Favorite Web Sites
This is a page that will be in continuing development, and contains links to various pages that I find informative and interesting. Initially the links are in rough alphabetical order, but as the number grows it will develop some sort of coherency (let's hope!). Enjoy.
Josh Clark has another fine resource devoted to saws--Harvey Peace Saws. It features a nice biography and company history, saw models collected by Josh, and a great list of references for the Harvey Peace enthusiast. Josh also has lots of other things here, including an excellent Tools for Sale list. He is a competent, honest and knowledgeable tool dealer.
Dick Dickerson, a native of Middletown, Connecticut, is putting together a web page detailing the histories of the plethora of tool makers working in that city, largely in the latter half of the nineteenth century. It is a "must see" for those researching some of the little known tool makers working there.
Martin Donnelly. Anyone interested in old tools has to visit this site on a regular basis. The history of Martin's twice weekly posting of a list of tools for sale makes a nice resource for anyone researching a newly found tool. Surely the premier tool marketeer of old tools, Martin has significantly raised the bar on tool prices. And, he is a pretty nice guy to boot. Interestingly, my paternal grandmother was also a Donnelly. Her husband, my grandfather, completed an exhaustive genealogy of the Donnellys, and determined that the Irish tree really developed from an Italian 14th century rootstock--"Donelli."
Cliff Fales. For many years Cliff researched important inventors and makers of spiral screw drivers, writing many articles about them for Gristmill and other publications. Now retired, he has moved this material to a new website, so that it remains an important resource for tool guys.
George's Basement. The creation of a true iconoclast, George Langford's pages hold a host of goodies including some great information and techniques useful for the home workshop. High on my list of oft-visited sites is George's type study of Millers Falls No 2 hand drills. George is a metallurgist by training and trade. He lives in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, and haunts eBay. We have spent some very pleasant days together roaming the Brimfield Antique Fair.
New Guinea Tribal Art. Richard Aldridge in Australia has a wonderful web site devoted to the tribal art of New Guinea as well as the rest of the Pacific region. Questions about ethnographic artifacts from this broad region can find answers on this site, along with some commentary and sources of original data. Richard is very knowledgible and is quite good about providing quick and authoritative answers to questions. It is a great site and resource.
Patrick Leach. Another must have site, Patrick's "Blood & Gore" is the most authoritative web source on info on the complete line of Stanley Planes. Another sterling fellow, Patrick is generous with his knowledge and is a "straight shooter." In addition to the Stanley lore, Patrick sells lots of old tools, and some spiffy new ones of his own design and manufacture.
Oldtools Discussion List. Selfstyled "galoots" gather on a virtual porch and discuss various topics relative to finding, using, collecting, maintaining old hand tools. Tools for sale and 'wanna buys" are also topics here. Mention of p*w*r tools is verboten.
Tom Price's The Galoot's Progress. Another long-time oldtools galoot, Tom has put together a nice page with information, fun, and links to other sites.
Randy Roeder. Randy's Millers Falls pages are the primary source of information about the planes, braces, drills and other tools produced over the long production history of the Millers Falls Co. The plane type study and lists of braces are particularly interesting to me.
Richard Slaney's Rhode Island Toolmaker's Page. Rick is the consummate student of Rhode Island history, especially with respect to wooden plane makers. This page that he is developing contains a wealth of articles about Rhode Island plane makers, and lots of other goodies besides. Highly recommended.
Erik von Sneidern is developing a very interesting and useful web page devoted to Disston saws. It is a great source for information about this company and its products.
Peter Taran. Speaking of Disston saws, Peter Taran's page features saws for sale, but also a lot of information about Disston saws, their history, and tips for sharpening them. The site contains some of the articles that Pete has published in Fine Tool Journal over the years.
Brian Welch of Worcester, Mass. has developed a wonderful website with lots of very specific information about early tool makers from the Worcester region. Brian's affiliation with Harvard University provides him with wonderful library resources, and his research is first-rate. His site presently features histories of Buck Bros, Simonds Saw Mfg, and T. H. Witherby, with more planned.
More to Come