OldTools Archive

Recent Bios FAQ

175115 "Ken Meltsner" <meltsner@a...> 2007‑12‑10 BIO Update: Ken Meltsner
Tis the season to update bios, tra-la-la-la.

Last time was four years ago when I was starting to slide down the
galootish slope.  A *bunch* of garage sales later, as well as a few
judicious purchases on that auction site, and there are a lot more
tools that there used to be.  Buckets full, in fact, since I took a
"no tool left behind" approach at first.

I'm a forty-ish defrocked metallurgist (I work with software now).
I've messed around with a lot of materials:  brazing steel sculpture
(ugly), blowing glass (thick and lopsided), refinery corrosion, and
titanium superplastic forming. Since I no longer work with real
materials in my day job, I've gone back to woodworking as a hobby.  I
now own a dozen or so planes (#3 through #7, router plane, Knight
scrub plane, random woodies, and a brand-new Lee Valley bullnose)., a
similar number of old saws, mostly late 19th-century Disstons, a
couple of miter boxes, a few back saws, many chisels (some even have
handles!), and so on....  I told you I liked estate sales.

Built since 2003:

*  White oak book cases (built-in, two double units) for the living
room, finished with Danish oil and shellac.

*  Loft bed and two book cases for my youngest son.

*  Lots of shavings and dust.

*  A Cub Scout den's worth of sanding blocks

*  Two big crates for shipping FIRST robots to tournaments

and a few other things -- not too productive, I'm afraid, but I've had
a lot of fun.

In terms of the great Normite-Neandertal debate, I fall into the
"blended woodworking" category, although as I learn more, I tend to
use hand tools more.  I have the usual tailed apprentices, including a
multi-purpose one born in Dayton, OH, although nothing new after my
great enlightenment.

I grew up in Northern California, and made cutting boards in shop
class.  Never realized that hand planes didn't come pre-sharpened,
unfortunately, and ignored hand tools for a long time.  I now live
near Milwaukee (along with two GITs and the usual SWMBO*) which is a
darned fine place to find old tools* and great hardwoods.

My top gloats:

*  I once traded the Rev. Hock some metallurgy consulting (alloy
standard lookup) for a plane iron -- and a darned fine iron it is.
He's recently come back for more info, but I may not be so greedy this
time.

*  Found what appeared to be a "patent-pending" Starrett combination
square -- very early model -- and traded it for a bunch of stuff  ($1
became $75 or more, and a great story to boot).

*  Picked up a silversmith's hammer for a buck, a Starrett 4-foot rule
for $10, and traded them both for a Lie-Nielsen rabbet plane -- first
tool that my wife said was "beautiful."

Right now, I'm trying not to be a collector -- I love old tools, I
love weird wood, I love the stories, and I love building stuff, but I
don't have anything that I'd like to put into a glass case.  If I do
find something collectible, I try to trade it or sell it to pay for my
garage sale addiction.  If it's a duplicate and not collectible, but
still useful (and doesn't cost too much), I buy it and give it away,
or sell it near cost so I can buy more junk.

Some day I'll organize everything, but until then, I'm just glad I
have a good memory.

Ken Meltsner
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Recent Bios FAQ