OldTools Archive

Recent Bios FAQ

25188 Thomas E. McCluskey <tmcclus@j...> 1997‑08‑29 Newbie Bio(Long) Tom McCluskey
Howdy

I've been jumping off and on this porch for the past few days like an ill
mannered child. The polite and correct thing to do is to properly
introduce myself. With your collective permission I would like to set a
while here on the porch and do this proper. My name is Tom McCluskey and
I live in Midland, TX. If you draw a straight line from El Paso to Fort
Worth, Midland is halfway between. I work for a large independent oil
and gas company as a tax accountant.

I'm married and have a 14 year son that is just now learning about
Scary-Sharp (tm). As a father-son project we are refurbishing a no-name
#3 and #4 to add to his tool arsenal.

I am wrapping up another wonderful fun-filled action-packed tax season
and can't wait to get out in the garage and do some serious (work?,
play? damage?) with my recently acquired and refurbished #46. My wife
(SWMBO) is not a tool person but does have a love of antiques and pretty
much let's me do what I want when I have to make important decisions like
"Should I pay the electric bill or get that set of blades for my #46?" 
She can see the logic of getting the blades now. After all, blades are
scarce and electricity is always being made :-). She's third owner of a
1924 T Model runabout. (Another restoration project for me.)

I was a sports car buff/mechanic/restorer until the Oil Bust of the
'80's. When the money ran out,I parked my cars in the garage and am
bidding my time until finances and time is right to put them on the road
again.

As luck would have it. Something new/old came along and caught my
interest.
When Kate's mother passed away, she wanted one of her grandsons to have
his grandfather's tools. ( The grandfather was a carpenter in the '20s &
30s.) Kate's son (by a previous marriage) took the tools but wasn't
really interested in them. 
(His wife wanted him to take out the saws and desecrate them by painting
some "ob"scenery on them). I this time I had an used Compaq computer I
was trying to sell. Kate's son was interested but didn't have any money
and he offered to trade me a box of old tools for it. I was not having
any luck selling my computer ($350.) so I said fine thinking I might be
able to sell the tools easier.

Keep in mind that up to this point most of my woodworking talent was in
the line of woodbutchery with a Sk*ls*w. (Is this an oxymoron?) With
me, it was more like Unsk*ls*w. If you don't cut it straight the first
time, glue, wood putty and paint would take care of it.

When I opened the toolbox for the first time, I recognized some basic
tools (chisels, common planes, squares, saws) but there were several
items I didn't recognize. (compass plane, router plane, fence for a plane
similar to #386 but made by Starrett). Still thinking in terms of
dollars (what these tools were worth vs. what they represented), I ran to
the library and studied up on what I had.

Months passed, the toolbox just sat in the garage. The back screen door
was sticking in the frame due to humidity. Rather than get out the
B*ltS*nd*r, I remembered the plane I saw in the toolbox. I had seen my
father use one to trim down a door so I thought "What the heck.!"

On the first stroke, the wood just slid off in a paperthin strip. I was
amazed. I had "used" a plane before, but obviously not one that had been
properly sharpened and tuned. I was so curious, I went back to the
library and studied on how to sharpen and tune a plane. The rest they
say is history.

Sorry for being longwinded. I have a couple of questions and I'll mosey
on.
1. Somewhere I saw a post or a letter on " How to become a Galoot" and
another "You know you're a Galoot when---." Could someone please direct
to where I can find them or send me a copy? (I don't have internet
access, just e-mail).

2. I need to put a new offset handle on my broadaxe and Kent hatchet. My
research up to this point indicates that I need green ash or hickory (not
common in the desert Southwest) in order to get the proper bend. Has
anyone had any luck with bending a seasoned handle or possibly a source
for a premade one.?

3.Does FOYBIPO require the infill to be a Norris? I figure the galootish
way is to make your own and after reading Kingshot's book on making
planes and looking at the pictures I'm game to try with a little
assistance from from your collective wisdom. 

Waiting to experiance the FMM feeding frenzy with the knowledge of what's
going on. 

Off in quest of tools

Tom



Recent Bios FAQ