The era of walnut and steel

[clang444]

So I was looking around at the local Goodwill and saw this sitting in the tool section. It reminded me that it's not just guns that went from wood to polymer construction:

I can't imagine there are too many putty knifes for sale at Home Depot with burled walnut handles. The brass rivets add a nice touch.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

A carpenter I've known for a little over 40 years had a set of hand made wood chisels that ranged from 1/4" to 2" by 1/8's. They were made by his grandfather as a college graduation gift in 1962. When lined up in ascending order, the beautiful walnut grain showed they came from a single plank! After I met him in 1975, I got him in touch with a machinist to help him sharpen, true, and reharden them. He had several hand made/custom tools by the master craftsman he called Gramps.

Ivan

 

[DWalt]

I have several putty knives with riveted wood handles, but no fancy grain in the wood. I've had them forever. Not long ago I bought a putty knife at Dollar Tree for a dollar for a special purpose (shaping it into another tool). It's surprisingly good quality even though it has a plastic handle. The steel made it tough to cut the blade into another shape, as it is file-hard and springy. I went through three Dremel abrasive cutoff discs shaping it.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Nice wood and brass rivets!
That is a nice one!
I have some Disston Handsaws which over 100 years old.
But I don't have a putty- putty nearly that nice!

 

[Rustyt1953]

Like Ivan, I had a set of luthier's wood chisels made of Tulipwood. They were so pretty that they made you want to use them.

 

[H Richard]

I have one just like that, left from my dad who was a painting contractor, but passed away in 1951. I don't loan it out.

 

[Drm50]

I got several old putty knives and chisels with wooden handles The putty
knives are nice but I buy dollar store jobs and throw them away when done. At $1 it's not worth the time to clean. Chisels I'm more of a sticker
I have good wooden handles and good plastic handles. I keep them sharp
and have leather sheaths for them. Dollar Store chisels are junk.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

I still have and use my grandfather's tools, many of the ones that I bought have been returned or trashed. Planned obsolescence killed craftsmanship.

 

[DWalt]

My favorite old tool is a red plastic handled wood chisel which was a part of a Sears kid's tool kit that I got as a Christmas present back in the early 1950s. I have kept that chisel all these years and have used it a great deal. And the plastic handle has never cracked. No idea what happened to the rest of that tool set nor what other tools there were in it.