“For display only”

[Jr5]

Does anyone else feel like some of these treasures are now only for “display/collection” only?

I discovered this this forum many years after found my deceased dads old tools (I’m 55)

I cleaned up his stuff that I’d not acknowledged earlier in my life. There was only a few pieces left (wish I’d had an appreciation sooner)

However, NOW that I’ve found them, cleaned them up (he actually USED them properly- and always cleaned them post use) I’ve since restored a few small items.

I find myself not being able to actually USE them for fear of “damaging” these work horses, and instead use what I consider modern “throw aways” (harbor freight)

I’m a paramedic, not a mechanic or craftsman like my dad or my grandfather.

Those guys were the REAL DEAL, much like many of you here. So to ME, these are heirlooms, a better time in childhood memories.

I distinctly recall using my dads old Wilton bullet. I looked for it decades later, it was long gone so I bought a baby-bullet, a smaller copy of his (I’m an apartment dweller)

At one time I had my dads old snap-on top chest, however I mistakenly ditched it going through a breakup decades ago. Sadly I can never get that back…

Anyone else feel that way?

And I KNOW the automatic an answer is “Who are you saving them for? The NEXT owner?”


J

 

[RoninB4]

-Understand how you would feel about family owned things. I don't have any family owned heirlooms so I do evaluate whether it can/should be returned to service. I read about care/use beforehand while evaluating whether it can be damaged during continued use. I also have some things I bought new a few decades ago that I only pull out for special occasions. Old machine shop tooling gets used with a nod to the previous owner, antique weapons do not. I have a couple of vises that are 100 years old that I've cleaned up for further service. I'd like to think that the previous owners would fully approve of my using them if I don't cause further damage.

 

[Jr5]

-Understand how you would feel about family owned things. I don't have any family owned heirlooms so I do evaluate whether it can/should be returned to service. I read about care/use beforehand while evaluating whether it can be damaged during continued use. I also have some things I bought new a few decades ago that I only pull out for special occasions. Old machine shop tooling gets used with a nod to the previous owner, antique weapons do not. I have a couple of vises that are 100 years old that I've cleaned up for further service. I'd like to think that the previous owners would fully approve of my using them if I don't cause further damage.

Well said. Thank you

 

[WisJim]

Many of the tools that I accumulate are related to woodworking and especially for drilling holes, so I have many more drills and bit braces etc than I could ever use, but I do use many of them when appropriate, or sometimes just to figure out how easy or difficult they might be to use and adjust--and sometimes that gives an indication of why that particular tool is rare--it just didn't work well. Many of the tools that got me started collecting were my great grandfather's, grandfather's or my dad's, so I label them and only use them appropriately.

 

[cgrutt]

I've always had a love for tools and have been collecting them nearly my entire life. I have a few of my dad's tools and they bring back fond memories growing up in better times, but for the most part the tools I've bought were better than his. I actually gave one of his old circular saws to a member here who was restoring them as it would be better served and appreciated in her collection than mine. I always tell my son he has the best tool collection and sometimes say I used "his" tools for such and such. I think he's starting to catch on that everything that belongs to me is his as well. Hopefully will bring back some fond memories for him sometime down the road.

 

[mogandave]

What would your dad want.

I use some of my dad’s stuff, but if I were not going to use it, my dad would want to sell or give it to someone who would.

 

[Jakemedic]

Depends on the tool. Somethings I use from dad or grandpa, sometimes I look at tools, and grab something a bit newer.

 

[ecotec]

I do not have any emotional attachment to my tools other than how long it took to attain them and the expense…

None of them are for “display only”.

There are certain ratchets that I never really use. Low tooth count, I don’t trust them… reasons like that. I have enough top of the line ratchets that I only use those.

There are other tools that I have not used yet, are because I haven’t needed them (distributor wrenches, points files…). Tools that I got in lots or boxes and have not and may never have a real use for. If a friend borrowed a tool like this, would probably tell them just to keep them.

The closest thing I have to “for display only” is some local ephemera (pencils, pens, screwdrivers, tap and die charts, drill bit stands, drill bit indexes, promotional tape measures… anything like this…) but I use this stuff. A tool or a pencil or a piece of paper is inherently better if it came from the Detroit area… and **** you if you don’t think so…

Why would I want notepads from somewhere else when I can use 1960’s electrical supply house ones from this area? Why would I want to use some soulless generic pencil when I can be using pencils from the local area?

None of my tools are precious. I use them to get jobs done… but I want the best of the best… more than I need… more than I can justify… more than I deserve…

 

[Jr5]

What would your dad want.

I use some of my dad’s stuff, but if I were not going to use it, my dad would want to sell or give it to someone who would.

My dad loved his stuff. I could not imagine it going somewhere else lol. I’m learning to use these items as they were intended

 

[KariFS]

”Use, but don’t abuse” is my guideline. I can relate to the ”nod to the previous owner” mentioned earlier, as my FIL passed away last summer and left a lot of tools. My son and I are the only ones in the family that do stuff, so we took the most of it.

So, every time I use the big blue drill press, a nod goes to Seppo, who left us way too soon. Cancer, he was only 73 years old.

 

[larry_g]

Tools are for using. Tools are raw stock used to make something that gets a job done. That said I do treat tools inherited differently than the tools I have acquired. I find that I will do just a bit better job with the inherited tools in honor of the man I inherited them from. My tools I will hammer, cut, heat and bend into what fits the job at hand. Inherited tools I will not treat that way.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[vavet]

I'm in the "use but don't abuse" camp.
I would have no problem buying a brand new wrench, heating it, and bending it into a shape I needed to accomplish a specific task.
I would not do that with my late grandfather's tools though.
My dad (still living) gave me a lot of his tools 20 years ago when they were packing up to move from GA to CO. I have them and use them for general household and automotive use.
I also have my late FIL's Shopsmith and several carving and turning chisels. I use the Shopsmith, but I haven't tried turning anything with the Shopsmith lathe. I'm hoping someday my son will have the interest and space for it and I will pass it on to him so he can have something that belonged to his maternal grandfather, even if he never got to meet him.

 

[CoogarXR]

I only have a couple tools that my dad gave me, and I've been using them for decades, and it shows. I may put them on a shelf for display if I ever wear them completely out; since that tells more of a story (in my mind) than a perfectly restored piece.

That's why I kinda don't like having perfectly-restored anything. Because then I become paranoid about damaging it, and it's not fun anymore. But that's just my nuttyness. I am sure some of you guys might be normal, lol.

 

[don long]

I am a lover of all old tools and equipment. I love to restore them better than new because I like to exaggerate the beauty of the piece.
I like shinny and clean and display all that I collect after I have given the piece a little love. I respect and honor the quality and design of the past. and show it off with great pride

 

[genog]

I cherish my dad's old tools so I USE them

...and I agree with your statement, who are you saving them for??

 

[nadogail]

I left home while my dad was still making a living with his tools, those that were left after he died were distributed by the executor of his estate. I had no need for them nor enough space to keep any that were offered to me.

I do have his .38 Special, Combat Masterpiece revolver.

My son, who was 11 when I married his mother, seems to have no inclination towards anything requiring a tool. He does make a good living working in Human Resources.

 

[mwoj]

My most commonly used tool is an old Plomb pebble wrench that belonged to my great-grandfather. I try to use some inherited tools often, but others stay in the toolbox 99% of the time.

 

[Bubba Fett]

I have a few that are for display only, mainly because they are two worn to really use, or there he carved his initials into them.

 

[bmwrd0]

The two people that I have inherited tools from, my father and grandfather, were both the types to use it and not think too much about it.

My father, although he did carpentry for a bit, was a college professor. His tools were either related to that, or for hobbies, which included home remodeling. He was just as comfortable using an SK ratchet as the cheapest K-mart tools. Mostly, he picked them up at garage sales and flea markets. Did it get the job done? That was all he cared about.

My grandfather was a machinist during the war, but moved into management later, and never looked back. I ended up with his Kennedy full of machinist tools, but, frankly, I am surprised he didn't throw it away when he moved to a retirement home, like so much else. He was not a material goods kind of person.

So, I tend to treat those tools as users, as that is how they treated them. However, I will not repaint my grandfathers Kennedy, as doing that makes it look like he never touched it.

 

[RTM]

Almost all of my tools are users, except for my #1 plane and an ivory folding rule. Those sit nearby the users.

I have some of Grampa’s tools, a few of my dad’s tools, and recently acquired a bunch from my mentor and his father. Dad’s will get set aside once they are cleaned up, to possibly pass on to my children. If they don’t want them, they will go back into the user pool.

The mentor’s tools will be used to upgrade a few of my tools, and stay in regular rotation, inspiring me to work better. The excess will be passed forward

 

[rrroo]

I love the idea of using a hundred years old spokeshave and it still works better than a new one would. These are tools and made for use. I also open paint cans with my granpa's old screwdriver. It has no value as a screwdriver anymore but I kind of thing that the legacy lives on by using it some way. My granpa would not have kept an old tool on display he'd find a use for it or use it as reinforcement in some concrete castings... Some tools last for ever when not abused. And some tools wear out. It's kinda cool too to wear out a tool.

I only keep and refurbish tools that can still be used. Most of the old tools still fall in the "Display only" category but just because there just is not much applications for some old stuff. But I like to cherish the thought that if in some weird post-apocalyptic scenario I would have to fix an old tractor or build a log cabin, I would have all the tools all set up and ready for the job.

 

[bigredcornhead]

I think that is what we love about them the most we can display they and tell people about their age and how durable they are. Then take them down break loose a 3/4 nut and put them back up. Thats what drew me here ability to find very vintage old tools can can still be used in applications today. I think thats my draw anyway!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Does anyone else feel like some of these treasures are now only for “display/collection” only?

All of mine are for display only. I don't use any of them. For the same reason I don't make my 95-year-old mother scrub the floors in my house. Whether the strict utilitarians like it or not, antique and vintage hand tools have had a value that transcends use for a long time, purely as objects of admiration and icons of a heyday of industrial might that some of us feel deserve to be kept under lights on high and dry shelves of fame. I don't judge those who choose to use them, though.

 

[stormking]

Use them but don't abuse them. Teach your kids or grandkids how to use them. If you don't they will not care in the least about them.

 

[don long]

All of mine are for display only. I don't use any of them. For the same reason I don't make my 95-year-old mother scrub the floors in my house. Whether the strict utilitarians like it or not, antique and vintage hand tools have had a value that transcends use for a long time, purely as objects of admiration and icons of a heyday of industrial might that some of us feel deserve to be kept under lights on high and dry shelves of fame. I don't judge those who choose to use them, though.

Lugnutz
I fully agree with you. The garage is full of old tools on display.
Here is my latest tool display

 

[d42jeep]

I have a couple of user toolboxes that hold tools for using on day to day projects but probably 98% of my vintage tool collection will never be taken off display and used for their intended purpose.
-Don

 

[mogandave]

The only thing in my shop that is display only is the treadmill...

 

[Shiftless]

I have more than a few vises on display. One of them, a 5 1/2 inch Columbian, helped build Liberty Ships during WWII at the Kaiser shipyards in Richmond CA. (Lower right in this pic)
That one will stay in its as found condition. Others that were poorly repainted in the past or just badly beat up got stripped and repainted. Others were stripped and left bare with just some boiled linseed oil to retard rust. I have one user vise, a Wilton C1.

This is an old pic. The collection is constantly being added to or moved around.

 

[d42jeep]

I have seen that collection in person and it is amazing! Pictures don’t do it justice.
-Don

 

[Shiftless]

Thanks Don.
Your den of delights (which I have had the honor of touring a few times) is quite something as well.

 

[Lassen Forge]

I've had a bunch of tools that I had "on display" (early SO rachet handles, early Williams socket sets, old car tools, etc.) but if I needed to use it I had not one problem doing so... In fact some of them were necessary for the job that needed doing (flathead and IOE valve spring compressors come to mind here)...

Unless something is so fragile that using it would break it, and rare enough you wouldn't throw it out even IF broken, anything in my shop is subject to use.

 

[Jim C.]

I’m sort on the fence. I really enjoy using vintage tools and machinery particularly when I’m woodworking, which can easily be between 6 - 10 hours per day. I’ve been hooked on old hand planes for years and it’s not unusual to see a 100 year old Stanley on my bench hard at work, or a 50+ year old machine making sawdust. Most old hand planes are in user condition so I use them. NOS planes, however, stay NOS planes. That doesn’t change. I used to display them. In the last ten years or so, I’ve been more actively collecting =V= era Craftsman mechanics tools, which I displayed as much as shelf space allowed, but also used them as well, mostly to work on vintage machinery. Nothing is abused. When we moved a couple years ago, most of my collections went into well labeled boxes and never came out because I don’t have anywhere to display them.

Jim C.

 

[kaymccampbell]

I'd use them. They were bought to be used, might as well enjoy them in the spirit the previous owners did.
I have plenty of old tools, and they are in use, right along with the modern ones.

 

[RTM]

II really enjoy using vintage tools and machinery particularly when I’m woodworking, which can easily be between 6 - 10 hours per day. I’ve been hooked on old hand planes for years and it’s not unusual to see a 100 year old Stanley on my bench hard at work, or a 50+ year old machine making sawdust. Most old hand planes are in user condition so I use them. ...... Nothing is abused. When we moved a couple years ago, most of my collections went into well labeled boxes and never came out because I don’t have anywhere to display them.

I've been thinking about this since Lugz and D42 posted about display only. In my shop, if I excluded tools that are more then 30 years old, I would only have a few dozen tools to use, both WW and mechanic's tools.

Of my
50+ metal bench planes only 6 are not vintage
30 wooden bench planes, again only 6 not vintage (2 from Pinie.cz)
50+ metal block planes, 11 not vintage
100+ moulding planes, 0 are not vintage, some going back to pre 1850s
100+ chisels, about <20 not vintage, or undateable due to the style not changing for decades.
100+ gouges, <20 not vintage, or again, undateable
No clue on saws, but only 1 or 2 known to be newer, and the one is 1980s vintage, most others older than me by 20+ years.

Other than Lee Valley, Lie Nielsen, and a few boutique makers, its hard to buy new quality stuff in the US.

A few of my WW power tools are newer, but they get minimal use

And I wish I could display mine like Jim's pic, but as users, the floor isn't that clean, and the rust happens way too quick even in the garage, being so close to the great Pacific Rust Generator. Most things inside cabinets with VCI emitters.

Similarly with mechanic's tools, I have a cheap CMan set I bought a few years ago for easy transit to the car. My user set started in 1970s - 80s, and only added a few unique new tools. Most of the rest are Garage Sale type finds.

 

[softailgarage]

My Dad was a Machinist by trade, also worked in a cabinet shop, built quarter midget race cars and served in the Army Corp of Engineers during WWII and thus had a boatload of tools. One of his sayings was, "tools were meant to be put to work" and I agree. Using his tools makes me think back to when he was alive, remembering watching him work on different home projects. I collect vintage tools and use them also. One reason is I find they seem to fit nuts a lot better. As I'm working, I imagine where that particular tool was used 50-100 years ago. Was it a factory building weapons for the war or was it a repair shop in a small town somewhere. If only they could talk, I could imagine the stories they would tell.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

When we moved a couple years ago, most of my collections went into well labeled boxes and never came out because I don’t have anywhere to display them.

I'm reading this to mean that room with the nonstop white built-ins is no longer extant, Jim, but I'll say it anyway - that is a beautiful sight! I like the way you had the tools integrated with the books, and the very tasteful signage. The whole picture conveys a seriousness and a dedication and a historical worth. Maybe one day you'll have it again. If not, keep on keepin' on with what you're doing. Seeing them in working shops is cool, too! Kind of like the craftsmen working in Allaire Village out my way here - a sort of 'living history' display AND demonstration area, in the original cottages, built around an old bog furnace. We're all paying them respect in our own way.

I've been thinking about this since Lugz and D42 posted about display only. In my shop, if I excluded tools that are more then 30 years old, I would only have a few dozen tools to use, both WW and mechanic's tools.

You and I have had so many positive exchanges here, RTM, it should probably go without saying that this is not directed at you, but to clarify my statement above for anyone who may be misunderstanding - I'm not against the idea of using antique and vintage tools like a campaign or something. I don't have anything against collectors who do, and I don't think that you or anyone else using them is terrible or that your preference is inferior to my desire to display them like museum pieces. By the same token, the notion that antique and vintage tools are supposed to be used, that they should be used, that use is their only rightful purpose, and that putting them on a shelf under lights is wrong or a shame etc etc, which are things I see from time to time, will be met with immediate objection.

Probably why I exaggerate for effect about them all being display only. I don't think I own a tool newer than 20 years, most of my users are from the 80's, and I do of course use tools much older than that. A little J.P. Danielson adjustable on my bicycles, for example. The water pump pliers I use for things like my outside hose spigot are Champion DeArment '53 patent. They were originally my father's! Some tools are just more proper - wartime brake bleeder wrenches, etc. But they're all extras. I don't take them out of the Lugzsonian - and, there ARE tools down there that will never touch another nut as long as I am breathing. But that's only my raison d'etre. I don't insist it's the only one, or more righteous.

 

[Jim C.]

Hey Lugz,

Thanks for the kind words. The photo above represented the top collector grade 97% perfect to NOS planes. I didn’t really ever seriously use any of them. I have a working collection that I use daily. It’s smaller in terms of the actual number of planes, but still expansive, covering about two thirds of the planes Stanley made over the years. You are correct, the built ins went with the house. (As did my gazebo.) The collection went into boxes and is for the most part still in those boxes. My shop (tools, machines, planes, etc.) took me about three months to pack. It was a big job. I’m not sure the planes will ever come out of the boxes again. Probably not in this particular house anyway. Thanks again for your comments. If you’d like to read more about the planes, or are having trouble sleeping, check out the link below to the hand plane thread. After a few pages, you’ll be out cold.

Jim C.

 

[housewolf]

I’ve tried to keep my inherited items small, few, but meaningful. A crystal fish on a shelf, the flag draped over my fathers casket, a teapot from a grandmother.

The “stuff” my son will be inheriting, we’ve discussed. I’ve shown him what items are worth more than an inexperienced eye would guess. He says he’d probably be too sentimental to sell any of it. I really DGAF what he does with any of it and have told him so hoping when the time comes he’ll take a less emotional approach and not be burdened by these “heirlooms”.

An example would be a pistol once owned by my GGGrandfather. He carried it as a general in the civil war. It’s been passed down in my family for 150 years. I’m the oldest of my siblings and declined it when offered. I remember the stories my grandfather told me about his grandfather and the pistol. It has some meaning to me. I don’t want the responsibility of ensuring it will always be in the possession of someone that values it as it has been the last 150 years. Eventually it won’t be. My dad was shocked when I suggested loaning it to a museum on the battlefield where he died.

 

[RTM]

) The collection went into boxes and is for the most part still in those boxes. My shop (tools, machines, planes, etc.) took me about three months to pack. It was a big job. I’m not sure the planes will ever come out of the boxes again. Probably not in this particular house anyway.

oh dang

That must hurt to know all those beauties are packed away. Hoping the boxes aren’t hiding in plain sight at the edge of the shop.

Some of my moulding planes don’t get used much, but get hauled out occasionally just to be enjoyed. The sound of a skewed rabbet, or seeing a complex shape created.

 

[Zebedeewesty]

I picked up some of my dads old electrical test equipment after he passed back in August. Things i'll never likely use like an oscilloscope the size of a suitcase and an old AVOmeter. They're not worth anything to sell and no-one wants them anyway, but they're just too good to end up in the tip.
I'm sure theres lots of other hidden treasures (some of which i'm sure i won't know what they are) still waiting to be uncovered in his garage as he never threw anything out. Theres about 50 years worth of stuff in there.