Antique Tool Exhibit at Museum in KC (lots of photos)

rivett608 · May 20, 2009

For those that have watched this come together it is finally finished and open!!!!!!! "Labour, Craftsman, Artist - 300 years of Fine Tools"....This is at the Toy and Miniature Museum in Kansas City, Mo..... it runs from May 20th to Aug. 30 2009...... it may be one of the largest Tool exhibits mounted by a museum in about 20 years........ So here is a tour for those that can not get here.....

The opening poster.....

The 1st case is Books and Catalogs...... it includes Plumier's 1701 book on the Lathe, Bergeron's Manual du Tourner, a 1801 Peter Stubs catalog..... a E. Walker surface gauge and catalog.... a Sweet's micrometer and more.....

The 2nd case contains some signed tools.... from an engraved silver Drafting set, a stamp maker's test rule and the owners stamp of Lyman Dickerman who's tool chest can be found a few feet away....

The 3rd case is Drawing Instruments..... these date from about 1675 to the early 1900s.... and a few drawings....

The 4th case is Lyman Dickerman's tool chest...... born in 1830 this Carpenter/joiner fought at Gettysburg where he lost a leg..... this may be why some of his tools are unused....... a few even have the prices still marked on them..... he also had great taste in tools as he bought the finest quality offered in his day....

rivett608 · May 20, 2009

The 5th case is a assortment of Planes and Inclinometers....... Wooden Planes include Nicholsons, a Chelor, Fuller, Carpenter and more...... Plow Planes are Walker, Stanley Miller's patents in all three flavors and more.... and more....

The next case is Machinist Tools!!!!!!!!

Early 19th century tools by Peter Stubs...... many show up in that 1801 catalog!!!!

Shop Made tools....for those that wanted something a little different...

Surface Gauges.... lots of them

And Miniature Tools....... the little chest in the shape of a book is not mine... We had to borrow it...... and the pocket compendium of Machinist tools is by Wilkinson, patented in 1868 it is the only example known...

rivett608 · May 21, 2009

And some Speed and Test Indicators..... along with one of the earliest set of gauge block made.... these were by Major Hoke when he was at the National Bureau of Standards in 1919...

Some Square including one of Starrett's very first ones he made in the back of Richarson's shop in 1879...... less than a 1/2 dozen are known....

A case full off Lathes, a Minty Fret Saw..... and more

A Zimmerman Patent Tool Chest..... sold by Frasse & Co in NYC..... this was the original patent for folding tills like you see in a tackle box....

A long shot of more of it...

rivett608 · May 21, 2009

Power Tools ....... they look like everything from motors with wood handles and chucks added too all the way to those the shape of the fastest and most powerful streamline train of the day.....

And Saws..... these things weigh what seems like a ton...

A Starrett case full of their tools.....

On the other side of the room is a case full of Micrometers.....

rivett608 · May 21, 2009

The last room is contains the Miniature Tools of Paul Hamler......

And his full sized copy of a solid Ivory and Silver plow plane and it's miniature...... note the scrimshaw.....

This would not have been possible without help from lots of people....... here are a few and a dedication to my late friend Ted Crom......

Sorry for the big photos and so many of them...... but if this is you'er only chance to "see" this I thought you would want them big.

Thanks for all your help and encouragement...... Thanks Bill

Dave A · May 21, 2009

Thanks Rivett, since I will not be able to see them in person.

To say the display of tools is awesome seems to be somehow inadequate.

Mcandrew1894 · May 21, 2009

Thank you for your time and consideration to help assemble such a beautiful exhibit and then share it with us. It's great! and my kids will love this too!

Dave

rayman · May 21, 2009

Very nice exhibit in deed!!!!

I have a 12" square just like the one in the display of sqaures which appears to be the second one from the right with the scroll work. Its a nice piece to use for finding centers of circles.

hms50 · May 21, 2009

Wow!

This is my kind of art! Thanks for sharing!

kike · May 21, 2009

Thanks, I like too much . These old hand tools, today are art-work 8excuse my bad english )

robinr · May 21, 2009

That is a fabulous exhibit, I wish I was able to go. Which prompts me to ask, is there a catalogue available for sale.

Ed Hobbs · May 22, 2009

Bill,

Wow!! Great job on the exhibit. Just wish you all were a little closer to NC.

Glad you dedicated it to Ted. He was a great guy. He and his son use to come to our July M-WTCA meeting here in Raleigh until he could not get around anymore. He will be missed.

Good luck with the EAIA meeting. Hope it goes very well.

Any plans to document the exhibit sort of like Colonial Williamsburg did when they had the exhibit on "Working Wood in the 18th Century" and a book came out of it??

Thanks Ed

PS.. The question now is what museum will take on the next antique tool exhibit? Colonial Williamsburg did the one on working wood in the 18th century some time ago. Who will be next??

rivett608 · May 22, 2009

I felt somehow even with Ted gone he had to be a part of this, Nonie (his wife) said the other day that he would be "there floating around somewhere" in spirit. One way I described him during the opening comments was...... he was such an influence on me that he cost me 10s of thousands of dollars "making" me go out and buy this stuff.

The sad part is no book is planned, there is no money or time for it. I wish there was because I thought the two from CWF were great......

As to what museum will be next????????????????...... all we can do is hope.

rln147 · May 22, 2009

Hi Bill,
Thanks so much for your photo tour. The exhibit is really superb. I hope to be able to make it to KC before August to see this in person.
I've got a surface gauge collection myself, so I really studied this photo.

Thanks again for all your work in making this exhibit come to life.

Ralph L. Nelson

rayman · May 22, 2009

I'm a bit intregued by the circular saw with the chainsaw bar on it....

Vince · May 23, 2009

Bill,

Great job. I wish I had time to visit.

I was thinking how neat your arrangement in the cases were when it hit me. The power tools don't have any power cords. Did you removed them for the display? That must have taken some time. You probably could not do that with modern power tools.

Thanks for taking the time to share,

Vince

rivett608 · May 23, 2009

The collector that owns (not me) the power tool collection is interested mainly in the shapes and designs of them.... not using them. And since his day job is a lawyer he clipped the cords so they could never do any harm to anyone...... I think this is a wise decision when you look at some of these things........ it also makes them so much easier to display.... and keep in mind as with just about everything museums show it is only part of the collection, in other words he has a lot more and if they all had cords that would be one room full of wires........

Thanks all of you for all your nice comments about my exhibit.

Milacron · May 24, 2009

Wow...very nice... :drool5:

jimboggs · May 24, 2009

Rivett,

This is, without question, the 2cd most beautiful thing I've ever seen. Only comes in behind the birth of my daughter and son, and is equaled only by a private collection of machine tools I was fortunate enough to once see in Mass. (I've yet to visit the holy of holies, A.P.M. in Vermont)

A thousand thank yous, sir.

Jim

PS. I still have an aluminum case Craftsman belt sander I use infrequently and once also had a router of the same vintage. Though I had the router rebuilt, it was missing it's fan and got extremely hot, extremely fast. I ditched it finally, wish I had known then that people were collecting these tools.

Tyrone Shoelaces · May 24, 2009

Rivett, that's wonderful. Just when you think nobody values craftmanship you come across a display as exquisite as this. I'd love to be able to visit one day, your photo's will have to do for now. Many thanks and best wishes Tyrone.

Antique Tool Exhibit at Museum in KC (lots of photos)

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Titanium

Stainless

Cast Iron

Cast Iron

Plastic

Cast Iron

Cast Iron

Diamond

Plastic

Cast Iron

Aluminum

Diamond

Administrator

Stainless

Diamond

Similar threads