Bio and self confession of one Bob Sturgeon

    Greetings fellow lovers of old hand tools on and around the Porch.
My name is Bob Sturgeon, I am 65 years old and very happy to be on
this side of the grass.  I have been a member of the Old Tool List for
about ten months now and figured it was high time I dragged my old
rocking chair up past the porch coll-lums' and set a spell.

    I have been interested and foolin' around with old tools for about
40 years.  Have a real passion for old crosscut and rip saws from
about the 1950's on back.  really like the ones with the old etchings
and fancy scroll work.  Passion number two would have to be old claw
hammers from old hardware wholesalers like Belknap Bluegrass,
Winchester, E. C. Simmons, Shapleigh, Van Camp, Hibbard Spencer & Bartlett
(OVB) and others.  Take a lot of pleasure in cleaning up and bringing old
Saws and hammers back to life.

    My wife says she will have fun and make a ton of money selling it
all one day when I'm on my way to the Big Tool Room in the sky.

    My Grandpa and my Daddy were both professional carpenters all
of their lives. When I was in my early 20's I used to tag-a-long behind
My Daddy so I could learn a little bit here and there, but he could build
and put together things so fast I would have to say to him, Daddy stop
and show me what your doing.  Which he was always glad to do.  My
Daddy was a real believer in hand tools.  When he would come up to
help me build another shed of something, I would be the one rushing
off to the garage to get the circular saw, electric drill and extension
cord, and by the time I got all that hooked up, he would have already
cut off the board with a hand saw, drilled six holes in it with a brace and 
bit and nailed it up where it should go.  He always thought electric was to
slow to fool with, even though it was always there for him to use, didn't
see a need, when hand tools were faster and better to work with.

    Will try to chime in now and then, when you get around to talking
about sum-thin' I know a little about.

Thanks for listening,

Bob Sturgeon (In the Ohio Valley of Indiana)

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