The Traditional Tools Group Inc.

Enn Muller, well known Master Carver and educator handed me a sad victim of disdain with the humble request, “can you get this thing working”; how could I refuse this gentleman.

Missing a finial and a small lifting spindle/handle attached to the plunger wasn’t the first thing that caught my attention, it was the age and honesty of this nineteenth century contraption; a friend who dropped it in for a bit of attention denied me the chance to check out a mystery item with the greeting, “here is the cheese press I was telling you about”.

This is not a discussion as to
the merits of various makes of Saw
Sets, or an in-depth discussion on
their use however before I get too
far into the point of this story I will
state that I feel that the Eclipse No
77 is one of the most common
found and also copied by other
manufacturers due to efficiency
and ease of use making it the
preferred choice of carpenters,
cabinet makers and other timber
using trades. I will concede that
the hard-point saws and Japanese
pull saws have lessened the
demand for handsaw sharpening

I first sighted this little plane several years back, its heel was catching a bit of light protruding from a hand-sewn green baize pouch where it had been kept since the day it was purchased back in the early 20’s.

Occasionally when sorting through clutter I discover little reminders of past adventures of shed visits and the anticipation of discovering what I’ve actually packed in the car when I get back to the shed; sure, I’m usually aware of what I’ve acquired, however occasionally there is a tool roughly wrapped in an oily cloth that has taken up the shape of the captive, or in this tale, a tattered cardboard box almost overlooked.

What’s in the box?

Does the packaging influence the purchaser, using graphics for retail or is it there to protect the contents and allow easier retail storage? Perhaps a balance of both. I sadly recall the days when new stocks of tool came into the High School Woodwork dept., the Rabone rules, planes, squares, chisels and others, all delegated to racks and their boxes seen as excess clutter.

At times we tend to flip through books and dismiss illustrations and photographs as they lack the attention grabbing appeal. Why is that? Often so much work and research may have been invested in an attempt to communicate a story or viewpoint and lost for the want of a focus. What better means to encourage further reading of an article, or for that matter, the whole text, is a relevant eye catching photograph?

Vine Cottage Tool Museum at Castlereagh, near Penrith, never ceases to amaze me, not just the buildings and the historical items that they house, but also of the determination and resilience of both Bob and Carol Dennis in their quest to educate folk on early European settlement in the Macquarie area, West of Sydney.

Saw-sets turn up at markets, car-boot sales, at the bottom of old tool boxes and even at the TTTG Saw Sharpening Workshops.

Wherever they surface, it’s near always necessary to consider a little maintenance even if it’s only a spot of oil on the moving parts. The H. DISSTON TRIUMPH Saw-set (Pat.Oct. 1899), the subject of this story needed major attention; I can’t complain as I managed to get it for a bargain price at the 2014 TTTG Social/Tool Swap day out at Brush Farm.