out how to fix anything that comes their way. I envy them. I wish I payed more attention to my grand dad and father when I had the oppertunity. There was a wealth of knowledge in each of them.

 

[Outlander]

Wow...very cool. Wish my son and I could work with my Dad (RIP)

 

[Jarhead0408]

The whole country could take a lesson from them. They are just good, honest, hardworking people held together by a bond stronger than a dollar bill.

 

[Chaznsc]

I'm speechless. How can you not just love that.

 

[Big Rick]

That floor is cool your legs don't tire as fast. If a part hits the floor it not damaged. Most of the time will help keep shop cooler. Look that floor does not have a bunch of steel in it it's dirt I'd bet the chips get picked up daily. Did you see that they have all there fingers with out OSHA help and regs just common sense. I LOVE IT SOME THING DIFFERNT ALL THE TIME. The only thing I'd change is insulate it up hear to dam cold in winter for the metal and my fingers. LOL

 

[STANIMAL]

I hope that kid knows how lucky he is .

 

[bobemmerich]

That is just too cool. 3 generations working together. That's awesome! No fancy machinery there, done the old fashioned way and to perfection.

 

[Hephaestus29]

I enjoyed that video. There is a couple of guys i've been watching on youtube, one is
Mrpete & the other is Keith Fenner & he has an old belt driven drill press & some other old machines but he has a newer plasma cam too.

 

[grego]

So nice to see that there are still companies out there that have not been reality TV f'edup. I sure hope that they have many more generations working on that old dirt floor.
I was in a family business that had way too many pissin' matches going on and way too much yelling and door slamming. And that was before reality TV made it seem like that was the norm.

 

[Perrorojo]

People look at the antique machinery and dirt floor and forget about the skill necessary to run a shop like that in this day and age. Their quality has to be top notch. If it weren't they would have went away a long time ago. Those are some seriosly skilled machinests.

 

[X1 Mike]

It looks like they have not invested a cent back into this business since their ancestors built it.

You would think that an operation like this would have earned enough over the years to at least invest in a level concrete floor.

Someone just doesn't "get it".

I would love to work in a place like that with family. I spent many years as a machinist and I love how cool and precise of parts I could make with a CNC but I really miss the skill and craftsmanship it takes to chase a line with a bridgeport or shaper.

Craftsmanship > Numerical Precision

 

[kald]

I enjoyed the video. I'm in the family business. The last one. It's tough. I hope that kid enjoys and appreciates the older generation as I tried to.

 

[bowmard]

A shining example of an apprentice program at its best, and still works for them. Too bad apprenticeships have been done away with at a lot of facilities when the onslaught of outsourcing overseas really took hold.

Texas Country Reporter (TCR) is one of my favorite programs on the RFD network. This show is a shining example why.